( October 20, 2026, 22:31 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: New York, Alabama, Arizona, and other states told a US appeals court that social media platforms can’t show that their engagement optimization algorithms are expressive and protected under the First Amendment. The states filed a brief in support of maintaining California’s Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act, saying that statute’s addictive-feed requirements do not regulate the messages or ideas expressed on the platforms. “Because S.B. 976 regulates only the use of minors’ data, it would not impact platforms’ ability to enforce their own preferred ‘content moderation’ policies, including plaintiffs’ efforts to prioritize content that ‘encourage[s] kindness and respect’ or remove content that promotes ‘suicide, self-injury, eating disorders, or violence,’” the states said.See attached file. ...
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