The law also does not cover sites that are dedicated to news, sports, entertainment and other information that users do not generate. Covered sites are largely prohibited from removing publications based on the views they express, with the exception of sexual exploitation of children, incitement to criminal activity and certain threats of violence.
According to two trade groups that challenged the law, the measure “will force platforms to spread all sorts of undesirable views – such as Russian propaganda claiming its invasion of Ukraine is justified, ISIS propaganda claiming extremism is justified, neo-Nazis or KKK screeds that deny or support the Holocaust and encourage children to engage in risky or unhealthy behaviors, such as eating disorders. ”
The law requires platforms to be treated as ordinary media, which must transmit essentially all messages to their users, and not as publishers with editorial discretion.
In a separate case last week, the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the 11th District largely upheld a preliminary injunction against a similar Florida law.
“Social media platforms exercise editorial judgment that is inherently expressive,” Judge Kevin S. Newsham wrote of the committee. “When platforms decide to remove users or posts, prioritize content in viewers’ shows or search results, or sanction violations of their community standards, they engage in activities protected by the First Amendment.
The First Amendment generally prohibits government restrictions on speech based on content and perspective. In an urgent statement to the Supreme Court, trade groups challenging Texas law said it violated these principles at every turn. “HB 20 is a completely unconstitutional law that binds government-preferred statements by selected private entities and would require huge upheavals in global operations on covered Internet websites,” the appendix said.
In response to an emergency request, Ken Paxton, Texas’s attorney general, wrote that “the platforms are the successors of 21st century telegraph and telephone companies: that is, traditional ordinary operators.” This means, writes Mr. Paxton, that in principle all customers must be accepted.
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