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Supreme Court to hear landmark social media moderation cases

  • SCOTUS will hear cases on how social media companies control content
  • Supporters of the laws say they stop censorship of conservative voices
  • A decision could come down by this summer

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(NewsNation) — In just a few hours, oral arguments will be heard in front of the Supreme Court in two cases that could impact what viewers at home see when they go on sites like Facebook, Instagram, or X.

The two cases being heard Monday morning revolve around laws passed in Texas and Florida back in 2021 after Twitter, now known as X, suspended former President Donald Trump from using the site after January 6th.

The laws restrict big tech companies from suspending users based on their viewpoints and their ability to decide what content can be posted on their sites.

Supporters of the laws say they stop conservative voices from being censored with social media serving as a vital communication resource but expect the tech companies side to argue that the laws violate the First Amendment and would force them to carry content against their rules like hate speech or terrorism content for example.

In a court filing, the team representing the big tech companies writes, “…there is no American tradition of forcing private parties to disseminate viewpoints against their will.”

But lawyers for Trump also filed a response writing, “Platforms often shroud decisions to exclude certain users and viewpoints in secrecy, giving no meaningful explanation as to why certain users are excluded while others posting equivalent content are tolerated.”

The Texas law does make some exceptions for censoring like if a post incites violence or deals with criminal activity.

Oral arguments are expected to begin around 10 a.m. ET at the Supreme Court and a decision could come down by this summer. 

Supreme Court

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