07/29/2020

Trump Administration Petitions FCC to Regulate Social Media Companies

It alleges "online platforms appear to engage in selective censorship"

On July 29, 2020, the Trump administration formally asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to develop plans to regulate social media platforms.

The Commerce Department sent a petition for rulemaking to the FCC on Monday asking the agency to reinterpret Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which provides online companies immunity from legal liability for the actions of their users.

"Unfortunately, large online platforms appear to engage in selective censorship that is harming our national discourse," the petition states. "The FCC should determine how Section 230 can best serve its goals of promoting Internet diversity and a free flow of ideas, as well as holding dominant platforms accountable for their editorial decisions, in new market conditions and technologies that have emerged since the 1990s."

Please select this link to read the complete article from United Press International.