July 13, 2026
Scroll me maybe?
The infinite scroll may become endangered if controversial Calif. law passes
California wants to save teens from doomscrolling, and commenters are absolutely split
TLDR: California may force social media apps to give under-16 users a less addictive experience or block new accounts if they refuse. Commenters are torn between cheering the possible end of endless scrolling and warning that the real problem is the profit model, not just the design tricks.
California lawmakers are coming for the bottomless feed, and the internet is already having a very normal reaction: chaos. Under Assembly Bill 1709, social media companies like Meta and Reddit could be pushed to give users under 16 a less addictive version of their apps by 2028 — or stop letting them sign up at all. The bill’s backers say features like endless scrolling, autoplay, recommendations, and nonstop alerts are designed to keep kids glued to screens for hours.
But in the comment section, the real fight broke out. One camp basically said, "Wait, this is supposed to be bad news?" with one reader roasting the headline itself: the possible death of infinite scroll sounded more like a public service than a tragedy. Another crowd got philosophical fast, asking where the line is between a sneaky attention trap and simply making an app easy to use. Is flipping pages on purpose a healthy speed bump, or just making everything more annoying?
Then came the policy warriors. Some argued the state is targeting the wrong villain entirely: don’t regulate the scroll, regulate the business model that profits from keeping people hooked. Others pushed a practical middle ground — don’t ban features, just make platforms offer an off switch so families can choose. The overall vibe? Half "finally, somebody do something," half "good luck defining addiction without breaking the internet." Even in a debate about teens’ safety, commenters turned it into a spicy battle over freedom, design, and whether the real monster is the feature — or the companies behind it.
Key Points
- •California Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal amended AB 1709 from a proposal that would have broadly restricted under-16 social media use to one focused on platform design features.
- •The revised bill would require companies including Meta and Reddit to provide a less addictive feed for users under 16 or prevent those users from creating accounts.
- •The bill defines addictive features as psychologically exploitative features intended to maximize engagement and foreseeably lead to compulsive use.
- •Lowenthal said platforms would have until 2028 to make changes, and the bill would create an expert oversight group to advise the California Attorney General’s Office.
- •The article says criticism of the original approach included concerns about teen isolation, LGBTQ youth access to online community, privacy risks from age verification and possible free speech issues.