The judge refuses to block Florida's social media ban

In a great victory of the courtroom for governor Ron Desantis, a federal judge in Tallahassee denied a request to block Florida's ban on social media for young teenagers on Friday.

Mark Walker, district judge Mark Walker, rejected a request from a consortium of technology companies to an injunction that would have blocked the prohibition of the state at least temporarily through the effect of the state.

In his 13-page decision, Walker said that the groups that represented the trade associations could not prove which social media platforms as Tiktok, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, X and other Floridas prohibition would be affected.

RELATED: Desantis vs. Big Tech: Social -Media showdown unfolds before a federal court in Florida

“The plaintiffs have not submitted any evidence that at least one of their members meet the requirements for the injury,” the judge wrote.

The technology companies had argued in court that at least one of the social media platforms would probably have been covered by the law of Florida and would have to spend money and resources to keep them. Walker said that was not a convincing argument.

The law only briefly applies to social media platforms with addictive functions such as push notifications, with 10% or more daily active users who are younger than 16 years old and spend an average of two hours or more for the app. If all of these conditions are not met, the law does not apply to the platform.

The Social Media Act, which was to come into force on January 1, would prevent everyone under 16 from using some social media, but 14 and 15 -year -olds to use the online services with a parent permission. Companies that violate the law could be filled with a fine of up to 50,000 US dollars per violation.

The General Prosecutor's office had agreed not to enforce the new law until Walker decided on the application for an injunction. It was not immediately clear when the Desantis administration would enforce the bans. The governor had said goodbye to the legislator last year.

RELATED: Judge says

The broader struggle of the technology companies against the law continues before the Federal Supreme Court in Tallahassee. Walker's decision on Friday was a preliminary decision that concentrated on whether he would issue an injunction in this case.

“I am grateful that the dishes have again decided in favor of Florida, and I am also grateful for life and the influence that the social media will not have on our children now, said Rep. Toby Overdorf, R-Palm City, one of the sponsors of the law. “I am pleased that Florida can enter a new chapter and have freedom for our children.”

During the arguments of the courtroom on February 28, Walker, who was appointed President Barack Obama in 2012, signaled that Florida would have a “hard hoe” to prove that the ban did not violate the right young teenagers in Florida.

“I only think that there is a clear precedent in the whole country, why these social media bans are against the first change, and I have no doubt that the end result will reflect this,” said Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando. “There will be a lot of confusion and chaos for all of our families. It is really important that everyone remains informed which options have their options and what they can do to follow the law. “

The law would also require adults in Florida to use social media accounts to demonstrate their age with the help of third-party verification systems. There are only a few generally agreed methods for age review on the Internet.

This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service from the University of Florida College for Journalism and Communication. The reporter can be reached at landerson2l@freshtakeflorida.com.