Arkansas
Arkansas Judge Kills Social Media Age Verification Law, Says It Violates the First Amendment
A judge in Arkansas has shut down the state’s law requiring some social networks to verify the ages of those in the state to create an account and ensure that minors have parental permission. Judge Timothy L. Brooks ruled the law, dubbed the Social Media Safety Act, was too broad as to violate the First Amendment rights of internet users and was so vague it was unclear which social networks the law would cover.
“Arkansas takes a hatchet to adults’ and minors’ protected speech alike though the Constitution demands it use a scalpel,” the US District Court for the Western District of Arkansas wrote in an opinion issued Monday.
Lawmakers across the United States and abroad have sought to protect minors against the potential long-term harms posed by social media, and smartphone access writ large. Utah recently passed a law that requires app stores from Apple and Google to verify the ages of users before they can download apps and requires minors to have accounts connected to their parents. Meta was in favor of this law because it put the onus on other companies to verify users; it was opposed to Arkansas’ law. States and school districts across the country have also been implementing laws that prohibit students from accessing their phones during the school day to eliminate distractions and potentially combat bullying.
While social media has been linked to increased mental health risks in adolescents, many teens have reported benefits to using the services, such as finding like-minded communities where they feel belonging. Moreover, critics of age-verification laws say while there are risks to minors using social media, these types of laws infringe on everyone’s right to privacy—in states like Florida and Texas, where laws have passed requiring porn sites to verify the ages of users, major services including PornHub have chosen to shut down rather than make users hand over personally identifiable information. In an age when the White House is willing to retaliate against individuals over their free expression, the risks of requiring users to verify their identities are clear.
“Rather than targeting content that is harmful to minors, Act 689 [the Social Media Safety Act] simply impedes access to content writ large,” Brooks said.
There are effectively no federal privacy laws concerning internet platforms, with the recent collapse of 23andMe highlighting the problem. It was recently announced that as part of the DNA testing company’s bankruptcy, genetic data from customers could be sold off, potentially to be used against individuals.
Judge Brooks also noted the law was too vague, pointing out that the state’s attorney general believed Snapchat was exempt from the requirements, while the law’s co-sponsor thought it was covered.
“I respect the court’s decision, and we are evaluating our options,” Attorney General Tim Griffin said in a statement.
Social media companies have continued to implement tools to combat bullying, such as by allowing users to restrict others’ access to their content. During the Biden administration, the U.S. Surgeon General recommended social networks should display warning labels highlighting the potential harms for adolescents, and potentially redesign their apps to address problems like insecurity that can be caused by beauty filters and other tools.
Some who believe social media is harmful to adolescents argue that laws like age verification and smartphone bans during the school day are not addressing the actual problem. Teenagers will get around age checks, and if they cannot use their phone during the school day, they will just use it more after class. These laws do not address the root cause, they argue, which is the inherent design of social media apps.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Hazel Maxey picked out toys at the annual Santa’s Holiday Gift Drive.
“With toys, we can bring a little bit more cheer to a family, especially the children,” Maxey said
The toys might seem like a small gesture, but they’re actually a big deal for the children Maxey’s organization serves.
“We’re able to reach more children, help children and bring more cheer to the children that we serve so we are very grateful,” she said.
Maxey is the executive director of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Southeast Arkansas in Pine Bluff. For the past three decades, the center has served thousands of children who are victims of sexual and physical abuse.
Hazel Maxey, executive director children’s advocacy center of southeast Arkansas:
“We do forensic interviews, sexual assault exams, therapy and advocacy services so that we can help children in their healing process,” Maxey explained.
In 2024, they saw at least 700 children. Maxey believes the numbers will even higher by the end of this year.
“Children should have the right to be heard and believed and supported because children shouldn’t be hurt because of child maltreatment,” she said.
The team’s ultimate goal is to help children heal so they don’t carry their trauma into adulthood. That is why Rainwater Holt & Sexton has named the Children’s Advocacy Center of Southeast Arkansas as this month’s Difference Maker.
Arkansas
WholeHogSports Freshman of the Year: Joscelyn Roberson starred for Arkansas gymnastics after Olympics | Whole Hog Sports
Separate vehicle crashes in South Arkansas in the days before Christmas claimed the lives of six people.
Information was compiled from preliminary fatal crash summaries posted by Arkansas State Police.
On Saturday, Dec. 20, a Texarkana pedestrian was struck and killed on Arkansas Highway 82. A report says 47-year-old Christopher Lamin was walking in the roadway near its intersection with Vanderbilt Road when an eastbound 2010 Toyota struck and killed him. Weather and road conditions were clear when the collision occurred at 8 p.m.
On Sunday, Dec. 21, a Nashville woman died in a crash at the Nevada County town of Emmet. Marshauntie T. Sanders, 30, was traveling on US Highway 67 when the 2015 Ford Edge she was driving left the roadway and struck an embankment. The weather and roads were clear when the crash happened at 1:16 a.m.
A second crash early Sunday morning on US Highway 79 left a Magnolia man dead and a Waldo woman injured. Therran R. Moreno, 19, was driving a 2013 Chevy Tahoe north when the vehicle left the roadway and struck an embankment, overturning the vehicle and ejecting Moreno. His passenger, Summer Murphy, also 19, was transported to Magnolia Regional Center for treatment to unlisted injuries. The weather was clear and the roads were dry at the time of the crash, at 3:07 a.m.
A third car accident Sunday morning killed two Star City residents in the Desha County city of Dumas. James Dale Wilcox Jr., 63, was driving a 2023 Chevy Trailblazer north on US Highway 165 when he veered left of center, drove off the highway and collided with an embankment at Dan Gill Drive. Both Wilcox and his wife, Brenda, 59, were killed in the crash. Roads and weather conditions were clear at the time of the crash, 9:48 a.m.
A one-vehicle wreck on Arkansas Highway 51 in Hot Spring County left one person dead Monday, Dec. 22. Matthew Joseph Buffington, 40, of Malvern, was driving a 2021 Jeep Compass when he drove up an embankment, sending the vehicle airborne and striking two trees. Weather and road conditions were clear and dry at the time of the crash, 12:20 a.m.
Editor’s Note: Preliminary Arkansas State Police fatality reports sometimes contain information that turns out to be inaccurate. Typical errors include spelling errors in names, or incorrect ages; outdated hometown information; vehicle direction of travel; and incident times. The ASP sometimes corrects these errors in updated reports. ASP reports omit names of passengers or drivers who are not injured, even in instances when uninjured drivers may appear to be at fault. The reports also omit names of juveniles who were injured or killed, although we report those names when obtained through other sources.
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