[dane-pgp]

> In fact, once the social media companies have to assume legal liability — not just for libel, but for inciting violence and so on — they will quickly change their algorithms to block anything remotely problematic.

If websites are legally liable even for libellous comments made by users, then "anything remotely problematic" will include "any negative claim by anyone about any other person or company". Perhaps the author needs to read:

https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20200531/23325444617/hello...

[akersten]

Yeah.. The piece you quoted is underselling it too. It's not "they will change their algorithms to block anything remotely problematic," it's more like "they will literally cease to exist because they'll be stuck in a legal quagmire of court dockets alleging that every post in a debate is libelous."

Imagine that every time someone reported a post on Facebook, or someone flagged a comment here on HN, that it had to go to a court/tribunal/government committee to decide if it should be taken down, if the platform should be punished, etc. It's just a total non-starter to even suggest that S230 be repealed. The entire interactive Internet depends on it.

[xtiansimon]

Or cease to exist because the virality of messages has practically been the only real _product_ any of these highly valued social media companies have ever created—as a platform for advertising.

I’m old enough to remember when internet company valuations had everyone wringing their hands asking, what is the mid sky-high valuation based on? Where is the _product_??!

[dane-pgp]

Right, so if you wanted to decimate Big Tech companies (or possibly the economic and cultural advantage of the US in general) this is actually a clever policy change with plausible deniability. Also, to use an analogy, it's a hook which is easy to bait in a way that a narcissistic national leader will be keen to swallow it.