Laws in Texas and Florida limit companies’ power to moderate political content.
Are Facebook, Instagram and YouTube more like newspaper publishers or telephone companies?
The Supreme Court on Monday was wrestling with that question in a pair of cases being called the most important tests of the First Amendment in the internet era.
The justices’ answer could be critical to setting the terms of online speech for generations.
Florida and Texas each passed laws in 2021 ordering social media platforms to limit content moderation (e.g. removing or devaluing certain posts, at their discretion) and requiring them to issue notice and explanation any time a user’s content is removed or account suspended.
