🏃🏻‍♂️ The Section 230 battle that Trump probably won’t win

It’s time to talk about Section 230 once again. Now that President Donald Trump has been banned from Facebook and Twitter, it’s possible the long-discussed law may get a quick overhaul. 

• Section 230 is the longtime law protecting internet speech: It basically gives companies wide range to moderate -- or not moderate -- speech without fear of lawsuits. Because of the recent bans, Trump’s fervor to revoke 230 has increased. 

• The Washington Post reports Trump has made it a priority: It said he’s already been asking lawmakers to fast-track the removal of the law.

• There’s a lot of irony here: A repeal of Section 230 would likely lead to more moderation because companies would fear lawsuits over speech deemed to be violent or hateful. In other words, Trump may have been banned by Twitter even sooner.  

Reform is more likely

The odds of Trump successfully pushing a last-minute repeal are low (he may not even last until the rapidly-approaching end of his term). But with Democrats in charge of Congress for the next two years change may still happen, albeit on a far lower scale than Trump has pushed for. 

The Verdict

Experts suggest that various parties will begin hashing out reform details early in Biden’s term. 

And a little more irony: Tech giants have largely opposed Section 230 reform, but people now hypothesize the biggest tech companies will be the beneficiaries because they’ll be most capable of dealing with the cost of any changes.