Social Media Challenges Florida With New Policy Announcement

We previously told you about how Floridian Governor Ron DeSantis (R) recently signed a big anti-social media bill into law. 

The legislation targets big social media companies like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Under it, no longer can companies ban political candidates or officials from participating on their platforms. 

“What we have seen in recent years is a shift away from internet platforms and social media platforms from really being liberating forces to now being enforcers of orthodoxy,” Gov DeSantis notes.

That bill covers both statewide and national candidates, though the fines for social media companies removing statewide candidates are much bigger. If a candidate runs for statewide office, the penalty is $250,000 per day (compared to $25,000 a day for out-of-state positions). 

Many policymakers are contesting the premise of such a bill. Oregon senator Ron Wyden (D) notes: “The First Amendment to the United States Constitution — backstopped by Section 230 — makes it abundantly clear that states have no power to compel private companies to host speech, especially from politicians.”

Lawsuits against the bill (many of which are based on constitutionality and are led by social media platforms) have already emerged.

Likewise, Facebook’s new policy announcement importantly indicates that the social media giant isn’t backing down to the threat of fines. 

In the future, Facebook is now publicly looking to remove its rule on political exemptions, indicating that candidates and those in office no longer have near immunity for what they say or do on the platform. 

Previously, policymakers and candidates held a level of newsworthiness that made banning them on social media sites (in this case, Facebook) complex. 

Facebook explains: If “someone makes a statement or shares a post which breaks our community standards we will still allow it on our platform if we believe the public interest in seeing it outweighs the risk of harm.” That rule supposedly won’t be around for much longer. 

If Florida stays where they are, federal courts might also get involved. By extending into the topic of constitutionality, federal courts now have jurisdiction to get involved and overrule/uphold legislation created by the state supreme courts.