Do Twitter and Other Social Media Platform Bans on Trump Violate the First Amendment?
Twitter, Facebook, and a host of other privately-held companies have imposed bans on President Donald J. Trump, believing that his incendiary comments on January 6, 2021, helped fan the flames of outrage that resulted in an assault on the Capitol. Trump and others have decried the social media blackout as a direct assault on conservative points of view, and as a draconian targeting of only certain types of speech.
Today, most political and social discussion occurs in the digital sphere, often on peoples' social media platforms. Seeing this, some public officials have opened Facebook and Twitter accounts to share important updates and engage with their constituents. But what happens when the official wants to remove a user who is posting critical feedback? This teacher guide uses the Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump to show how First Amendment principles like public forum and viewpoint discrimination apply online.
Campus Speech Group Publishes Report on Internet Expression
The report details 35 incidents of universities punishing students or faculty for speech online, and 10 universities with policies in place that FIRE says give administrators “immense power to punish large swaths of speech.” According to the advocacy group, many public universities are acting like the First Amendment applies differently to online speech.
Trump Supporter Attacks Reporter Ahead of Trump Rally in Minnesota
A supporter of President Donald Trump attacked a photojournalist on September 30th, a few hours prior to a Trump rally in Duluth, Minnesota. Dymanh Chhoun, a reporter on assignment for CBS local channel WCCO-TV, was covering a gathering of Trump and Biden supporters on a public road outside of Duluth.
Student Facing Expulsion for Social Media Posts Sues Naval Academy
The 21-year-old claims he is being singled out because of his political beliefs, and that students who wrote posts advocating for violence against police officers were not punished. Though the First Amendment generally protects public university student's right to express themselves online, experts say the extent of those protections may be different in the context of military institutions.
Reporter Tackled and Arrested by LA County Sheriff’s Deputies While Covering a Protest
Josie Huang, a reporter with NPR affiliate KPCC, was tackled and arrested while covering a protest on Saturday, September 12th. Huang had been attending a press conference about the shooting of two Sheriff’s deputies in Compton earlier that day.
Government Petitions Supreme Court to Review Knight v. Trump Decision on Twitter Blocking
As in previous cases, the president's lawyers insist that the president's personal account is private and he should be allowed to exclude critics freely. They also emphasized that the act of blocking was not a kind of state action because it did not involve government power.
Ninth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Stormy Daniels Defamation Claim Against Trump
Though Daniels claimed that Trump’s use of the term “con job” implied that she had committed criminal fraud, the appeals court reasoned that this was only one of a number of possible ways to read the President's tweet. Ultimately, the appeals court ruled the tweet an opinion and, thus, not actionable.