States vs. Social Media Companies

What’s the deal? After Twitter blocked Donald Trump, proposals have emerged to prevent the blocking of elected officials. Florida Governor is now chiming in with a proposal that will impose a fine “if a technology company de-platforms a candidate for elected office in Florida during the election, a company will face a daily fine of $100,000 until the candidate’s access to the platform is restored again.””

Why should we care? Hypocrisy. Some time ago, consistency mattered. So did facts. But, it’s a new economy and we’re entering new territory. Do we pick the same old choice of disregarding facts and consistency? Do we care if we need to reconcile the notion that a private company should be able to deny customers for religious reasons, can a private company deny a person a social media platform for safety or other reasons?

How does this impact me? Representing an elected official in a cancel culture should wake us up. If your client is silenced, could your account could also be silenced? On the flip side, could your work entail negotiating terms to reinstate the account of your client.

Governing | DeSantis: Penalize Social Media That Blocks Politicians