Social media giants get temporary Supreme Court win but no final clarity on free speech rights

The Supreme Court handed a temporary win to social media giants like Facebook (META), YouTube (GOOG, GOOGL), and TikTok as it sent a set of free speech cases back to the lower courts.

But the unanimous decision left unsettled the question of whether states can strip dominant social media companies of their power to unilaterally block users or remove posts that express certain viewpoints.

The set of cases before the high court challenged state laws in Florida and Texas limiting the capacity of such platforms to moderate posts.

Both laws were passed due to concerns following the Jan. 6, 2021, US Capitol attack that the platforms had restricted or removed posts expressing conservative viewpoints.