The FCC’s chairman will propose a rulemaking to interpret part of the Communications Act.
The White House hit out at social media: In May 2020, the White House issued an executive order on ‘Preventing Online Censorship’, after Twitter fact-checked claims made by US President Donald Trump about fraudulent mail-in ballots in California. Under the order, the Commerce Department would ask the FCC for new regulations clarifying when a company's conduct might violate the good faith provisions (Section 230) of the Communications Act, which currently act as a legal shield for tech companies' handling of user generated content. The order was widely criticised as potentially unconstitutional, and different positions emerged as to whether the FCC has the power to implement Section 230.
The FCC will clarify the meaning of Section 230: On 15 October 2020, the Chairman of the FCC, Ajit Pai, announced his intention to move forward with a rulemaking to interpret Section 230, after the Commission’s General Counsel informed him that the FCC has the legal authority to do so. The contents of the rulemaking are not yet known, however Pai noted that social media companies do not have a right to a “special immunity denied to other media outlets”.
There will be division within the FCC: Pai’s statement marks a shift in the FCC’s stance. The Commission has historically refrained from regulating internet platforms, and reportedly pushed back on a similar draft order of the White House in 2019. Two FCC commissioners have already voiced their concerns, arguing that the White House executive order was politically motivated, and that the FCC “has no business being the President's speech police”.
