The Supreme Court has denied NetChoice’s request to reinstate a lower court’s order protecting social media giants like Meta, X, and YouTube from the new requirements in an emergency ruling. The court did not explain its order or disclose the vote count, as is typical in emergency cases. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a solo opinion cautioning that NetChoice is likely to succeed on its First Amendment claims, even though he was siding against the group at this stage. The Mississippi law establishes requirements for social media companies to confirm their users’ ages, and minors must have express consent from a parent or guardian to use the platform. Covered websites must strive to eliminate their exposure to harmful material or face a $10,000 fine. U.S. District Judge Halil Suleyman Ozerden found the law unconstitutional as applied to NetChoice members YouTube, X, Snapchat, Reddit, Pinterest, Nextdoor, Dreamwidth, and Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.
The current status of Mississippi’s social media law remains unchanged.
