You Have The Right to Free Speech (Except When On Google)

You Have The Right to Free Speech (Except When On Google)

As of February 26th, 2020, it has been ruled that privately run internet platforms have the right to censor content that they do not want on their site. PragerUniversity, a YouTube channel that produced educational videos on conservative viewpoints, had several of its videos flagged as inappropriate by YouTube in 2017 - in response, PragerUniversity filed a lawsuit against YouTube and its parent company Google, asserting that its content was being unjustly discriminated against for its conservative views. This, combined with YouTube’s dominant position in the online community rendering it akin to a public square, provided grounds for allegations of First Amendment violations, allegations that have now been declared false by a federal appeals court in California.

This decision marks a major (if unsurprising) moment in the debate regarding the right to free speech in the age of the Internet where privately run tech companies control virtually all major forms of online communication. Per the court’s decision, the private sector is not bound by the regulations imposed by the First Amendment like the government is, and companies like Google fall squarely into that exempt category. This has been the case since the mid 1940s, well before the dawn of the Internet, and shows no signs of changing.

There are many relevant topics that can be gleaned from examining this story. The most obvious is, quite simply, the ever-looming specter of increasing government regulation on private businesses, but the issues in this particular case surrounding the First Amendment complicate matters by incorporating elements of the social responsibility businesses have towards their consumers. Perhaps it is right for private businesses to be exempt from the laws that bind the government - this does not mean, however, that these businesses can exempt themselves from their obligations to society as a whole. The Internet is much more than a useful service - it is the thing that has enabled a whole new way of life, akin to basic necessities like food, water, and shelter. Responsibility demands, then, that this be respected - to do otherwise is to cause active harm to society, the very antithesis of what a business is meant to do.

The ubiquity of companies like Google in our world is unmistakable. The resources they command are vast, the influence they exert over our daily lives all but incalculable. Society, quite literally, depends on some of the services they provide, and it is their responsibility to recognize this and act accordingly. Such great fortune (and its consequences) calls to mind an old adage:

“To whom much has been given, much more is expected.”

https://www.wsj.com/articles/tech-platforms-arent-bound-by-first-amendment-appeals-court-rules-11582748988?mod=hp_lista_pos5