Social media, speech, and kids w/ Joel Thayer and Kate Ruane

**Editor’s note: This episode was recorded before Meta
settled a social media addiction trial with a coalition of state
attorneys general on Aug. 26, 2026. The case alleged the company
knew some of its features on Facebook and Instagram could be
harmful to kids and the company publicly misrepresented those
risks.

Social media and artificial intelligence are
increasingly powerful tools for sharing and accessing information.
They’re also at the center of a push for the government to address
their potential harms — particularly to kids.

So where’s the constitutional line between regulating
technology and regulating speech? And could this latest wave of
legislation and litigation change what we can see, say, and create
online?

Joining us to break down the latest developments in
social media and AI and what it all means for free speech are:

• Joel Thayer, senior fellow for AI
  and emerging technology policy at the America First Policy
  Institute and president of the Digital Progress Institute

• Kate Ruane, director of the Center
  for Democracy & Technology’s Free Expression Project

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:02 The case for regulating social media

09:23 The case for social media as protected
speech

18:12 Are social media design features protected
speech?

23:46 Section 230 and platform liability

37:21 Privacy, COPPA, and online child safety

58:40 Are AI chatbots speech?

01:09:06 Will Congress regulate social media and
AI?

01:12:27 Outro

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