Research
Platform content moderation is more structurally complex and economically determined than public debate suggests: moderation stringency is better predicted by revenue model (advertising vs. subscription) than by stated ideological commitments, "free speech platforms" maintain comparably restrictive terms of service in practice, and governance operates across infrastructure, payment, and app-distribution layers — not just social media. The central legal and normative dispute — whether dominant platforms should be treated as protected private editors (affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in *Moody v. NetChoice*) or as quasi-public utilities bearing constitutional-style obligations to users (argued via network-effects and horizontal-effect doctrine) — remains genuinely unresolved, with the EU's DSA representing the most ambitious attempt at a third path, though no longitudinal evidence yet exists that it improves user rights outcomes rather than producing compliance theater. Critically, two load-bearing empirical gaps undermine confident conclusions on either side: there is no independent audit data on algorithmic amplification bias beyond platform self-reporting, and AI-generated content's interaction with moderation systems is almost entirely unaddressed in current legal frameworks.
A systemic approach is necessary because the effective governance of online content is an ongoing balance between three parties: platforms, governments, and.
Content moderation of online speech is a moral minefield, especially when two key values come into conflict: upholding freedom of expression and preventing ...
2021 was a landmark year at the intersection of content moderation and internet infrastructure. Just two weeks into the year, Amazon, Google, and Apple all ...
This article compares the goals and outcomes of industry- and activist-led efforts that leverage advertisers to influence platform content moderation.
Under the DSA, users have the right to challenge content moderation decisions. Those who are unsatisfied can choose between complaining to the ...
For the first time in the internet's history, revising Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act's immunity for social media platforms from liability ...
District courts in both States entered preliminary injunctions. The Eleventh Circuit upheld the injunction of Florida's law, as to all.
Critics argue that this sweeping restriction on tech companies to moderate the content on social platforms will lead to massive misinformation, ...
The law purports to prohibit large social media platforms from censoring speech based on the viewpoint of the speaker.
Its terms of service also allow moderators to ban anyone whose content is deemed “libelous, slanderous, or otherwise objectionable.” Former ...
Pushing back against big tech censorship. In this “Heritage Explains LIVE,” we break down what you need to know about big tech censorship.
We defend the freedoms of speech and the press in the digital age through strategic litigation, research, policy advocacy, and public education.
... governance of online speech. Formal partnerships frame and constrain the means of action available to civil society, without always allowing ...
Financial deplatforming raises concerns about privacy and government interference in banking, challenging the balance between convenience and freedom.
Cloudflare had received numerous complaints about the nature of content on the site, including explicit content promoting white supremacy, anti-Semitism, ...
ARTICLE 19 welcomes the European Court of Human Rights' decision in a case concerning an individual's liability for third-party comments on a social media post.
Bluesky's open labeling system is a significant step towards a more transparent, user-controlled, and resilient way to do moderation.
If allowing a richer diversity of views and ideas on social media makes platforms fail, that is an indictment of our free speech culture. It means we need ... EFF advocates antitrust reforms, interoperability (allowing users to share content across platforms), and other steps to increase competition...
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