A US federal judge has ordered some government agencies and officials of the Biden administration to limit their contact with social media companies around content moderation, according to a court filing.
Agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in addition to certain officials have been restricted from talking to social media companies “for the purpose of urging, encouraging, pressuring, or inducing in any manner the removal, deletion, suppression, or reduction of content containing protected free speech posted on social media platforms.”
The preliminary injunction from US District Judge Terry Doughty in Louisiana comes as the result of a lawsuit from Republican-led states who argued that US government officials overstepped when urging social media companies to address posts with misinformation about COVID-19, elections, and other topics.
The judge is yet to make his final ruling in the case, but this injunction signals he is likely to rule in favor of the Republican attorneys general which will have significant implications for the First Amendment and could undo efforts to enhance coordination between the government and social media giants like Meta and Twitter.
A White House official said the Justice Department is reviewing the order and will evaluate its options, as reported by The Washington Post.
“This Administration has promoted responsible actions to protect public health, safety, and security when confronted by challenges like a deadly pandemic and foreign attacks on our elections,” the official said, per the WSJ.
“Our consistent view remains that social media platforms have a critical responsibility to take account of the effects their platforms are having on the American people, but make independent choices about the information they present.”
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