CWRU Law Downtown 10.16.19: Free Speech on the Internet: Blocking, Banning, and Removing Content

Speaker: Andrew Geronimo, Director IP Venture Clinic at the Milton A. Kramer Law Clinic Center at Case Western Reserve University School of Law

Can politicians block their constituents on social media platforms, and are those platforms using algorithms to suppress viewpoints they disfavor? Why are legislators on both sides of the aisle calling for changes to legislation that currently insulates online platforms for their users’ speech? Should governments or corporations shut down online communities that foment extremism or spread disinformation?

In many ways, the internet has fulfilled its promise of a free-flow of information that has fundamentally changed the way we interact with the world and each other. But the technology that has streamlined and improved communication has come with societal costs: it has opened new avenues for harassment, undermined our democratic processes, and exacerbated the spread of extremism. Are these necessary components of a free internet, or should we consider changes to the regulatory landscape?

This talk will examine the legal concepts and competing interests involved when making content decisions in an internet age where our social and political conversations increasingly originate and are amplified online.

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