From the Texas Tribune: Republicans and Democrats both want to repeal part of a digital content law, but experts say that will be extremely tough

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Inspired by the example set by former President Donald Trump, who regularly railed against social media companies before they banned him from their platforms, Republicans in Texas have focused their ire on a provision of a 1996 law regulating digital content.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act significantly predates many of the current targets of Republican anger — companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter. Congress passed it in 1996, during the early days of the internet in the U.S. The law defines tech companies as private platforms rather than publishers, a designation that shields them from legal liability for the content their users post.

In an executive order signed in May last year, Trump attempted to limit these legal protections, to no avail.

David A. Anderson, a retired law professor at the University of Texas School of Law with expertise in mass communication law, told The Texas Tribune that thanks to Section 230, social media companies don’t have any legal responsibility to moderate content, even conspiracy theories, nor are they required to be “politically neutral” under the law.

Republicans aren’t the only ones with gripes about Section 230. Even President Joe Biden called for the repeal of Section 230 during a January 2020 interview with The New York Times.

“Republicans and Democrats both want to repeal Section 230, but they want to replace it in diametrically opposed ways,” said Mark Lemley, a Stanford Law School professor. “Democrats want more content moderation targeting hate speech and misinformation. Republicans want to apply the First Amendment to social media sites even if they are private actors.”

And even more:

- The politics of Section 230 reform: Learning from FOSTA’s mistakes. 

- Section 230: An Overview.