Today, NetChoice announced its opposition to the “Online Freedom and Viewpoint Diversity Act,” introduced by Sens. Blackburn (R-TN), Graham (R-SC), and Wicker (R-MS). The bill would amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to restrict the ability of online services to remove objectionable content posted by others without assuming liability for that content.
“This bill would thwart social media’s ability to remove Russian or Chinese election interference campaigns, misinformation about COVID-19, and cyberbullying from their services,” said Carl Szabo, Vice President and General Counsel at NetChoice. “Furthermore, the bill would prevent online services from removing the very content Congress demands they remove – notably medical misinformation and efforts to undermine our elections.”
“The bill would put the online ecosystem out of balance by severely limiting what content online services can remove from their websites, meaning these sites could be forced to keep up content that blatantly offends their users, advertisers, and vulnerable communities,” continued Szabo.