Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) issued the following statement as the Supreme Court hears oral arguments this week on two cases—Gonzalez v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh­—that consider the responsibility of Big Tech firms for content that appears on their sites:   

            “The Supreme Court has a great opportunity to significantly correct what I and many others have long recognized as unjust—that gigantic tech companies hide behind a narrow interpretation of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to avoid any responsibility for what they deem acceptable to be posted on their sites.

            Over the past two decades, Section 230—which was intended to protect victims of sexually explicit and other objectionable materials by encouraging the removal of this egregious content—has been twisted and exploited to allow Google, Twitter, Facebook, and other tech giants to effectively police themselves without penalties.

            Citizens should be better empowered to hold these entities liable in court just like any other media source for libelous or obscene information, as well as for the suppression of free speech.

            As we saw with the deliberate, coordinated suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story in the run-up to the 2020 election, it is clear that tech giants are no longer a mere platform but have assumed the role of publishing information—often with a selective bias. They have amassed unparalleled influence over what information is shared or suppressed without any accountability to the American people whatsoever.

            Getting rid of Section 230 will ensure the Big Tech platforms are treated as any other publisher of news and content information. The change will enable citizens to hold Big Tech accountable, foster transparency and ensure respect for free speech.”

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