Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologized to parents at a January Senate hearing, then lobbied against legislation to protect kids online. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

By Ruth Reader

12/25/2024 12:00 PM EST

In the waning days of 2024, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his company Meta took on 91 senators, a bipartisan group of representatives, President-elect Donald Trump’s son, Trump ally Elon Musk, and a coalition of parents who thought this would be the year Congress passed legislation to protect kids online.

Zuckerberg and Meta won.

Congress left Washington without passing the Kids Online Safety Act after coming closer than ever to imposing rules on social media to prevent the addiction and mental health harms the sites are widely agreed to cause. Zuckerberg can thank House Speaker Mike J