Supreme Court to hear cases that could decide future of internet speech and social media

By Brian Fung, CNN

The Supreme Court will hear two pivotal cases later this term about online speech that could significantly shape the future of social media, the court announced on Monday.

One case, Gonzalez v. Google, is set to consider whether tech platforms’ recommendation algorithms are protected from lawsuits under a commonly invoked legal shield tech companies have used to nip other types of content-moderation suits in the bud.

The second case, Twitter v. Taamneh, will decide whether social media companies can be sued for allegedly aiding and abetting an act of terrorism, when the platforms have hosted unrelated user content that generally expresses support for the group behind the violence.

Both cases have significant ramifications for the tech industry, which has come under increasing pressure over content moderation in recent years amid calls by lawmakers and President Joe Biden for the companies’ liability shield, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, to be trimmed back.

The Court’s orders on Monday set the stage for a possible judicial narrowing of that law, which has been heavily criticized by members of both parties over platforms’ handling of content but that industry defenders say is critical to keeping online services free from spam, hate speech and other legal-but-objectionable content.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

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