William Barr's DOJ Pens Another Letter Targeting Section 230 Protections

William Barr's DOJ Pens Another Letter Targeting Section 230 Protections

WASHINGTON — An Assistant Attorney General at Willam Barr’s U.S. Department of Justice wrote a letter on Tuesday to the congressional committees currently reviewing projects to repeal or radically reform Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet” — arguing that the legislation should be altered or else completely tossed in order to “start on fresh canvas.”

Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd wrote to the House and Senate's judiciary and commerce committees claiming Section 230 immunity allows platforms to act "in bad faith" or in a way that "demotes the speech of others based on political viewpoint.”

"That text provides immunity only for content removed 'in good faith' because it is 'obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable' — not merely because the platform operators themselves dislike or disagree with it," the Trump-appointed Assistant AG wrote, acting on behalf of Barr’s entire DOJ.

The DOJ specifically referenced a current controversy over Facebook and Twitter’s handling of a New York Post article that deliberately disseminated damaging information from obscure provenance about a presidential candidate’s family member.

The DOJ also explicitly referred to the recent announcement by Federal Communications Chairman Ajit Pai that his agency would attempt to set up rules to curtail Section 230 protections, and to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' unusual statement attached to a concurrent opinion urging that the Supreme Court take up cases that would challenge jurisprudence about the legislation.

"As Justice Thomas noted, those decisions have 'emphasized non-textual arguments' in the service of expanding immunity 'beyond the natural reading of the text’,” the DOJ argued.

One Step Beyond

After endorsing Barr’s recent legislative reform proposal, the department went one step further and said that, rather than reform, a total repeal and rewrite would actually be a better path to "overrule erroneous precedent that has built up around Section 230 over the last 25 years."

"While the department's proposal amends the current statutory text,” Boyd wrote on behalf of the DOJ, “the time also may be ripe for Congress to start from a blank slate to account for the dramatic changes in this industry.”

Although Joe Biden has expressed a desire to reform or repeal Section 230, and some of the legislative reform proposals have bipartisan support, the current attack on Section 230 is a thoroughly partisan effort that escalated this summer when Twitter fact-checked a tweet by Donald Trump.

The next day, Trump issued an unprecedented executive order targeting the main online platforms, and he has continued regularly tweeting “REPEAL SECTION 230" to his base, to the confusion of the majority of people unfamiliar with the extremely complex issues of internet Law.

The language of bills introduced by Lindsey Graham, of statements by the FCC’s Ajit Pai and William Barr and by Justice Thomas’ opinion, all echo that of Trump’s executive order.

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Fleshy to Launch Interactive Cam Site 'Eremote'

Male pleasure brand Fleshy has announced that it will launch an interactive, bidirectional cam site next month called Eremote.

XBIZ LA Show Introduces New 'Crib Crawl' Feature

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the 2025 edition of its flagship conference, the XBIZ Show, will debut a brand-new feature: Crib Crawl, offering attendees the chance to meet and greet representatives from leading brands and organizations in dedicated suites at the host venue.

Pre-Nominations Now Open for 2025 TEAs

The pre-nomination period for the 2025 Trans Erotica Awards (TEAs) is now open.

Byborg Invests $22.35M in PLBY Group

Luxembourg-based Byborg Enterprises SA is investing $22.35 million in Playboy parent company PLBY Group.

Supreme Court to Hear Oral Arguments on Texas AV Law in January

The United States Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for Free Speech Coalition's challenge to Texas’ age verification law to take place Wednesday, Jan. 15.

2025 XBIZ Exec Awards Nominees for Online Industry Announced

XBIZ is pleased to announce the nominees for the online industry edition of the 2025 XBIZ Exec Awards, set to be presented as part of the annual XBIZ Honors ceremony on Wednesday, Jan. 15 in conjunction with the XBIZ 2025 conference.

Project 2025 Leader Claims Big Tech Companies 'Deliberately Fuel Pornography Addiction' Among Men

Heritage Foundation president and Project 2025 leader Kevin Roberts published on Wednesday the text of a speech in which he persists with his past claim that “predatory Big Tech corporations” are “deliberately fueling pornography addiction” among young men.

FSC Petitions 10th Circuit for Review of Utah AV Dismissal

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) on Wednesday petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit to review a decision handed down earlier this month by a three-judge panel of the same appeals court, which denied FSC the right to challenge Utah’s controversial age verification law by suing state officials.

MyAdultAttorney's Corey D. Silverstein to Hold Post-Election Legal Impact Webinar

Industry attorney Corey D. Silverstein will hold a “Legal Impact” webinar titled “We Have a New U.S. President: Legal and Community Implications” on Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. PST.

Pornhub Shuts Down Access in Oklahoma Over Age Verification

Aylo began geo-blocking Pornhub across Oklahoma on Tuesday, three days in advance of the state’s new age verification law, SB 1959, taking effect.

Show More