By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-25-21 The Federal Trade Commission, which has historically worked its will through lawsuits and settlements, is flexing its rulemaking muscle. That is because acting FTC chair Rebecca Kelly Slaughter has created a rulemaking group within the Office of General Counsel. Historically, the FTC has used its rulemaking authority primarily [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-25-21 While Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company is already a leader in countering misinformation online, he is calling on Congress to condition online platforms' Sec. 230 immunity from civil liability for third party content moderation on demonstrable systems to identify and remove harmful content. That is according [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-25-21 Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said Thursday (March 25) that she will be introducing her bill next week to protect marginalized communities from harmful advertising practices. The Civil Rights Marginalization Act of 2021 would amend Sec. 230, which provides online platforms immunity from civil liability for third-party content, to ensure [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-25-21 CEOs from Facebook, Google, and Twitter took their licks Thursday (March 25) from both sides of the aisle in a Hill hearing entitled "Disinformation Nation: Social Media's Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation." Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), chair of the Consumer Protection Subcommittee, said that the one thing that [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 Internet companies including Reddit, Etsy, and Dropbox have joined other tech companies warning Congress anew about tinkering with their Sec. 230 shield from civil immunity for the third-party content on their platforms. That comes on the eve of a March 25 hearing in the House Energy & Commerce [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 In advance of a high-profile House hearing March 25 with Big Tech CEOs about their accountability for disinformation on their platforms, a pair of House Democrats are taking advantage of that spotlight to reintroduce a bill to combat algorithmic promotion of extremism. Reps. Anna Eshoo (Calif.) and Tom [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 Concerned that a March 25 Big Tech hearing may be a chance for legislators to beat up on web platforms' Sec. 230 immunity from civil liability over third-party content, computer companies wanted the House Energy & Commerce Committee leadership to know the implications of weakening or eliminating the [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 As Democrats push a definition of broadband availability to include 100 Mbps speeds and perhaps even price, a bipartisan bill is resurfacing to focus $10 billion in 2021 on reaching "unserved areas" according to the FCC current definition of high-speed. Cable broadband operators were praising the bill's return. [...]
By John Eggerton, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 The day before Facebook and Twitter CEOs are scheduled to testify before Congress on their platforms' hosting of disinformation, a dozen attorneys general have called on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to do more to combat anti-vaxxer COVID-19 disinformation, signaling it is a matter [...]
By Mike Farrell, Multichannel News, 3-24-21 Comcast said Wednesday that it would invest $1 billion over the next ten years in its Internet Essentials program, the high-speed data service targeted at low-income households in its service footprint, to help further narrow the digital divide. Comcast started Internet Essentials in 2011 and in the past [...]