WASHINGTON, DC-The Supreme Court should clarify standards for determining if the government permissibly advised or convinced social media companies to censor content from 2020 to 2022, or impermissibly coerced or threatened sites in violation of the First Amendment, the Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a brief filed today.
The suit alleges agencies pushed the platforms to censor content about COVID safety measures and vaccines, elections, and Hunter Biden's laptop, among other issues.
In a brief filed today with the Center for Democracy and Technology, EFF urged the court to rely on the First Amendment test in its 1963 Bantam Books v. Sullivan ruling to determine whether the government contacts were permissible or impermissible.
The test says the Constitution bans not only direct government demands for censorship, but also indirect means, like hinting at legal sanctions to intimidate or coerce a private party into censorship.
The commission's actions amounted to informal censorship, the court found.
The test also recognizes that not every communication to an intermediary about users' speech is unconstitutional.
Courts must look at all factors, including whether the contacts are from law enforcement, convey coercion or threats of adverse consequences, or were solicited to gain the government's input or expertise, EFF and CDT said in their brief.
The Supreme Court should provide adequate guidance to help courts, agencies, and private parties distinguish between attempts to convince and attempts to coerce.
In the Murthy case, a federal judge sided with the states and issued an injunction limiting government contacts with social media platforms.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit partially upheld the injunction.
Neither court adequately distinguished between improper and proper communications, EFF and CDT said in their brief.
For EFF's earlier brief to the Fifth Circuit appeals court: https://www.
For more on Murthy v. Missouri: https://www.
This Cyber News was published on www.eff.org. Publication date: Thu, 21 Dec 2023 17:43:04 +0000