"If You Don't Attend, Summons" US Senate Pressures Google, Facebook, Twitter

Pressure on Social Media Companies Over Immunity Clause

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] CEOs of American social media companies, who were criticized by President Trump as being 'progressively biased,' are under pressure to appear before the U.S. Senate committee on the 1st of next month. If they do not attend the hearing, subpoenas will be issued.

According to foreign media including CNET on the 24th (local time), Republican Senate Majority Leader Roger Wicker stated, "If the CEOs of Google, Facebook, and Twitter do not comply with the attendance request, subpoenas will be issued." Google, Facebook, and Twitter have not released any statements regarding this, but there remains the possibility that they may object to the subpoenas or negotiate through other means.

The reason the U.S. Senate is demanding the attendance of the three companies is due to the 'immunity' clause under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Until now, social media (SNS) companies have been protected by this immunity provision, which exempts them from legal responsibility for harmful or defamatory content posted by third parties.

However, the Trump administration is currently discussing provisions to eliminate this immunity. In May, it issued an executive order demanding a reinterpretation of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. This demand is interpreted as a measure by the Trump administration to pressure SNS platforms, which have many progressive voices, ahead of the November 3rd election. President Trump and the Republican Party have long claimed that major social media platforms are progressively biased.

Earlier, President Trump stated on his Twitter, "The Republican Party feels that SNS platforms completely ignore the voices of the conservative camp." He warned that Twitter shows political bias and said, "We will strongly regulate or shut them down before this happens again. (SNS platforms) must act properly now."