Elon Musk vs ‘Nanny State’: X Corp sues California for overreaching content moderation law

It seems that Elon Musk has had enough of California and the state’s overbearing conduct with social media companies.

X is accusing the California government of introducing a law that would be anathema for free speech on platforms like X. For that, Elon Musk’s X Corp is suing the state, saying that the law was a tool to “pressure social media platforms to ‘eliminate’ constitutionally-protected content viewed by the State as problematic.’

Today, @X filed a First Amendment lawsuit against California AB 587. As made clear by both the legislative history and public court submissions from the Attorney General in defending the law, the true intent of AB 587 is to pressure social media platforms to “eliminate” certain…

— Global Government Affairs (@GlobalAffairs) September 8, 2023

What the lawsuit is all about
Elon Musk’s X Corp has initiated a lawsuit against the state of California, contending the constitutionality of a recently enacted state law that imposes new transparency requirements on social media companies. These requirements pertain to how these platforms manage disinformation, hate speech, and extremist content.

X, formerly Twitter, asserts that this legislation, known as Assembly Bill 587, infringes upon its freedom of speech rights as protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the California state constitution.

In the complaint, which was filed in a federal court located in Sacramento, California, X argues that the law’s underlying purpose is to exert pressure on social media companies, compelling them to remove content that the State deems objectionable.

Compelled Speech vs Free Speech
X Corp, previously known as Twitter, has argued that California’s Assembly Bill 587 effectively compels social media companies to conform to the state’s views on politically charged topics, which constitutes a form of compelled speech. This assertion is at the heart of X’s challenge to the law, contending that it infringes upon its freedom of speech rights.

Elon Musk, who acquired X for $44 billion in October, has been vocal about his commitment to free speech principles.

Civil rights organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League and the Center for Countering Digital Hate have reported an uptick in hate speech targeting various groups on X since Musk’s acquisition.

The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, responsible for enforcing state laws, has yet to provide a response to the lawsuit.

Assembly Bill 587 has unreasonable demands
Assembly Bill 587 mandates that larger social media companies issue semiannual reports detailing their content moderation practices, including data on objectionable posts and their management. It also requires the companies to furnish copies of their terms of service. Failure to comply with these requirements can result in civil fines of up to $15,000 per violation per day.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the legislation into law in September, emphasizing the state’s commitment to preventing the weaponization of social media for the dissemination of hate and disinformation.

Following Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, the platform underwent substantial workforce reductions, with Musk attributing a 60 per cent decline in US advertising revenue to critics, including the ADL.

A former executive at X, A.J. Brown, highlighted that a recent policy shift, which limited the visibility of objectionable posts rather than removing them, has posed challenges in convincing advertisers that the platform is a safe space.