{"id":2256421,"date":"2024-05-31T07:02:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-31T11:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/long-standing-online-liability-shield-under-scrutiny-by-lawmakers\/"},"modified":"2024-05-31T07:10:27","modified_gmt":"2024-05-31T11:10:27","slug":"long-standing-online-liability-shield-under-scrutiny-by-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/long-standing-online-liability-shield-under-scrutiny-by-lawmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmakers Scrutinize Long-Standing Online Liability Shield"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flong-standing-online-liability-shield-under-scrutiny-by-lawmakers%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2256421&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders propose repealing the tech industry&#8217;s liability shield by early 2025. Concerns about child safety, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/see-composite-video-of-the-many-criminal-acts-that-took-place-in-the-atlanta-arena-on-election-night-this-will-shock-you\/\" title=\"See Composite Video of the Many Criminal Acts that Took Place In the Atlanta Arena on Election Night - This Will Shock You\">criminal activities<\/a>,\u200b and election misinformation fuel the bipartisan move. The Section 230 Sunset Act aims to establish a new legal \u2063framework for free speech and innovation\u200b while ensuring\u200b platform responsibility. Advocates seek more liability for Big Tech, while opponents warn of economic risks.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Leaders of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house-energy-and-commerce-committee\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>House Energy and Commerce Committee<\/a> recently released a draft proposal that would repeal the tech industry\u2019s long-standing liability shield in early 2025. The bipartisan proposal comes amid concerns over child safety, criminal activity, and misinformation in election material online in the run-up to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/2024-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>November\u2019s elections.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Chairwoman <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/cathy-mcmorris-rodgers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Cathy McMorris Rodgers<\/a> (R-WA) and ranking member <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/14282\/frank-pallone-gop-push-of-opioid-bills-total-hypocrisy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Frank Pallone Jr.<\/a> (D-NJ) authored the Section 230 Sunset Act. Its intent, per the committee\u2019s website, is \u201cto encourage Congress and stakeholders to work together over the next 18 months to evaluate and enact a new legal framework that will allow for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/free-speech\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>free speech<\/a> and innovation while also incentivizing these companies to be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/south-dakota-lowers-unemployment-to-pre-pandemic-levels-after-state-rejected-lockdowns\/\" title=\"South Dakota Lowers Unemployment to Pre-Pandemic Levels After State Rejected Lockdowns\">good stewards<\/a> of their platforms.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>House Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), right, speaks as chairwoman Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) looks on during a March 2023 hearing. (Tom Williams \/ CQ Roll Call via Newscom)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Section 230 was passed as part of a larger telecommunications package enacted in 1996 and aimed to encourage then-nascent services hosting third-party speech online to curate their forums. Because the legal system at the time triggered liability for those who removed posts but held those who never removed content harmless, the bipartisan measure clarified that the author of posts was a legally responsible party, not the host websites.<\/p>\n<p>This legal framework allowed for the boom of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>social media<\/a> as we know it today. However, many lawmakers and advocacy groups are now calling for more liability for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/big-tech\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Big Tech<\/a>. Advocates for curtailing or repealing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/section-230\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Section 230<\/a> point to mental health concerns around children online, illegal activities facilitated through apps, and misinformation that may affect the results of elections. Section 230 already does not shield platforms from carrying content that violates federal criminal law, but supporters are hopeful that increased liability for the digital conduits of information will further deter harms.<\/p>\n<p>Opponents of repealing Section 230 highlight the enormous economic benefits and expansion of speech for everyone that the law has provided. They warn those gains will be jeopardized if Section 230 is scrapped. Faced with increasing liability for leaving posts up, much more third<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mainstream-media-and-big-techs-seismic-shift-to-the-left\/\" title=\"Mainstream Media and Big Tech\u2019s Seismic Shift to the Left\">-party content<\/a> is likely to be removed by platforms in attempts to avoid costly litigation.<\/p>\n<p>While large platforms, like Meta\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/facebook\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Facebook<\/a> and Instagram and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/google\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Google<\/a>\u2019s YouTube, will be able to bear those costs, small and nascent platforms may choose to stop hosting third-party content altogether. Other services, like Wikipedia, user reviews on Yelp and Amazon, and comment sections on newspapers\u2019 websites will also be exposed to heightened legal costs without the protections of Section 230.<\/p>\n<p>The authors of the bill made clear in an opinion piece for the <em>Wall Street Journal<\/em> that they hope Congress will act to replace Section 230 with a legal structure retaining its benefits and better addressing some of their complaints. But Congress has a poor record tweaking the liability shield.<\/p>\n<p>The one alteration to Section 230 was the enactment of the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act and the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act in 2018, which acted as twin carveouts for the liability shield. Critics argue that the changes pushed more illegal activity into less safe alternatives for sex workers and point out that whole online forums, also containing legal speech, were removed to avoid litigation.   <\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) speaks at a 2022 hearing in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo\/J. Scott Applewhite)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Calls for curtailing or repealing Section 230 do enjoy bipartisan support, but agreeing on the details of legislation is problematic because criticism of the law runs in opposite directions. Those on the political Left think the platforms aren\u2019t doing enough to take down what they view as dangerous or harmful posts. President Joe Biden has called for both the repeal and curtailing of Section 230, although he also revoked an executive order from former President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Donald Trump<\/a> calling for Section 230 protections to apply only to platforms that make \u201cgood faith\u201d content moderation decisions and giving oversight to the Federal Communications Commission.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Just the opposite of concerns from the political Left, those advocating changes or the elimination of Section 230 on the political Right think platforms are taking down too much content, especially that of a conservative bent. They point to Trump\u2019s removal from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fbi-director-christopher-wray-testifies-before-house-judiciary-committee\/\" title=\"FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies before House Judiciary Committee\">popular social media platforms<\/a> and the handling of the story about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/hunter-biden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Hunter Biden<\/a>\u2019s laptop three weeks before the 2020 presidential election, among other examples. In response, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced a bill that would force platforms to earn their Section 230 protections by convincing the Federal Trade Commission they were not moderating content with a political bias every two years.<\/p>\n<p>The House committee held a hearing on the draft bill this week, but chances for passing the legislation are increasingly slim as the elections in the fall loom ever larger and time in this congressional session runs down.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders unveiled a bipartisan draft proposal to revoke the tech industry&#8217;s liability shield by early 2025. Concerns about child safety, criminal activities, and election misinformation online ahead of November&#8217;s elections drive this move. Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and ranking members are at the forefront of this initiative<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2694,"featured_media":2256422,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/rollcallpix151820-2-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2256421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/rollcallpix151820-2-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2256421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2694"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2256421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2256421\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2256422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2256421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2256421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2256421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}