Vol. 1 No. 4 (2020)
Review Article

Section 230 and the U.S Policy Debates Surrounding Content Moderation and Online Speech

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  • Jennifer Huddleston
Jennifer Huddleston
American Action Forum
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5278/njmm.2597-0445.6371

Published 01-12-2020

Keywords

  • Section 230,
  • intermediary liability protection,
  • First Amendment,
  • content moderation,
  • online speech

How to Cite

Huddleston, J. (2020). Section 230 and the U.S Policy Debates Surrounding Content Moderation and Online Speech. Nordic Journal of Media Management, 1(4), 575–581. https://doi.org/10.5278/njmm.2597-0445.6371

Copyright (c) 2020 Jennifer Huddleston

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of Section 230, a law that provides broad liability protection in the United States for online platforms regarding user-generated content, and the ongoing debates about the impact of the law, content moderation, and online speech. It begins by explaining the intended purposes of Section 230, discusses criticisms it currently faces, and reviews the potential consequences and policy concerns with many of the proposed changes. It concludes that Section 230 remains an important policy to continue free speech online and to encourage innovation by limiting risk from user speech for new online platforms.

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