WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th October, 2020) The US Federal Communications Commission plans to begin drafting new rules to "clarify" the meaning of a legal clause that protects social media companies from being sued over third-party content on their platforms, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a press release on Thursday.
"Social media companies have a First Amendment right to free speech. But they do not have a First Amendment right to a special immunity denied to other media outlets, such as newspapers and broadcasters," Pai said in the release.
Section 230 of the US Communications Act states that no provider of an "interactive computer service" can be held liable for content that users post on their platforms, or for any action taken "in good faith" to restrict access to objectionable material, even if that material is lawful and constitutionally protected.
Pai said that while he favors free expression, "many advance an overly broad interpretation" of the legal clause.
"I intend to move forward with a rulemaking to clarify its meaning," Pai said.
Pai's initiative follows a decision by Facebook and Twitter to restrict access to an article in the New York Post about former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden and the younger Biden's business dealings in Ukraine.
President Donald Trump in May directed the Commerce Department to petition the FCC to re-evaluate the rule after Twitter placed a fact-check warning on one of his tweets. Twitter has put multiple warning labels on Trump's tweets since then.
