Is Big Tech’s censorship of President Donald Trump a violation of the First Amendment? That is a hotly contested question among many right now.
Twitter and Facebook have banned President Trump from their platforms.
Just today, Facebook announced the removal of content containing the phrase, “Stop the steal.”
Some people believe this is an infringement on freedom of speech.
Legal expert Dan Monnat says that’s simply not true.
“Private individuals and companies can engage in censorship. The First Amendment only prohibits censorship by the government,” says Monnat.
Monnat goes on to say not only is this kind of online restriction legal and constitutional, it’s supported by the Communications Decency Act.
“Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which applies to online activity, encourages and immunizes censorship as to content that is violent, obscene or harassing,” Monnat says.
While activating a profile, every user must initially agree to terms of use.
“Here, where Facebook or Twitter has simply denied further access to someone who has violated the terms of their use by contract,” Monnat said.
See full story at KAKE.com