Supreme Court rules narrowly for big tech

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Beatriz Gonzalez, right, the mother of 23-year-old Nohemi Gonzalez, a student killed in the Paris terrorist attacks, and stepfather Jose Hernandez, speak outside the Supreme Court Feb. 21 in Washington. Associated Press/Photo by Alex Brandon, File

Supreme Court rules narrowly for big tech

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Google, Twitter, and Facebook on Thursday, saying the companies did not aid and abet an ISIS attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2017. The court also ruled explicitly in favor of Google in a similar case involving the death of an American college student in Paris in 2015 in another ISIS attack.

Does this change the laws about social media? Section 230, established in 1996, is part of federal law ensuring that internet platforms like Google’s YouTube and social media sites like Twitter and Facebook cannot be held liable for content that users post. Legal experts expected the court might use the cases to revise Section 230, but the court declined to address the law.

Dig deeper: Read Erin Hawley’s column in WORLD Opinions about the Supreme Court’s recent intervention in the legal battle over the abortion drug mifepristone.