Supreme Court hears case on age verification for porn
Jan 15, 2025
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - The Supreme Court is hearing arguments on a case challenging Texas' law that mandates age verification for accessing pornographic content.
Texas argues that it is protecting minors by protecting them from harm, but the porn industry says this violates the First Amendment.
Wednesday, the Supreme Court expressed concern around a challenge to a Texas law that requires age verification on pornographic websites.Texas is one of more than a dozen states with laws in place to block young kids and teenagers from viewing porn."The design here is to protect children that are the, under 18. And that's perfectly reasonable for, for for our state to do. And we don't feel like that's hostile in any way,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.The free speech coalition argues it violates free speech rights of adults, however conservative justices on the court seem to agree with the state's argument that technology has changed so much that protections need to be taken."The technological access, to pornography, obviously has exploded,” said Chief Justice John Roberts.Justice Amy Coney Barrett used her own experience as a mother dealing with multiple devices."Content filtering for all those different devices, I can say from personal experience it's difficult to keep up with,” said Coney Barrett.The free speech coalition agrees children should not watch porn but say it could expose adults to identity theft and extortion.
A Supreme Court ruling is expected by June.