Supreme Court
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In a major victory for the Biden administration, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned a lower court ruling that imposed significant restrictions on the ability of government officials to communicate with social media companies about their content moderation policies.
The court did not rule on what exactly constitutes permissible contact between executive branch officials and social media companies. Instead, the court ruled 6-3 that those challenging the government’s interactions with social media companies lacked legal standing to sue.
Judge Amy Coney Barrett, writing for the majority, said the plaintiffs had failed to prove the companies’ conduct could be traced to pressure from the Biden administration.
The case stems from the Biden administration’s efforts to address the spread of disinformation about COVID-19 vaccines, foreign interference in elections and other issues. Missouri and Louisiana, as well as some, believe the outreach by Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, the FBI, the White House and a major cybersecurity agency amounts to forcing social media platforms to censor content.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court disagreed.
Supporters of the ruling argue that it preserves, at least during the transition period, the government’s ability to engage with private companies on key issues of public interest. For example, they said contrary decisions could exacerbate the spread of voting misinformation, thereby undermining citizens’ ability to make informed decisions about elections and spreading disinformation about when and where to vote.
Critics, however, warned that the ruling could lead to unchecked government pressure on social media companies and related private entities.
