A federal judge blocked a Florida law that would have allowed people to sue social media companies if they didn't "apply censorship, deplatforming, and shadow banning" on a consistent basis.
The bill — which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law last month — would have also prevented companies from suspending or removing the accounts of political candidates, also known as deplatforming. Two tech trade groups sued Florida, saying that the law would violate the companies' First Amendment rights.
Judge Robert Hinkle said that the injunction would be enacted on a preliminary basis. "The legislation now at issue was an effort to rein in social-media providers deemed too large and too liberal," he said. "Balancing the exchange of ideas among private speakers is not a legitimate governmental interest."
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE