21st ‘censor’y fix
Bill to stop Facebook’s news-veto power
Tennessee Republican Sen. Bill Hagerty on Tuesday introduced new anti-Big Tech legislation intended to bolster the principle of free speech after censorship of news stories, including articles published by The Post.
The 21st Century FREE Speech Act seeks to stop censorship by companies like Facebook and Twitter by declaring them “common carriers,” a term also used for companies like railroads that must transport goods without discrimination.
Hagerty’s bill also would require transparency in moderation practices and repeal Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which grants Internet companies immunity for most third-party content.
“Americans today communicate and consume information using dominant, ubiquitous technology platforms that function as common carriers,” Hagerty said.
“Yet instead of being accountable to the people, this public square is owned by Big Tech corporations that use opaque, inconsistent practices to control the information presented to and discussed by the American people .”
Ha ger ty said that the“principles” of the First Amendment, which limits government restrictions on free speech, should also apply to the dominant platforms speech online.
The bill proposes that an “interactive computer service” be declared a common carrier if it has “more than 100,000,000 worldwide active monthly users” and man dates that they publish “accurate” moderation and account suspension information.
“For too long, Americans have watched Big Tech abandon the foundation al American principles reflected in the First Amendment: free speech, freedom of thought and belief, free assembly, and the open exchange of ideas,” Hagerty said.
“That’s why I’ve introduced the 21st Century FREE Speech Act, which puts the American people — rather than Big Tech corporations — in charge of what they say or hear in today’s public square.”
Hagerty, a freshman senator, does not have any original co-sponsors, and with Republicans in the minority in both the House and Senate, his bill isn’t likely to pass quickly. But it adds to momentum on Capitol Hill in the wake of continued Big Tech censorship.
Most recently, Facebook blocked distribution of a Post article describing a real-estate spending spree by Patrisse Khan-Cullors, 37, a Marxist activist who founded the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation.
Former President Donald Trump unsuccessfully demanded Congress repeal Section 230 in his final weeks in office.