The New American by
On Monday, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) announced the cases they intend to hear in the upcoming term, including the potentially politically divisive Reynaldo Gonzalez v. Google case. That case directly questions the protections afforded by Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act (CDA), which limits the legal liability of online web hosts for the content posted by their users.
The case was brought by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, one of 130 people killed in a series of linked attacks carried out by a militant Muslim group. They argued that tech giants like YouTube helped fuel the rise of the Islamic State by allowing the group’s recruiting materials to be posted and spread online, and that YouTube’s active role in recommending videos overcomes the liability shield for internet companies that Congress imposed in the 1996 CDA.
The Washington Times reported, “In particular, the algorithms that social media companies used to recommend content made sure ISIS propaganda was put in front of the types of people who would be most receptive to such messages, court documents said.”
