Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke introduced a new proposal Friday that he says will force social media companies to remove white supremacists from their platforms.
The former Texas Rep., who is trailing in the polls, announced his plan to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which was passed in 1996 when the Internet was young and growing. The rule effectively protects internet companies from liability for content posted by users.
Domain name servers and big tech companies could potentially be held liable if they knowingly promote content that incites violence. O’Rourke is one of more than 20 Democrats running for president in 2020.
“Beto is calling on internet hosting companies to follow Cloudfare’s lead to not allow 8chan back online and supports the closure of 8chan, Stormfront and other white nationalist communities housed on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter,” O’Rourke’s campaign noted in a statement to the press.
A mass shooter in El Paso appeared to have used 8chan, a messaging board popular with white supremacists, to post an anti-immigrant screed explaining his motivations for carrying out the attack. Cybersecurity company Cloudfare terminated services to 8chan after the shooting.
The former Texas Rep., who is trailing in the polls, announced his plan to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which was passed in 1996 when the Internet was young and growing. The rule effectively protects internet companies from liability for content posted by users.
Domain name servers and big tech companies could potentially be held liable if they knowingly promote content that incites violence. O’Rourke is one of more than 20 Democrats running for president in 2020.
“Beto is calling on internet hosting companies to follow Cloudfare’s lead to not allow 8chan back online and supports the closure of 8chan, Stormfront and other white nationalist communities housed on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter,” O’Rourke’s campaign noted in a statement to the press.
A mass shooter in El Paso appeared to have used 8chan, a messaging board popular with white supremacists, to post an anti-immigrant screed explaining his motivations for carrying out the attack. Cybersecurity company Cloudfare terminated services to 8chan after the shooting.
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