© The Vandiver GroupIt's everywhere.
after critics said it would be"disastrous for free speech."
The first hearing for Assembly Bill 1104, "The California Political Cyberfraud Abatement Act," was planned for Tuesday, but was canceled at the 11th hour at the request of the author, California Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park). Under the proposed legislation, it would be unlawful to knowingly and willingly publish or circulate on the Internet a "false or deceptive statement designed to influence the vote" on either a ballot measure or political candidate.
In his
analysis of the bill, Chau says the proposal would expand The Golden State's political
cyberfraud law to "provide protections to candidate campaigns in addition to the current law protections for ballot measures. This bill is an important step forward in the fight against 'fake news' and deceptive campaign tactics," Chau, who heads the California Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee, said.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a digital-rights advocacy group, wrote a critical
review of the bill, saying it was
"so obviously unconstitutional, we had to double check that it was real." The EFF argued the bill would violate free speech rights,
making it illegal to "be wrong on the internet." Anyone who made the "slightest hint of hyperbole, exaggeration, poetic license, or common error" on a candidate or ballot measure would be violating the law, according to the civil liberties advocate. They also note that the bill does not leave room for satire or parody, meaning The Onion would be considered illegal under the bill. Even quoting or retweeting an incorrect statement would be illegal
."At a time when political leaders are promoting 'alternative facts' and branding unflattering reporting as 'fake news,'
we don't think it's a good idea to give the government more power to punish speech," said Dave Maas, an investigative researcher for the EFF.
Comment: How odd to be in this day and age and have to make this argument!