D.C. Circuit Rejects Laura Loomer’s First Amendment Lawsuit Against Tech Giants
The D.C. Circuit refused to revive a lawsuit filed by the conservative blogger Laura Loomer against Twitter, Facebook, Apple, and Google for allegedly conspiring to censor conservative views.
Trump Signs Order Curtailing Protections for Social Media Companies
On May 28th, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that aims to roll back legal protections for social media platforms. His order was immediately met with withering criticism from First Amendment experts.
Twitter Removes More InfoWars-Affiliated Accounts
Among those suspended include InfoWars personality Owen Shroyer, who had recently used Twitter to promote a rally in Austin, Texas against the state’s stay-at-home order. Shroyer has used his accounts to discredit reports that hospitals are overwhelmed by coronavirus patients, though his account was not removed for this reason.
Appeals Court Rejects Request to Review Trump Twitter Case
"The critical question in this case is not the nature of the Account when it was set up a decade ago. The critical question for First Amendment purposes is how the President uses the Account in his capacity as President," Judge Barrington Parker wrote.
Devin Nunes Tries to Unmask Cow Account, Raising Concerns over Anonymous Speech
In a new amicus brief, Public Citizen and the American Civil Liberties Union argue that Nunes cannot legally pursue the identity of the anonymous speaker without first proving he has a valid defamation claim. Without meeting this legal standard, they write, the court could threaten people's First Amendment right to anonymous speech.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Cleared of Defamation In Suit Brought By British Cave Explorer
On December 6th, a jury in Los Angeles found that Tesla and Space X CEO Elon Musk had not defamed a British cave explorer when Musk called him a “pedo guy” on Twitter. Vernon Unsworth sued Musk in July 2018 after the two publicly disagreed about the rescue attempts for a soccer team who was trapped in a cave system in Thailand.
Google Announces New Policy on Political Advertisements
On November 20th, Google announced that the company will restrict how precisely political ads can target users on its search engine and on YouTube. Political ads can still be delivered according to gender, age, and location, as well according to the content of the website users visit. However, the new policy states that ads can’t be directed to users based on the public voter record or their political affiliations.
Despite His Efforts to Have “Pedo Guy” Case Dismissed, Elon Musk Will Go on Trial
A federal judge in California ruled that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has to go on trial for calling a British cave explorer a "pedophile" and "child rapist,” despite numerous attempts by the tech entrepreneur to have the case dismissed.