Texas Attorney General Files Brief to Narrow Section 230 Protections

Texas Attorney General Files Brief to Narrow Section 230 Protections

AUSTIN — Texas’ Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an amicus brief yesterday urging the U.S. Supreme Court to radically narrow the scope of Section 230 protection for websites.

Paxton announced the filing through the official AG office website.

Paxton’s merits-stage amicus brief urges SCOTUS to reverse the Ninth Circuit’s decision in the Gonzalez v. Google case, a decision that upheld Google’s right to Section 230 protections in connection with its algorithm-generated recommendations.

“Enacted in 1996, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act was designed to provide ‘publishers’ narrow protections from defamation liability,” Paxton’s office’s statement explained. “However, the courts have misinterpreted the law and allowed it to become a nearly all-encompassing blanket protection for certain companies, specifically internet and Big Tech companies.”

According to the Republican AG, “boundless legal protections for these companies due to their perceived status as ‘publishers’ has heretofore prevented states from holding Big Tech accountable for numerous legal violations, even those that are unrelated to the publication of user content.”

The brief refers to “pornography” several times, asserting that “Congress enacted Section 230 as part of a broader statutory scheme to limit children’s access to internet pornography. Section 230 does that by allowing internet platforms to remove pornography (and similar content) without risk of being called to account for the content they fail to remove.”

Paxton also alleges that “the statutory history of Section 230 confirms the congressional intent to encourage Internet platforms to remove pornography and similar content, not to grant platforms government-like immunity for their own conduct. Supplementing legislation that criminalized the sharing of pornography, Section 230 gave Internet companies telephone-like liability protections, which allowed them to voluntarily remove pornography even as they carried countless other forms of content.”

The Republican AG contends that this was necessary because “an early-Internet judicial decision concluded that online platforms that remove any content become liable for all of it. Cases decided shortly after Section 230’s enactment, however, badly distorted this statutory framework, requiring this Court’s intervention.”

Ken Paxton Amicus Brief

Copyright © 2025 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

GoFundMe Set Up for Danny Ferretti's Medical Expenses

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up for Fangear founder Danny Ferretti, who requires extensive lung surgery.

Byborg Acquires Cuties AI

Byborg Enterprises has acquired adult artificial intelligence startup Cuties AI.

Irish Government Releases Report on Sex Work Decriminalization Legislation

The Irish government has released a report reviewing a 2017 law that decriminalized sex work across the country.

Texas Bill Would Require Age Verification for Online Sex Toy Sales

A new bill in the Texas state legislature would require online retailers to implement age verification of purchasers before selling “obscene devices” to anyone in that state.

New York Assemblyman Proposes Banning the Term 'Sex Work'

Republican New York Assembly Member Brian Maher has introduced a bill to prohibit the use of the term "sex work" in government documents.

Age Verification Watch: Michigan Joins the AV Club, Some Laws Just Make No Sense

This roundup provides an update on the latest news and developments on the age verification front as it impacts the adult industry.

Free Speech Groups Back SCOTUS Appeal of Georgia Strip Club Tax

Two civil liberties organizations filed an amicus brief Tuesday supporting a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal in a case involving whether a tax specifically aimed at adult entertainment establishments violates the First Amendment.

Creator Networking App 'Plaiir' Launches

Plaiir, a mobile networking app for creators, has officially launched.

Swedish Court Rules LELO Products Do Not Infringe 'Invalid' Satisfyer Patent

A Swedish district court has ruled that a patent filed by Satisfyer parent company EIS GmbH is not valid, and therefore three products from pleasure brand LELO are not in violation.

North Dakota House Committee Questions Anti-Porn 'Public Health Hazard' Claim

The North Dakota House of Representatives Education Committee on Monday amended a resolution that would have recognized pornography as a “public health hazard,” instead replacing that language with a call for further study into whether such a designation is appropriate.

Show More