Florida law would fine social media companies for censoring politicians

TITLE PLACEHOLDER | Cyber In :60 | GZERO Media

Marietje Schaake, International Policy Director at Stanford's Cyber Policy Center, Eurasia Group senior advisor and former MEP, discusses trends in big tech, privacy protection and cyberspace:

What is the deal with the new Florida law that fines social media companies for censoring politicians?

Well, it's a deal of Floridian politics, it is informed by Republican anger about the banning of President Trump off of Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. But the last word has not been said about the new law. Challenges based on companies' first amendment rights, as well as compatibility with current intermediary liability exemptions, like Section 230, will probably be fought out in court.

Will the law help or hurt the spread of misinformation on social media?

Now clearly, not only politicians like Trump have been guilty of sharing dis and misinformation, others have, too. So one law, in one state, will unlikely solve that vast and also complicated problem.

More from GZERO Media

- YouTube

The shifting geopolitical landscape and uncertainty surrounding the future of AI have stirred anxiety among those gathered in Davos. Yet, there are glimmers of hope. “The most important thing for me is really to turn the anxiety into action," said Teresa Hutson, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft.

Migrants line up to leave the United States for Mexico after being deported across the Paso del Norte international border bridge after President Donald Trump promised mass deportation operation, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on Jan. 23, 2025.
REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

As Donald Trump begins to roll out his plans for the “largest deportation operation in history,” Mexico, the country with the highest number of unauthorized citizens living in the US — some 4 million people — is preparing to welcome back thousands of deportees. Mexico plans to send anyone from elsewhere back to their home countries.

President Donald Trump attends a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, in 2019.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

During his first week in office, Donald Trump took steps to withdraw the US from two major international commitments: the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization. Will this create opportunities for other global powers, not least China, to fill the void?

President Donald Trump makes a special address remotely during the 55th annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, 2025.
REUTERS

GZERO’s very own Tony Maciulis is in the Alps reporting from the 55th World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Today he decided the theme should be turning anxiety and fear into action.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko take part in a signing ceremony following a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus in Minsk, Belarus, on Dec. 6, 2024.
Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS

Ahead of Sunday’s election in Belarus, there is little doubt that Alexander Lukashenko, Europe’s longest-serving leader, will win a new term in office. After the protests that erupted following the 2020 elections, threatening his grip on power for the first time, a government crackdown supported by Russia has eliminated any opposition to the president. We sat down with Eurasia Group expert Alex Brideau to learn more about the upcoming election.

President Donald Trump makes a special address remotely during the 55th annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, 2025.
REUTERS/Yves Herman

GZERO Publisher Evan Solomon writes that Donald Trump’s planned tariffs mean the US and Canada are headed for a trade war they don’t need over a prize they both already have.