Supreme Court Temporarily Blocks Texas' Anti-Censorship Social Media Law
Summary from the AllSides News Team
The Supreme Court on Tuesday voted 5-4 to temporarily block Texas' anti-censorship law, which would restrict content moderation on social media platforms.
The law, HB 20, would block Big Tech companies such as Meta and YouTube from taking action on hate speech and disinformation based on a user's political "viewpoint." Justice Samuel Alito concluded that it's "not at all obvious how our existing precedents, which predate the age of the internet, should apply to large social media companies." Both sides will continue to debate the case in district court.
Prominent lobbying groups representing Big Tech companies have been petitioning against the Texas law, arguing that it would forbid online platforms from making independent editorial decisions to remove "objectionable" content. Conversely, top Republican leaders have argued that the tech industry's suppression of conservative viewpoints is a violation of the First Amendment. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) proposed a similar law last year, but a court of appeals ultimately blocked the measure last week.
News sources across the spectrum labeled the anti-censorship law as "controversial" and noted that the measure will now face heavier opposition in lower courts. Left-rated outlets were more likely to emphasize how the law would tarnish the constitutional rights of technology companies. Some right-rated outlets highlighted the "unexpected alignment" of the ruling.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
Supreme Court temporarily blocks Texas social media lawA Texas law that would bar social media companies from taking action on hate speech and disinformation was temporarily blocked Tuesday in a rare 5-4 Supreme Court ruling.
Justices John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Sonia Sotomayor and Stephen Breyer ruled in favor of tech industry groups looking to block the law, with Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Elena Kagan dissenting.
The decision is a win for tech groups pushing back on laws coming from Republican-controlled state legislatures that seek to put barriers on social media companies’ ability to moderate content.
A case on the law itself may wind up...
From the Left
Supreme Court blocks Texas social media moderation banA Texas law that would have banned much social media moderation is once again on hold. In a 5-4 ruling handed down today, the Supreme Court vacated an earlier decision by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, meaning that HB 20 — which forbids banning, demonetizing, or downranking Texas users’ posts based on “viewpoint” — will be blocked while a lawsuit over its constitutionality proceeds. A lower court had already blocked the law in 2021 before the Fifth Circuit unblocked it this May.
NetChoice and the Computer and Communications Industry Association...
From the Right
Supreme Court temporarily blocks Texas anti-censorship social media lawThe Supreme Court temporarily blocked Texas's controversial, Republican-backed social media law that would have banned major platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube from censoring most content.
In a 5-4 vote Tuesday, the justices granted an emergency request from tech industry associations to block a lower court order that would have allowed the law to take hold, pending legal challenges.
H.B. 20, a Republican-backed anti-Big Tech law that stops social media companies from restricting users due to their political beliefs, was reinstated by a federal appeals court earlier this month, paving the way temporarily for Texans to...
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