Section 230
Opinion: New York Times Fights Pornhub With Emotional Pornography
New York Times opinion writer Nicholas Kristof today published a sensationalistic call for state censorship and financial strangulation of Pornhub, packaged around gut-punching testimonials from young victims of sexual exploitation.
Top Biden Advisor Bruce Reed Renews Call for Section 230 Reform
The closest advisor on tech matters to presumptive President-elect Joe Biden, Bruce Reed, doubled down yesterday on weakening Section 230 protections, saying that “it’s long past time to hold the social media companies accountable for what’s published on their platforms.”
Trump Attempts to Force Section 230 'Termination' Into Defense Bill
In the latest in a series of procedurally unprecedented presidential attempts to repeal the so-called First Amendment of the internet, Donald Trump confirmed last night via Twitter that he would veto the nation’s principal defense bill unless Congress adds a section “completely terminating” Section 230 protections.
Senators Renew Attack on Section 230 Following Election
During a nationwide spike of COVID-19 cases and only hours after the Georgia Secretary of State accused him of tampering with the presidential election results, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) revived his ongoing crusade against Section 230 protections — the so-called First Amendment of the internet — during a highly politicized interrogation of two tech entrepreneurs at the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Trump's Candidate for the FCC Grilled on Section 230
President Donald Trump’s candidate for a crucial seat on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was grilled this week during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee concerning the stated presidential wish to erode Section 230 protections via the federal agency.
Latest Section 230 Bill Proposal Seeks to Define Adult Content
In the middle of the COVID-19 public health crisis and only days before the 2020 national election, representative Greg Steube (R-Fla.) has just introduced yet another legislative proposal aimed at ending Section 230 protections, and his CASE-IT Act has the distinction of attempting to define adult content in explicit and broad terms.
William Barr's DOJ Pens Another Letter Targeting Section 230 Protections
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.”
FCC Chairman to Issue Rules Regarding Websites' Content Moderation Liability
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced today that the agency will issue rules deciding when website operators’ moderation practices over third-party content leaves them exposed to potential legal liability, following Donald Trump’s directives on his May 28 Executive Order.
Clarence Thomas Calls for High Court Review of Section 230
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas today used a concurrent opinion about a case the court decided not to hear to issue a broader challenge on current liability protections for online platforms provided by Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
Cyber Law Expert: Politicized Anti-Section 230 Proposals Target Adult Content
In a damning new op-ed, one of the nation’s foremost cyber law experts described the onslaught of legislative proposals and recommendations to abolish Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet — recently unleashed by the White House, Attorney General William Barr, Senator Lindsey Graham and others, as “Trump-backed rules for online speech: 'no' to porn, 'yes' to election disinformation and hate speech.”
Chaotic Stream of Rival Anti-Section 230 Proposals Muddy Constructive Debate
As an unprecedentedly chaotic and fractious electoral campaign heads into its final month, a flurry of new proposals by members of both major parties targeting Section 230 — the so-called “First Amendment of the internet” — join a crowded debate about the controversial legislation.
AG Barr Joins Attack on Section 230 With Unusual Request to Congress
In an extremely unusual move by the U.S. Justice Department — part of the executive branch — AG William Barr sent to Congress today a legislative proposal to undermine Section 230, the so-called “First Amendment of the internet.”
Lindsey Graham Takes Aim at Section 230 With Yet Another Bill Proposal
Senator Lindsey Graham (R, South Carolina), Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, quietly scheduled yesterday an item on the agenda for Thursday’s committee meeting, aiming to discuss a new bill, S. 4632, which he called the Online Content Policy Modernization Act.
Liberal Think Tank Floats 'Digital Regulatory Agency' to Oversee Internet
While President Donald Trump and a group of Republican Senators continue railing against Section 230, the deputy director at a liberal-leaning think tank at NYU published a study and an article advocating for the creation of a new government entity to be called the “Digital Regulatory Agency” to oversee the internet.
Trump, GOP Senators Renew Attacks on Section 230
President Donald Trump and Senate Republican leaders renewed their ongoing attacks on Section 230 yesterday, once again making the so-called “First Amendment of the internet" a campaign issue.
Senate Commerce Committee Holds Hearing on PACT Act, Section 230
This morning, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet. held a lengthy hearing on Section 230, assessing the impact of what the committee calls “the law that helped create the internet” and examining proposed reforms to it, particularly the PACT Act.
EARN IT Act Passes Committee Unanimously With New Amendment Shielding Encryption
The U.S. Senate’s Committee on the Judiciary voted unanimously this morning to bring the EARN IT Act to the floor of the Senate, including an amendment that explicitly separated the issue of encryption from the current scope of the legislation.
Sen. Graham Postpones EARN IT Act Hearing, Salutes It for 'Rattling the System'
The U.S. Senate’s Committee on the Judiciary postponed a hearing this morning concerning the EARN IT Act, which sex workers activists and digital rights activists have termed “the New FOSTA.”
Bipartisan PACT Act Proposes Extensive Changes to Section 230 Protections
Two U.S. senators, Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and John Thune (R-S.D.), have introduced the Platform Accountability and Consumer Transparency (PACT) Act, a new piece of legislation aiming to update Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
Trump's DOJ, GOP Senators Present Projects Aimed at Section 230 Protections
Two separate projects, from the Trump administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) and by Republican senators, were released yesterday proposing modifications to Section 230 of the federal communications act, known by Free Speech advocates as “the First Amendment of the internet.”