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The Justice Against Malicious Algorithms Acts of 2021 Act Does Not Achieve Its Desired Purpose

After the fallout of last week’s Facebook whistleblower hearing, Congress has been searching for a legislative solution to a non-legislative problem.

Today, NetChoice voiced its opposition to The Justice Against Malicious Acts of 2021 introduced by Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Mike Doyle (D-PA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Anna Eshoo (D-CA).

“When platforms spend billions of dollars to keep users safe, a bill like the Justice Against Malicious Algorithms Act threatens to disrupt the balance between free expression and online safety that Section 230 provides,” said Carl Szabo, Vice President and General Counsel at NetChoice. “Section 230 is the tool that allows for a robust content moderation system that shields users from the worst types of content while empowering them to express themselves freely online.”

“This bill will make it much more difficult for websites to host many types of speech, which will hurt the vulnerable communities the bill tries to protect,” continued Szabo. “Social media relies on algorithms to limit the spread of bad content while allowing positive content to flourish. This bill would ruin that balance and is surely not the answer.”