Trump’s lawsuits against Facebook, Twitter and Google may have nowhere to go

Former President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he is filing a class-action lawsuit against Facebook, Twitter, Google and their chief executives, accusing them of violating users’ First Amendment rights by barring him and several others from accessing their platforms.

These lawsuits were filed along with the pro-Trump populist First Policy Research Institute, accusing technology companies of censoring users’ political views.Have So far, there is no clear evidence that large technology companies systematically censor conservatives.

Several constitutional experts told Recode that, fundamentally, these cases have almost no legal basis and may not continue to be heard.Similar cases brought by conservative activist Laura Loomer and others Claims that tech companies have anti-conservative biases, Was expelled from the court in recent years.

This is mainly because the First Amendment only protects people from government censorship-and companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Google are not governments. So even if these companies want to, say, suppose that only liberal politicians are allowed to access their platform (which they did not do)-legally, they can. second, A set of Internet laws called Section 230 –Trump Attempt to overturn an executive order that Biden later overturned -Special protection of technology companies from being sued for content review decisions.

“From a constitutional point of view, this lawsuit is of little value, and the reason is simple, because Facebook and Twitter are companies-privately owned, privately managed, and almost unregulated,” Professor and Director of the First Amendment Clinic at Duke Law School Sarah Ludington wrote in an email to recode. “It is difficult to determine that banning Trump is a’national action’.”

Technology companies allowed Trump to remain on their platforms for most of his presidency-even if he repeatedly violated the prohibition on violent content and misinformation.Until the congressional riots on January 6, Facebook, Twitter and Google Temporarily or permanently suspend Trump on their platform Said that he incited violence related to the riots. Facebook’s Independent Oversight Committee Support decision In the short term in May, he said Trump’s remarks constituted a clear risk to public safety, and asked Facebook to further consider whether to allow him to return to the platform in the long-term decision.

According to the lawsuit against Facebook, Trump’s latest lawsuit basically believes that because technology companies like Facebook are so large and powerful, their “status has risen from a private company to the status of a state actor.”

“[Trump] It may be hoped that there will be a dramatic reversal of the law,” Howard Wasserman, a professor of law at Florida International University, wrote in an email to Recode. “But no court accepted or even indicated that they were persuaded by these arguments. “

A Twitter spokesperson declined to comment. Facebook did not respond to a request for comment. Google did not respond to a request for comment.

In a nearly one-hour press conference when the lawsuit was announced on Wednesday, Trump used unconfirmed conservative accusations that technology companies were conspiring against his supporters.

Trump said: “Social media has given a group of large tech giants that work with the government, mainstream media and most political parties the extraordinary power to suppress and suppress the opinions of the American people.”

Although these cases are unlikely to win in court, it is also true that a large number of Americans do not trust the government, the media, and technology.According to the 2020 Pew survey, approximately three-quarters of Americans Believe that social media is deliberately censoring people’s political viewsAlthough social media companies here have constitutional protections against Trump’s latest false legal claims, these lawsuits will still have a negative impact on the companies’ political views of conservative users who support Trump.

The law can be changed. Republican lawmakers introduced new legislation on Wednesday to more strictly control how social media companies review content, including restrictions on Article 230 laws. Protect technology companies from prosecution to a large extent By their users.

Therefore, although Trump’s lawsuit is unlikely to go far, the political battle over how social media companies adjust their websites will continue.

Rebecca Heilweil reported on this article.