[In Texas, Florida, and over a dozen other states, users attempting to access the world’s largest pornography website are met with a surprise message: a block due to the actions of their state legislature. Over the past two and a half years, 19 states, home to over a third of Americans, have passed laws requiring pornography websites to confirm a user’s age by checking a government-issued ID or scanning their face, among other methods.
The new laws, pushed by allies of President-elect Donald Trump, have led some of the largest adult sites, including Pornhub, to block users from specific states rather than paying millions for ID-checking services. Next week, the Supreme Court will hear a challenge to the constitutionality of the new laws, setting up a battle over free speech, censorship, and how to protect kids online.
Supporters of the restrictions argue that they are common-sense measures to prevent children from seeing explicit content. However, critics say the push to restrict porn undermines free speech protections and infringes on privacy rights. The laws could also put some porn companies out of business due to the high costs of verifying the age of every visitor, while doing little to stop foreign or fringe porn websites that don’t comply with US laws.
The Supreme Court’s decision will likely determine the fate of similar laws around the country. The case will hinge on the precedent set in the landmark 1997 case Reno v. ACLU, which held that the government can’t protect minors through “an unnecessarily broad suppression of speech addressed to adults” when “less restrictive alternatives” are available.
The court’s decision is not likely to be released until this summer, and the justices have allowed the Texas law to continue in effect while the case proceeds. The outcome will likely decide a host of other lawsuits against other states’ laws.
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