<
https://www.techdirt.com/2026/01/05/ny-orders-apps-to-lie-about-social-media-addiction-will-lose-in-court/>
"New York Governor Kathy Hochul just signed a law that’s going to get expensive
fast. The state’s new social media labeling requirement—S4505, courtesy of
state Senator Andrew Gounardes—forces websites to slap unscientific warnings on
their services claiming that features like algorithmic feeds and push
notifications cause addiction.
It’s compelled speech based on contested science, which means it’s blatantly
unconstitutional, and courts have already rejected nearly identical schemes.
But Hochul and Gounardes either don’t care or don’t understand First Amendment
basics, so New York taxpayers are about to fund a losing legal battle whose
only real purpose is generating headlines for those politicians pretending to
care about “protecting the children.”
(For those keeping track: Gounardes has a track record of pushing
unconstitutional anti-internet legislation, and when constituents call him out
on it, he tells them they’re just parroting “big tech” talking points. Several
of his constituents have forwarded me these dismissive responses. Engaging on
substance apparently isn’t part of his process.)
We had warned New York officials that this law was unconstitutional, but Hochul
and Gounardes clearly don’t care.
The law targets any site with algorithmic feeds, push notifications, infinite
scroll, like counts, or autoplay—basically every modern website—and demands
they post warnings claiming these features are addictive. This isn’t based on
scientific consensus. It’s based on misreading correlational studies and
pretending they show causation."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
