Fla. Backs Texas With 11 Other States in Social Media Lawsuit

Regulating how platforms host the speech of others is constitutional, Florida argued Wednesday, siding with 11 other states in supporting Texas against a social media lawsuit from the tech industry (see 2205180045). The Supreme Court fielded briefs this week in docket 21A720. Florida signed its brief with Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska and South Carolina. Many states are considering measures that mirror social media laws passed in Texas and Florida, the filing said. Texas’ law deals with the conduct of platforms, not the platforms’ protected speech, so it doesn’t violate the First Amendment, the states said.