5th Circuit finds Biden White House, CDC violated First Amendment
The Court upheld many restrictions on the White House and Surgeon General’s office’s contacts with tech companies, finding that they ‘coerced’ platforms’ content decisions
By Cat Zakrzewski
and
Joseph Menn
Updated September 8, 2023 at 8:27 p.m. EDT|Published September 8, 2023 at 6:58 p.m. EDT
The 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Friday ruled that the Biden White House, top government health officials and the FBI likely violated the First Amendment by improperly influencing tech companies’ decisions to remove or suppress posts on covid-19 and elections.
The decision is largely a victory for conservatives who’ve long argued that social media platforms’ content moderation efforts restrict their free speech rights.
The judges’ decision modifies a lower court’s injunction that had affected a wide range of government departments and agencies. The new ruling limits that impact to the White House, the surgeon general, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FBI, barring officials in those government offices from coercing social media platforms to take down or otherwise limit posts on their websites.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/09/08/5th-circuit-ruling-covid-content-moderation/
