No, the Meta/Youtube Lawsuit Verdict Does Not Mean We Should Pass KOSA or Repeal Section 230

Human rights advocates have been sounding the alarm for years about the immense harm done by Big Tech companies’ surveillance-capitalist business model, not just to kids but to our democracy and the rights of marginalized people. It’s good that people are suing and winning in court to reduce the power of these companies and force them to change their policies.

But unfortunately, this court decision finding Meta and Youtube guilty for the design of their platforms is already being weaponized by lawmakers who are hellbent on passing dangerous and misguided Internet censorship legislation, like the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), online ID check mandates like the SCREEN Act, and attacks on Section 230.

These bills would actually give Meta and YouTube more power by crushing smaller competitors like Bluesky. Additionally, they would make kids less safe by cutting them off from lifesaving online mental health resources, while doing nothing to address the root cause of Big Tech harm: their surveillance-capitalist business model.

The best way to protect kids (and everyone else) online is to pass strong privacy legislation that prevents these companies from collecting so much data in the first place and using that data to power manipulative and addictive recommendation algorithms.

We have long supported legislation that cracks down specifically on manipulative design features like autoplay and infinite scroll, which were at play in this case. But right now, federal policies that tackle these features get lumped into bills and safety packages that raise free expression and First Amendment concerns by forcing platforms to suppress certain categories of speech or getting the government involved in dictating what content platforms can show to which users. A law that gets tossed out by a First Amendment challenge won’t help anyone.

If lawmakers are feeling inspired or motivated to “do something” in the wake of this court decision, they should pass strong privacy, antitrust, and algorithmic transparency legislation. They should also pass the Safe Sex Worker Study Act, to study the impact and harm done by the last change they made to Section 230, before charging forward with changing Section 230 again. (We’ve already done some of their work for them here.)

“We need to be real about the authoritarian moment we are living in. The Trump administration has weaponized every lever of government to terrorize LGBTQ people, attack immigrant communities, and suppress protest and dissent. The Trump admin’s FTC, who would enforce laws like KOSA, have openly attacked providers of gender-affirming care and said they want to suppress online speech about trans issues. There is no universe where passing censorship or ‘age verification’ law, under the guise of kids safety, doesn’t lead to massive online censorship of content and speech that Trump doesn’t like,” said Evan Greer (she/her), Director at Fight for the Future. “Organizers and activists are using platforms, however imperfect, to monitor ICE abuses, advocate for human rights, expose corruption, discuss the Epstein files, and more. We need policies that address corporate abuse without kneecapping the ability of frontline activists to use social media to change the world.”