Former President Donald Trump said he is taking Facebook, Twitter and Google to court, claiming he was wrongfully censored by the companies, Associated Press reported. The class action suits will also be filed against the CEOs of the three companies. The announcement was made at a news conference at Bedminster, Trump’s New Jersey golf course. The suits were filed in the US District Court for Florida’s southern district.
Trump was suspended from Twitter and Facebook for inciting violence, after a mob of Trump supporters broke into the US Capitol building in Washington, DC, on 6 January. Both Twitter and Facebook permanently suspended the account of Trump, who claims he won the presidential election.
Under Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, internet companies are generally exempt from liability for the material that users post. The law, which provides a legal “safe harbor” for internet companies, also allows social media platforms to moderate their services by removing posts that, for instance, are obscene or violate the services’ own standards, so long as they are acting in “good faith.” Trump and other politicians have long argued that Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms have abused that protection and should lose their immunity. Facebook, Google and Twitter all declined to comment on the news.
