(C|Net) Sen. Josh Hawley introduced a bill Wednesday that would allow people to sue tech companies for “selectively censoring political speech.” Online platforms would have to update their terms of service to include a commitment to act in good faith, and could be fined $5,000 if they break that promise. The bill also prevents online platforms from hiding content from competitors.
“Big tech companies like Twitter, Google and Facebook have used their power to silence political speech from conservatives without any recourse for users,” Hawley said in a statement, adding current laws give them “outlandish power.”
The bill, which is being co-sponsored by Sens. Marco Rubio, Mike Braun and Tom Cotton, is another bid to amend Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act. It’s considered the most important law protecting speech online, preventing social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter and internet providers like Verizon and Comcast from facing lawsuits over posts made by users on their services.