Supreme Court Sends Social Media Cases Back To Lower Courts To Consider First Amendment Issues

deadline.com:

The Supreme Court punted on cases challenging Texas and Florida laws that regulate social media platforms’ content moderation practices.

The case raised questions of whether Facebook, X/Twitter, YouTube and other platforms were neutral gatekeepers of third party content, or whether their content moderation practices were the kind of expressive activity protected by the First Amendment.

The high court justices sent the cases back to lower courts to more fully analyze First Amendment implications. The two laws were rooted in the idea that major platforms stifled conservative viewpoints.

The Florida law prohibits platforms from banning or suspending the accounts of candidates for public office. It also prohibits the restriction of accounts engaged in “journalistic enterprise.” The Texas law prohibits social media platforms from taking down content that is based on a viewpoint.