Utah social media laws/ child protection social media regulations/ Utah social media restrictions/ Newslooks/ Utah/ A federal judge has temporarily blocked Utah’s social media laws, aimed at protecting children’s mental health, deeming them unconstitutional. The laws required age verification and restricted account features for minors. The block comes as part of a lawsuit from NetChoice, a trade association representing tech companies like Meta and Google.
Utah Social Media Laws Blocked: Quick Looks
- Judge’s Ruling: A federal judge blocked Utah’s new social media laws, citing First Amendment concerns.
- Age Verification: The laws required social media platforms to verify user ages and restrict features for minors.
- State’s Intent: Utah aimed to protect children’s mental health, but the judge ruled it violated constitutional rights.
- NetChoice Lawsuit: NetChoice, representing tech giants like Meta and Google, challenged the laws, resulting in the injunction.
- Future Impact: Utah’s governor vows to continue the fight, while similar laws in other states have also been blocked.
Federal Judge Blocks Utah’s Social Media Laws Targeting Child Protection
Deep Look
A federal judge has issued a temporary block on Utah’s new social media laws, which were designed to protect minors from the potential harms of social media but were ruled unconstitutional by the court. U.S. District Court Judge Robert Shelby granted a preliminary injunction on Tuesday, halting the implementation of the laws, which were set to take effect on October 1, pending further legal proceedings.
The laws, which are part of the Utah Minor Protection in Social Media Act, were intended to mandate social media platforms to verify the ages of users and impose restrictions on the accounts of minors. Features like direct messaging and autoplay were to be disabled by default for minors, and parents would be given access to their children’s accounts. Additionally, the laws included a daily usage limit of three hours and a blackout window between 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. for Utah minors.
However, the court ruled that these laws violated the First Amendment rights of the social media companies involved. In his decision, Judge Shelby acknowledged Utah’s desire to safeguard young people from the challenges of social media but stated that the state had not demonstrated a compelling interest that justified infringing on constitutional rights. He added that the laws placed an unfair burden on the companies to prove their content did not contribute to children’s mental health issues.
Republican Governor Spencer Cox expressed his disappointment with the ruling but reiterated his commitment to continue the legal battle. “This is a battle worth waging,” Cox said, pointing to the harm that social media platforms can inflict on children’s mental health. Cox criticized social media companies for prioritizing profits over child safety, stating that they could voluntarily implement similar protective measures.
The lawsuit challenging Utah’s laws was filed by NetChoice, a nonprofit organization representing major internet companies such as Google, Meta (parent company of Facebook and Instagram), and others. NetChoice argued that the age verification requirements would force Utah residents to submit more personal information, increasing the risk of data breaches. The organization has been involved in multiple lawsuits opposing similar social media regulations across other states, obtaining injunctions in California, Arkansas, Ohio, Mississippi, and Texas.
NetChoice’s director of litigation, Chris Marchese, expressed hope that policymakers would now focus on finding meaningful and constitutional solutions for regulating social media use. “With this now sixth injunction against these overreaching laws, we hope policymakers will focus on meaningful and constitutional solutions for the digital age,” Marchese said.
The laws would have significantly shifted the burden of proof onto social media companies in cases of children experiencing negative mental health outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, or self-harm. Parents could sue platforms if they believed that algorithmically curated content contributed to their child’s mental health decline. Under the laws, social media companies could face fines of at least $10,000 per case if they were found liable for adverse mental health impacts.
Utah’s efforts to regulate social media follow growing concerns about the impact of digital platforms on young users. Earlier this year, the state filed lawsuits against TikTok and Meta, accusing them of using addictive features to lure children and contributing to widespread mental health issues. These lawsuits mirror the concerns that prompted the creation of the 2024 Utah Minor Protection in Social Media Act, which sought to address those issues after a 2023 law was struck down for being unconstitutional.
The preliminary injunction means the laws will not take effect as scheduled, and their future will depend on the outcome of the legal proceedings. Utah, along with other states pursuing similar legislation, will need to navigate complex legal and constitutional challenges to regulate how social media companies manage content for minors.
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