In its petition, the state asks the court to determine whether the First Amendment prohibits a state from requiring platforms to host certain communications and also whether states can require companies to provide explanations to users when they remove their posts . The report poses the most serious test yet of claims that Silicon Valley companies illegally censor conservative views. Read Florida’s filing for Supreme Court hearing The decision could have wide-ranging implications for the future of democracy and elections, as technology companies play an increasingly important role in disseminating news and information about politics. Critics of the state’s social media law and tech industry representatives also warn that if Florida’s law goes into effect, it could lead to a flood of hate speech, misinformation and other violent content that some states’ policies currently prohibit large social networking companies. Court of Appeals Upholds Texas Law Regulating Social Media Moderation The petition is a response to a ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit earlier this year that found important provisions of Florida’s social media law violated the First Amendment to the Constitution. The law would prohibit companies from denying politicians their services. Florida’s attorney general incorporated into the report a recent conservative victory at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, which upheld a Texas law that prohibits companies from removing positions based on a person’s political ideology. The Florida petition says the district court rulings conflict and the Supreme Court must resolve those differences. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The legal battle over Florida’s law began in May 2021, when Netchoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association, two industry groups representing major social media companies, filed a lawsuit to block the law’s implementation. Tech companies scored major victories when a federal judge in June of last year blocked the law’s implementation and then when the 11th Circuit upheld much of that ruling. Tech companies say they believe they will see a similar outcome at the Supreme Court. “We agree with Florida that the U.S. Supreme Court should hear this case, and we are confident that First Amendment rights will be upheld,” Netchoice vice president and general counsel Carl Szabo said in a statement. “We have the Constitution and 200 years of precedent on our side.” Any court ruling would have ramifications that extend far beyond Florida, as more than 100 bills related to curbing social media content have been introduced in state legislatures across the country, according to a July analysis by CCIA . Many of the state legislatures have already delayed until 2023 and are closely watching how litigation over the Florida and Texas laws is resolved. Although the first laws to regulate social media content were passed in conservative states, liberal states are now pursuing legislation to mandate greater transparency about how companies respond to threats and hate speech. Any ruling on states’ First Amendment power to regulate how companies control their platforms could have implications for those bills as well. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
