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A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California rejected a suit filed by X that alleged that A.B. 587, a law designed to combat toxic social media posts, violated the company's right to free speech. The law will continue to go into effect and require social platforms to disclose their policies concerning hate speech, disinformation, harassment, and extremism. It would also require them to report data on how their policies are enforced.
The law's true purpose was to "pressure social media platforms to 'eliminate' certain constitutionally protected content viewed by the state as problematic," X argued in its initial suit.
Newsom signed A.B. 587 into law in September 2022, arguing that "Californians deserve to know how these platforms are impacting our public discourse."
X and California Attorney General Rob Bonta did not respond to requests for comment.
Musk has presented himself as a "free speech absolutist" in that he intends to allow nearly all speech on X outside of illegal speech. This stance has created tension with advertisers, which expect him to restrict objectionable content next to ads. Musk blames the withdrawal of advertisers on liberal watchdog groups such as Media Matters for America, alleging they are attempting to harm the platform with false claims.
Two cases involving content moderation and free speech are expected to appear for oral arguments before the Supreme Court in 2024. The cases will determine whether state governments can bar social platforms from removing accounts based on their posts.
FREE SPEECH is dead.....