The First Amendment protects Americans from censorship by the government, not by private-sector companies, a key distinction in the debate over social media companies’ “censoring” online speech. Republicans’ justification for this hearing rests, in part, on the allegation that the government has at times pressured Twitter to suppress certain posts or accounts, which could raise some First Amendment questions. Even then, it’s not fully clear whether the First Amendment would apply.
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, pressed former Twitter trust and safety head Yoel Roth on that point today, asking whether he considers it a violation of the First Amendment when the government is “sending you an email saying, ‘We think these posts need to be taken down.’” Jordan was referring to screenshots shared as part of the ‘Twitter files’ showing communications in which the FBI and other federal agencies flagged posts and accounts for Twitter to review as possible violations of its rules.
