Senators propose reform to key U.S. tech liability
shield
Send a link to a friend
[June 25, 2020] By
Nandita Bose and David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two U.S. senators on
Wednesday introduced legislation to reform part of a federal law that
largely exempts tech platforms such as Facebook and Twitter from legal
liability for the material their users post.
The legislation, titled the Platform Accountability and Consumer
Transparency Act, or PACT, from Democratic Senator Brian Schatz and No.
2 Senate Republican John Thune aims to provide more accountability and
transparency for large tech platforms with respect to content moderation
decisions.
There are mounting calls to reform Section 230 of the 1996
Communications Decency Act at a time when legal immunity for tech
platforms has come under severe scrutiny.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2020/Jun/25/images/ads/current/cca_laptop-sda021709.png)
"My own judgment is that the conversation in Congress about Section 230
has been stupid and polarized," Schatz told reporters on a media call.
"Our approach is a scalpel rather than jackhammer," he said.
The bill would require tech platforms to explain their content
moderation practices in a way that is accessible to consumers, form a
complaint system that notifies users of moderation decisions within 14
days and allows them to appeal such decisions.
It would offer no immunity for known illegal content if companies are
notified and when federal regulators pursue civil actions.
Last month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seeks
new regulatory oversight of tech firms' content moderation decisions and
he backed legislation to scrap or weaken Section 230 in an attempt to
regulate social media platforms.
[to top of second column] |
![](../images/062520pics/busine25.jpg)
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-SD) asks a question during an oversight
hearing held by the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and
Transportation Committee to examine the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC), in Washington, U.S. June 24, 2020. Jonathan
Newton/Pool via REUTERS
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2020/Jun/25/images/ads/current/graue_20CAMARO_062320.png)
Trump's move came after Twitter Inc tagged the president's unsubstantiated
tweets about claims of fraud in mail-in voting with a warning prompting readers
to fact-check the posts.
Schatz said he did not have any indication if the White House will support the
bill. It includes one provision put forward by the Justice Department last week
to reform Section 230.
Another bipartisan bill, titled the Earn It Act, co-sponsored by the Senate
Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, a Republican, and Democratic
Senator Richard Blumenthal, aims to curb the distribution of child sexual abuse
material on tech platforms by threatening their Section 230 immunity. It will be
taken up at a committee hearing on Thursday.
(Reporting by David Shepardson and Nandita Bose in Washington; Editing by Steve
Orlofsky and Leslie Adler)
[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2020/Jun/25/images/ads/current/stclara_lda_SPONSOR_090519.png) |