Bulletins

Texas governor targets social media in special legislative session

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott making remarks at a microphone outdoors

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott

Photo: SERGIO FLORES/AFP via Getty Images

On Wednesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called for a special legislative session that will focus on, among other things, "legislation safeguarding the freedom of speech by protecting social-media users from being censored by social media companies based on the user's expressed viewpoints."

The special session will begin July 8, and will also cover a conservative wishlist of policies, including new funding for border security, as well as restrictions on "abortion-inducing drugs" and transgender athletes' ability to compete in the University Interscholastic League.

The social media directive from the Texas governor follows Florida's recent attempt to make it possible for Florida residents to sue social media companies for "censorship, deplatforming, and shadow banning." A judge blocked that law, stating that, "Balancing the exchange of ideas among private speakers is not a legitimate governmental interest."

If Texas does end up passing legislation aimed at restricting social media companies' ability to moderate their platforms, it would almost certainly meet the same fate.

Former President Donald Trump is also expected to sue Facebook and Twitter Wednesday over their decisions to ban his accounts. Those suits are also likely to be dismissed, given the broad protections Facebook and Twitter have under Section 230.

Issie Lapowsky

Issie Lapowsky ( @issielapowsky) is Protocol's chief correspondent, covering the intersection of technology, politics, and national affairs. She also oversees Protocol's fellowship program. Previously, she was a senior writer at Wired, where she covered the 2016 election and the Facebook beat in its aftermath. Prior to that, Issie worked as a staff writer for Inc. magazine, writing about small business and entrepreneurship. She has also worked as an on-air contributor for CBS News and taught a graduate-level course at New York University's Center for Publishing on how tech giants have affected publishing.

social mediasection 230
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