• by Wendy Davis , Yesterday

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin this week appealed a decision blocking enforcement of a law that would have prohibited social media platforms from using algorithms or other features that could "cause" a user to commit suicide, purchase drugs, develop an eating disorder, or become addicted to social media.

U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Brooks in Fayetteville ruled last month that the law likely violates the First Amendment, writing that the statute's provisions "clearly impose content-based restrictions on speech."

Griffin will ask the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse that ruling and reinstate the law. His office hasn't yet made substantive arguments about the statute to the appellate court.

Griffin enjoined enforcement at the request of the tech group NetChoice, which counts Google, Meta, Snap and other large platforms as members.

The organization said in its written bid for an injunction that the statute is "hopelessly vague," arguing that companies can't predict whether a feature "will cause some unidentified user to purchase a controlled substance, develop an eating disorder, engage in self-harm, or become 'addicted' to the online service."

"By banning speech based on what impact it ultimately has on a user of the online service, the law sweeps in all manner of constitutionally protected expression," the group argued.

"Google could be liable for disseminating clips of 'Pineapple Express' on YouTube, Meta could be liable for recommending motivational exercise videos on Instagram, and Nextdoor could be liable for publishing advertisements for allergy medication," NetChoice added.

Griffin's office opposed NetChoice's request, arguing that the law restricts platforms' "conduct," not speech.

The statute "regulates design features that social media companies know are causing negative consequences," the attorney general argued in papers filed last year.

Brooks rejected that argument. He said in his ruling that NetChoice "has shown that it is likely to prevail on its First Amendment claim" and that "its members are likely to suffer irreparable harm" if the law takes effect.

Earlier in 2025, Brooks permanently blocked a prior version of Arkansas's social media law. That measure would have required social platforms to verify users' ages, and prohibited teens under 18 from having social media accounts without parental permission.