Judge blocks social media age-verification law in Arkansas

Courts skeptical of online age verification laws, no matter how well-intentioned

Any decent adult, whether a parent or not, knows the threats to minors that lurk online. No graphic details are needed here about the internet horrors that tech-savvy children can easily stumble upon or, depending on their age, seek out…

Bills would amend Arkansas social media law, create right for parents to sue platforms

Rep. Jon Eubanks of Paris (left) and Sen. Tyler Dees of Siloam Springs, both Republicans, talk to reporters in the Arkansas Capitol on Jan. 29, 2025. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate) Two days after a federal judge permanently blocked Arkansas’ Social Media Safety Act, state lawmakers filed two bills Wednesday aimed at expanding social media protections for children. Senate Bill 611 would amend Act 689 of 2023 (the Social Media Safety Act), appa…

Federal judge rules social media age-verification law unconstitutional · American Wire News

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders introduced legislation on social media protections after a federal judge blocked an age-verification law as unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks in the Western District of Arkansas said that enacting the Social Media Safety Act, also known as Act 689, would violate the First Amendment “because it is a facially content-based restriction on speech that is not narrowly tailored to serve a comp…

Federal judge rules Arkansas social media age-verification law unconstitutional

Days after a federal judge blocked a social media age-verification law in Arkansas, Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders introduced legislation amending the law "currently enjoined in court."Sanders signed the Social Media Safety Act, also known as Act 689, into law in 2023, according to a media release. It required parental consent before minors could create new social media accounts. U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks of the Western Distr…

Judge blocks social media age-verification law in Arkansas

A federal judge in Arkansas permanently blocked a law requiring age verification for social media accounts, deeming it unconstitutional. The law was stopped by U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks of the Western District of Arkansas. In a Monday ruling, the judge said the law, known as Act 689, would violate the First Amendment rights…

Federal Judge Strikes Down Arkansas Social Media Verification Law

The judge has ruled that the law is unconstitutional.