The presidential campaigns have entered the final stretch, and the future of Section 230, antitrust and Big Tech remains uncertain.
A win by democratic nominee Joe Biden could potentially “kill” the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust lawsuit against Google, said Protocol in an article last week, and could have serious implications for the future of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
If Biden wins the election, Protocol pointed out that he could “present a new attorney general for Senate confirmation in January.” A new attorney general may or may not pursue the current antitrust lawsuit against Google.
Protocol pointed out that dropping a federal lawsuit between administrations “isn't normal.” However, the article did say that, “in this case, team Biden could easily say ‘Trump and Barr pushed this through for political purposes, just like they did with everything else. Prosecuting Google may absolutely be the right thing to do, but we'll determine that on the merits and the facts, not on the politics. Stand by.’”
Biden has not spoken often about Big Tech. Axios pointed out that “Biden has never sketched out a specific tech policy platform, leaving an opening for different interests to try to shape his views on issues pertaining to Silicon Valley — including tech's prized liability shield.”
A Biden win would likely have implications for Section 230 reform as well. Biden told The New York Times Editorial Board in January that Section 230 should be “revoked, immediately.”
“One alternative proposal shared exclusively with Axios comes courtesy of Matt Perault, formerly Facebook's director of public policy and now at Duke's Center on Science & Technology Policy (which receives some funding from Google). It's part of the Day One Project, a set of science and technology plans compiled by a bipartisan group including many Obama-administration alums,” said Axios. This plan could reportedly include “new federal law to criminalize certain online speech such as intentional voter suppression.”
Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representative and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “hate speech” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
