Would Shutting Down Backpage Reduce Violence Against Women? (Guest Blog Post)
by guest blogger Alex Levy Many activists assert that the proliferation of online platforms that facilitate commercial sex has led to increased rates of exploitation and violence against women. This belief has motivated a slew of wide-ranging attacks against websites…
Manager’s Amendment for SESTA Slightly Improves a Still-Terrible Bill
On Friday, a Manager’s Amendment to SESTA was announced. The good news is that its revised language slightly improved the bill. The bad news is that SESTA remains bad policy. The worse news is that SESTA is now well-positioned to pass the Senate Commerce Committee and…
US Court Protects Google From Canadian Court’s Delisting Order–Google v. Equustek
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] Datalink allegedly misappropriated Equustek’s trade secrets to develop competitive products. Equustek sued Datalink in Canadian courts and obtained various court orders. The Datalink principal fled Canada…
Another Human Trafficking Expert Raises Concerns About SESTA (Guest Blog Post)
By guest blogger Nyssa P. Chopra I’ve been an advocate of anti-human trafficking initiatives since I first became involved with the issue when I worked at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement….
Another SESTA Linkwrap (Week of October 30)
I doubt I’ll do weekly updates on SESTA, but I had enough new developments since last week’s linkwrap to do another. * On Friday, Communications Daily (in “Thune Sees Broadband Infrastructure as Top Senate Commerce Telecom Priority for Rest of 2017”) reported…
Association Isn’t Liable for Its Members’ Message Board Postings–Inge v. Central Motorcycle Roadracing Association
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] Political turmoil can emerge in any community. This case involves a contested election for the Central Motorcycle Roadracing Association’s board. Unsuccessful candidate Inge claimed the organization’s leadership…
Another Court Rejects ‘Material Support To Terrorists’ Claims Against Social Media Sites–Gonzalez v. Google
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] Numerous lawsuits have been filed claiming social media services “materially support” terrorists because terrorist groups disseminate their content via the services. 1-800-LAW-FIRM (I kid you not) is behind…
Recent SESTA Developments (A Linkwrap)
Publicly, it’s been a little quiet on the SESTA/Wagner bill front since the House hearing in early October. However, activity is taking place behind the scenes. Proponents keep adding cosponsors: now 35 in the Senate and over 160 in the House. Also, backroom discussions are…
Conference Announcement: “Content Moderation & Removal at Scale,” SCU, Feb. 2
I’m pleased to announce “Content Moderation & Removal at Scale,” a conference we’ll be holding on campus on February 2, 2018. I anticipate a full house, so we’ve set a registration cap. When we reach the cap, we will put…
Hyperlinking to Sources Can Help Defeat Defamation Claims–Adelson v. Harris
An activist group posted an online petition urging then-Presidential candidate Mitt Romney to reject Nevada billionaire Sheldon Adelson’s campaign contribution. The petition linked to an AP story, which in turn linked to a court filing alleging that Adelson OKed his hotel empire…