(HorizonPost.com) – As the 2020 presidential election unfolds, social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have taken to throttling Conservative voices by advancing the theory that 47 U.S.C. section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields them from charges of libel. Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and several House Republicans have advanced companion bills to clear up any perceived ambiguity in the language of the act.
“For too long, Big Tech has hidden behind the overly vague Section 230 protections, while engaging in practices that are fundamentally un-American.”
Spot on, Senator!@KLoeffler Introduces Bill to Stop ‘Un-American’ Big Tech Censorship of Free Speech.https://t.co/DoMROM8iRY
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) October 21, 2020
Loeffler’s official Senate page says the purpose is to “… reign in the broad liability protections that have allowed [them] to promote their own political viewpoints…” Erasing this loophole that these companies try to slink through is vital because, as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has said, the Twitter CEO is acting as if he’s a member of the Biden/Harris campaign team.
A growing number of people rely on social media for their daily news consumption, giving these corporations too much control over what Americans perceive as fact. It stands to reason if companies like Twitter and Facebook choose to act as the arbiters of what news the public sees, then they need to be held to the same standards as publications like the New York Times. Bills like Sen. Loeffler’s are the first step toward that accountability.
Copyright 2020, HorizonPost.com
