Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/23pdf/22-277_d18f.pdf
Page Number: 65.0

Cite as:  603 U. S. ____ (2024) 

3 

ALITO, J., concurring in judgment 

social  media  to  get  the  news,3  and  for  many  of  them,  life 
without social media is unimaginable.4  Social media may 
provide  many  benefits—but  not  without  drawbacks.    For 
example, some research suggests that social media are hav-
ing a devastating effect on many young people, leading to
depression, isolation, bullying, and intense pressure to en-
dorse the trend or cause of the day.5 

In light of these trends, platforms and governments have
implemented  measures  to  minimize  the  harms  unique  to
the social-media context.  Social-media companies have cre-
ated user guidelines establishing the kinds of content that 
users  may  post  and  the  consequences  of  violating  those 
guidelines,  which  often  include  removing  nonconforming 
posts  or  restricting  noncompliant  users’  access  to  a  plat-
form. 

Such enforcement decisions can sometimes have serious 
consequences.  Restricting access to social media can impair
users’ ability to speak to, learn from, and do business with
others.  Deleting the account of an elected official or candi-
date for public office may seriously impair that individual’s
efforts to reach constituents or voters, as well as the ability 
of  voters  to  make  a  fully  informed  electoral  choice.    And 
what  platforms  call  “content  moderation”  of  the  news  or
user comments on public affairs can have a substantial ef-
fect on popular views. 

—————— 
World of Media 210 (2024). 

3 Social  Media  and  News  Platform  Fact  Sheet,  Pew  Research  Center 
(Nov.  15,  2023),  https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/fact-sheet/
social-media-and-news-fact-sheet. 

4 M.  Anderson,  M.  Faverio,  &  J.  Gottfried,  Pew  Research  Center, 
Teens, Social Media and Technology 2023 (Dec. 11, 2023), https://www.
pewresearch.org/internet/2023/12/11/teens-social-media-and-technology
-2023. 

5 Ibid.; see also J. Twenge, J. Haidt, J. Lozano, & K. Cummins, Speci-
fication Curve Analysis Shows That Social Media Use Is Linked to Poor
Mental Health, Especially Among Girls, 224 Acta Psychologica 1, 8–12 
(2022).