A federal appeals court has barred Florida officials from enforcing a new Florida statute that prohibits social media companies such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube from allowing youths under 14 to create their own accounts on such sites.
Judge Mark Walker of the Northern District of Florida issued his order siding with plaintiffs NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) on June 3. In turn, the defendant, state Attorney General James Uthmeier, has indicated he would appeal the decision to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.
The law, which passed the Legislature as House Bill 3, applies to social media platforms with “addictive features” such as infinite scrolling, push notifications, auto-play video and live-streaming. It prohibits those under age 14 from holding accounts on such platforms and bars 14- to 15-year-olds from creating such accounts unless a parent or guardian provides consent.
Supporters argued that the law is needed to prevent psychological harm to youth through excessive use of social media platforms and exposure to algorithms that continuously select user content.
But Walker concluded that the law went too far in burdening speech protected by the First Amendment.
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Author: Faith Novak
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