Trump Replaces FCC Member in Bid to Push Through Twitter/Facebook Crackdown
Source: Ars Technica
Simington would replace Republican Michael O'Rielly, who apparently angered Trump by saying that the FCC must uphold First Amendment speech protections "that apply to corporate entities, especially when they engage in editorial decision making." O'Rielly's comments signaled that he isn't likely to support the Trump administration petition, submitted by the NTIA, that asks the FCC to reinterpret Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act in order to limit social media platforms' legal protections for hosting third-party content when the platforms take down or alter content they consider objectionable.
"Simington had a hand in drafting Trump's May executive order encouraging the Federal Communications Commission to rethink how Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act protects social media platforms from liability for the content it hosts," according to The Washington Post.
Trump had nominated O'Rielly to another five-year FCC term in March but withdrew the re-nomination after O'Rielly's comments. Simington's nomination would need approval from the Senate. O'Rielly could serve on the commission through the end of 2020 if the Senate doesn't act on the nomination before then, but he would have to leave if Simington officially gets the job. O'Rielly's FCC term technically expired in June 2019.
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/09/trump-replaces-fcc-member-in-bid-to-push-through-twitter-facebook-crackdown/
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