A US judge blocks parts of California's SB 976, a law to protect kids from social media, over companies' 1A rights, but okays banning addictive feeds for minors
Social-media companies serving California minors face the immediate prospect of complying with the surviving ban on addictive feeds, while the enjoined SB 976 provisions cannot be enforced for now.
California retains a narrower child-safety tool than the law originally provided; advocates and regulated platforms gain a clearer, though still partial, judicial boundary around the statute.
Second-order effects
Lawmakers pursuing youth-safety rules are likely to favor product-design restrictions that can survive scrutiny over provisions that more directly burden platforms' speech or editorial choices.
Platforms may separate feed-design controls from other youth-facing features in their compliance planning, rather than treating SB 976 as a single all-or-nothing mandate.
Third-order effects
The decision adds to a developing split between regulation of platform design and regulation touching speech: durable child-safety policy may depend on whether courts view a requirement as controlling access or compelling editorial conduct.
If similar rulings accumulate, state-by-state youth protections could become a patchwork of enforceable design rules and blocked speech-related mandates, increasing pressure for clearer legal standards.
The trend: US child-safety regulation is increasingly being tested in court, with the viability of individual rules turning on how closely they regulate platform design rather than protected expression.
NetChoice had sued California on November 12, 2024, over a law passed earlier this year that imposes harsh digital surveillance and limits access to information online. [image]
Starting on Jan 1 2027, social media companies will be required to provide chronological feeds to minors rather than algorithmic feeds. I hope us elders can choose to return to strictly chronological feeds as well! 😆
We've secured an early win defending California's law protecting children from social media addiction. This addiction is not an accident; it is fed by algorithms deployed by Big Tech. #SB976 https://oag.ca.gov/...
A California federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction against a state law banning social media companies from sending push notifications to minors during certain times of day, saying it likely violates the First Amendment: https://storage.courtlistener.com/ ... [image]
The judge also issued a preliminary injunction against a part of the law that would require social media companies to disclose certain statistics about their minor users: [image]
California's landmark law allows young people to intentionally develop the relationship they want with social media, rather than the relationship that is most profitable for companies using tricks and traps to glue young people's eyes to their screens.
Judge Upholds California's Ban on Addictive Feeds for Minors. A tech lobbying group representing Google, Meta, and Snap challenged SB 976 on First Amendment grounds …