JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has unveiled a groundbreaking regulation to safeguard free speech and give consumers greater control over social media platforms.
This pioneering measure will require Big Tech companies to offer algorithmic choice to social media users in Missouri, marking the first regulation of its kind in the United States.
The new rule is designed to enhance transparency regarding the algorithms used by social media platforms and to provide users with alternatives.
By doing so, Bailey plans to address concerns about the ways in which algorithms influence the content displayed to millions of users.
"Social media companies are supposed to provide a space where users can share views, content, and ideas," Bailey said in a provided statement. "Instead, Big Tech oligarchs have manipulated consumers’ social media feeds for their own purposes and exercised monopoly control over content moderation."
Bailey said Missourians have a right to control their social media content.
"To that end, I am invoking my authority under consumer protection law to ensure Missourians get to control the content they consume on social media," Bailey said.
The regulation establishes Missouri as the first state to implement such a wide-reaching approach to holding Big Tech companies accountable. It builds upon guidelines set forth by the Supreme Court’s NetChoice decision, issued during the court’s last term.
Under the authority of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, the rule stipulates that it will be deemed "unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, or otherwise unlawful" for social media platforms to operate without providing users the ability to select third-party content moderators.
According to the regulation, platforms can comply by adhering to several specific requirements, including that users must be presented with a choice screen upon account activation and at least every six months thereafter, allowing them to choose from competing content moderation providers; the default setting must not pre-select any option for users; the choice screen must not display favoritism toward the platform’s own content moderation services over those of third-party providers; when a user opts for a third-party content moderator, the platform must grant interoperable access to the selected moderator so that they can manage the user’s content; and except under expressly authorized circumstances, social media companies are prohibited from moderating, censoring or suppressing content in a way that overrides the choices made by users and their selected moderators.
The rule is part of Bailey’s broader strategy to tackle what he describes as "corporate censorship" in the tech industry.
"With this rule, Missouri becomes the first state in the nation to enshrine transparency and accountability for Big Tech into law at this scale," Bailey said. "Big Tech companies who run afoul of this regulation will be held accountable."
The attorney general plans to incorporate public feedback into the rule’s implementation process.
Public comments will be solicited, and forums will be held to gather evidence on the deceptive practices of social media companies. The initiatives aim to ensure the regulation reflects the concerns and needs of Missouri consumers.
Bailey’s efforts signal a larger campaign to protect free speech in 2025 and beyond.
"This is the first prong of a comprehensive offensive to protect free speech in 2025," Bailey said. "Now that we have a presidential administration coming into office that will not silence disfavored speech, we’re turning our focus to corporate censorship. Missouri will continue to lead the way in defense of our most fundamental freedoms."