Republican state leaders adopted the laws in 2021 in response to growing concern among conservatives that social media giants were illegally censoring conservative views. Those accusations reached new levels when Facebook, Twitter and other companies suspended President Donald Trump’s accounts after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Tech companies, represented by the trade group NetChoice, asked the court to block the Texas and Florida laws. The companies said the content-moderation measures are unconstitutional, and conflict with the First Amendment by giving the government too much control over online speech published on privately owned platforms.
Because social networks play a critical role in public discussion, the high court’s decision is likely to reverberate beyond Silicon Valley. It is expected to influence policymakers in Congress and statehouses around the country as they attempt to write new laws governing social media and misinformation.
Tech industry groups, national security officials and researchers say limiting the ability of companies to remove content could allow election disinformation, extremism and other harmful activities to fester online. Florida and Texas, meanwhile, argue that a handful of social media companies wield a powerful grip on modern political discourse, and that regulations are needed to ensure they don’t discriminate and silence certain voices.
The two cases reached the Supreme Court after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in 2022 upheld the Texas law. That decision created a split with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, which had already struck down key provisions of the Florida law.
All of the appeals court judges who have considered the Florida and Texas laws were nominated by Republican presidents. Judge Kevin Newsom, a Trump nominee on the 11th Circuit, wrote the unanimous opinion blocking Florida’s law. Another Trump nominee, Judge Andrew Oldham of the 5th Circuit, wrote the conflicting opinion upholding the Texas law.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
