A.G.’s Lawsuit Against TikTok Can Continue: Arkansas Supreme Court

Last week the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that Attorney General Tim Griffin’s lawsuit against social media giant TikTok can move forward.

In March of 2023 the Arkansas Attorney General’s office filed a lawsuit against Chinese-based company ByteDance — the corporation that owns TikTok — in Cleburne County Circuit Court.

With upwards of a billion users worldwide — including somewhere between 135 and 170 million in the U.S. — TikTok is among the most popular social media outlets on earth.

But TikTok isn’t just a phone app. It’s a major corporation, and its Chinese-based parent company, ByteDance, has been valued at $300 billion.

However, TikTok has found itself embroiled in controversy for struggling to protect private user data from entities in China — including the Chinese Communist Party.

The platform also has been accused of serving users a steady “diet of darkness” and violating laws intended to protect children online.

Attorney General Griffin’s lawsuit alleges TikTok violated Arkansas’ Deceptive Trade Practices Act by falsely claiming that graphic and mature content on its platform is appropriate for teens. The lawsuit also calls the TikTok app “a Chinese ‘Trojan Horse’ unleashed on unsuspecting American consumers.”

Attorneys for TikTok have worked relentlessly to have the lawsuit dismissed, but last Thursday the Arkansas Supreme Court declined to put the case on hold — meaning the A.G.’s office is free to pursue it.

As we keep saying, social media platforms are not just websites or phone apps. These are major corporations owned and operated by investors and other interests. If the Chinese Communist Party can influence TikTok, the CCP may be able to manipulate content, influence users, and harvest data on one of the world’s largest social media platforms. That’s a serious concern, and we appreciate Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin taking a firm stand in court.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Arkansas A.G. Appeals to Shield Kids Online

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin will ask the Eighth Circuit to let the state protect children on social media, according to court documents.

In 2023 the Arkansas Legislature passed the Social Media Safety Act. This good law by Sen. Tyler Dees (R – Siloam Springs) and Rep. Jon Eubanks (R – Paris) requires major social media companies to ensure minors don’t access social media platforms without parental consent. A social media company that violated the law could be held liable.

In response, tech giants — such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok — asked a federal court to strike down the Social Media Safety Act as unconstitutional.

In March U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks in Fayetteville issued a final order blocking the State of Arkansas from enforcing the Social Media Safety Act. Among other things, Judge Brooks’ ruling claims that Arkansas’ Social Media Safety Act is unconstitutionally broad and vague.

On May 2, Attorney General Tim Griffin appealed Judge Brooks’ ruling to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Appealing the decision will give a higher federal court the opportunity to review the case and reverse the judge’s order.

The truth is there’s mounting evidence that — by design — social media platforms are not appropriate for children.

TikTok has long been under fire for serving kids a steady “diet of darkness” online and struggling to protect private user data from entities in China, such as the Chinese Communist Party.

The A.G.’s legal team has filed documents in other court cases alleging that platforms like Facebook and Instagram are built around algorithms intentionally designed “to exploit human psychology and foster addiction to maximize users’ screen time,” and that this exploitation is especially true of young users with developing brains.

Social media platforms are more than just websites or phone apps. These are multimillion dollar businesses. The adults who own and profit from these companies have a responsibility to protect children on their platforms — and they should not be able to register children as users and let those children post photos and videos on their platforms without parental consent.

Family Council is not aware of any attorney general in America who is doing more to hold social media giants accountable and protect children online than Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin. We appreciate his willingness to appeal to the Eighth Circuit, and we are confident our federal courts ultimately will let Arkansas protect children on social media.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.