LOS ANGELES—Adult trade group the Free Speech Coalition (FSC) held a webinar on Tuesday discussing the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last Friday finding a Texas age verification law constitutional. Over 100 people were in attendance at the webinar.
The webinar featured FSC executive director Alison Boden and Mike Stabile, its director of public policy. During the webinar, Boden and Stabile reiterated the long history of the legal battle between the trade group and the state of Texas on the front of House Bill (HB) 1181.
HB 1181 was adopted in 2023 by the conservative-leaning Texas state legislature. The law mandates age verification for all adult sites operating in the state's digital space.
The webinar was kicked off with Boden asking Stabile whether he expected the outcome that the high court delivered. Stabile, who communicated throughout the webinar that he isn't a lawyer, responded to Boden that he was simply a so-called "chicken little," indicating that he was prepared for a bad outcome in court.
“I think that this will go down as a tremendously horrible, censorious decision,” Stabile told the audience. Boden additionally noted that the actual case is "essentially over."
The Free Speech Coalition sued alongside the parent companies of the world's largest adult platforms to block the Texas law, arguing that it was unconstitutional.
Boden urged platforms and site owners to be compliant with local and regional age verification laws, especially as it relates to prosecutors and state attorneys general. She shared, "They don’t care how big the websites are. It can be a tiny website that just sends affiliate traffic.”
Other components of the discussion covered how age verification could impact much more than just online pornography and touch social media sites, as well.