In a recent ruling, US District Judge William Shubb has rejected a request by Elon Musk-run X to avoid compliance with a California law mandating social media platforms to disclose their strategies for moderating harmful content and misinformation. The judge denied X's plea for a preliminary injunction against the law, known as AB 587.
The law stipulates that major social media companies must provide details on how they moderate content related to hate speech, racism, extremism, radicalization, disinformation, harassment, and foreign political interference. Judge Shubb stated in his decision that, while the reporting requirement imposes a significant compliance burden on social media firms, it is not deemed unjustified or unduly burdensome within the context of First Amendment law.
X, in a complaint filed in September, argued that AB 587 infringes on the First Amendment right to free speech. The company contended that defining hate speech, misinformation, and political interference is challenging and that the law would compel social media platforms to "eliminate" content protected by the Constitution.
The law, signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, aims to hold social media platforms accountable for monitoring and addressing hate speech, extremism, harassment, and other objectionable behaviors. AB 587 requires these platforms to publish their terms of service online and submit semi-annual reports to the state attorney general detailing their content moderation approaches.
(With Agency Inputs)
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