by Megan Redshaw, Childrens Health Defense:
A federal appeals court on Wednesday paused enforcement of a Texas law that restricted the ability of social media outlets to censor user content, pending review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
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A federal appeals court on Wednesday paused enforcement of a Texas law that restricted the ability of social media outlets to censor user content, pending review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Wednesday’s order by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the court’s decision last month, which upheld the law restricting the ability of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to moderate content on their platforms.
Texas House Bill 20 (HB 20), which relates “to censorship of or certain other interference with digital expression, including expression on social media platforms or through electronic mail messages,” passed on Sept. 9, 2021, and was set to take effect on Dec. 2, 2021.
According to Politico, HB 20 “would allow both the state of Texas and individual Texans to sue companies if they ‘censor’ an individual based on their viewpoints or their geographic location by banning them or blocking, removing or otherwise discriminating against their posts.”
“HB 20 aims to expose social media platforms including Meta, YouTube and Twitter to new private lawsuits, as well as suits by the state’s attorney general, over the companies’ decisions to remove or reduce the visibility of user content they deem objectionable,” CNN reported Wednesday.
The law would apply to social media platforms with at least 50 million active users, with “censorship” defined as blocking, removing or demonetizing content.
Tech companies challenged HB 20 on First Amendment grounds, claiming it violates their right to control the speech that appears on their platforms, and further arguing that “the law would prevent them from removing hate speech, political disinformation, violent videos, and other harmful content.”
The entities in question, including NetChoice and the nonprofit Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), do not appear to have defined what constitutes “hate speech, political disinformation, violent videos” or “other harmful content,” from their point of view.
When HB 20 was passed in September 2021, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said, “It is now law that conservative viewpoints in Texas cannot be banned on social media.”
Conservative politicians and organizations have long argued that their viewpoints are disproportionately targeted for censorship by social media platforms.
NetChoice describes itself as a “coalition of trade associations, eCommerce businesses and online consumers” that work “to make the Internet safe for free enterprise and free expression,” while the CCIA claims “to promote open markets, open systems, and open networks in the computer and telecommunications industry.”
According to CNN, the two groups will ask the Supreme Court to issue a ruling on HB 20, and the State of Texas did not oppose their motion for a stay.
CNN also described the law as “a challenge to decades of First Amendment precedent, which holds the government may not compel private entities to host speech.”
Several civil rights organizations came out against HB 20 and called on the Supreme Court to block it. According to The Guardian, these groups include the NAACP, the Anti-Defamation League and the Chamber of Progress.
Adam Kovacevich, CEO of Chamber of Progress, claimed the law would “force social media to host racist, hateful and extremist posts.”
Mary Holland, president and general counsel of Children’s Health Defense (CHD), took a different position, criticizing social media platforms for their practices, which she said pose a “grave risk” for democracy:
“The unchecked power of social media behemoths like Facebook, Twitter and Google to serve as proxies for government to censor and propagandize puts democracy at grave risk.
“I look forward to the Supreme Court resolving the issues raised in this 5th Circuit case.”
Read More @ ChildrensHealthDefense.org
