Social Media: The New Public Square?

Updated Jan. 16, 2025

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Rohingya refugees support each other while crossing the Myanmar-Bangladesh border. According to legal action taken in the US and UK, Facebook’s amplification of and failure to remove hate speech targeting Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar has facilitated the attempted genocide of the Rohingya people, which began in 2016.

Photo Credit: Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters

Introduction

As Internet access expands globally, the rise of social media, while heralded for its power to connect people, has also exposed significant drawbacks. Platforms supposedly designed to share truth and foster constructive dialogue now often facilitate misinformation, hatred, and division. In the United States, as social media continue to dominate public discourse, to what extent have they truly become the new “public square” for free expression? What are the societal impacts of a tool that can both bring about positive change and fuel harmful violence? How should society balance the right to free speech with the need to mitigate these online dangers?

The Best and the Worst of Humanity On Social Media

The Best: 

The Worst: 

Key Incidents from the Free Speech Tracker

Facebook – How Did We Get Here?

How did Facebook, which started as a dating app, become a purveyor of misinformation, disinformation, violence, and hatred? 

  • Timeline: Facebook at 15: How a college experiment changed the world, CNN, February 2019

Section 230

Sec. 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 protects social media (and other companies) from legal liability for the content posted on their websites and their moderation decisions. In recent years, lawmakers have debated whether Sec. 230 needs to be amended to protect against misinformation and disinformation. 

Jose Hernandez and Beatriz Gonzalez, the stepfather and mother of Nohemi Gonzalez, speak to the media outside the U.S. Supreme Court in February 2023 following oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google. Nohemi Gonzalez was studying abroad in France when she was killed during a Paris terrorist attack in 2015. Her family alleged in the lawsuit that Google violated the Antiterrorism Act by recommending videos by the Islamic State group (ISIS) to users via its algorithms, asserting the platform emboldened terrorism. | Photo: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

The New Public Square?

Other Incidents from the Tracker

Zooming Out: Social Media and the World

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg ready to testify before a joint hearing of the US Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee at the US Capitol, April 10, 2018, in Washington, DC.

Photo Credit: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

Regulation Station: Should We? If So, How?

Point / Counterpoint

Below are select commentaries featuring additional opinions on the issue. When reading, identify the author’s key arguments and how their perspective addresses social media issues more broadly.

Discussion Questions

  1. What are the similarities and differences between social media platforms and traditional public squares in terms of free speech protections and limitations? How does the First Amendment apply to social media platforms, and should privately owned platforms be required to uphold free speech principles as public spaces?
  2. Does banning public officials from social media infringe on their Free Speech rights? How should companies balance adherence to their community standards with the interest of the public in hearing from government leaders?
  3. Is “community governance” sufficient to address content issues on scales as large as Facebook, Twitter, or TikTok? How might such an approach aid or limit free speech compared to what users currently do on social media sites with reporting, flagging, and other complaints?
  4. In what ways can social media facilitate both civic engagement and social unrest? Should platforms be held responsible for violent outcomes seemingly resulting from online rhetoric? How should platforms balance the need to mitigate misinformation, hate speech, and harmful content without infringing on free speech rights?
  5. Should there be “democratic accountability” over companies’ content standards? How should social media companies handle content moderation in cases where free speech conflicts with public safety, such as incitement to violence or disinformation related to health crises? How might the government handle content moderation?
  6. What lessons should Americans take away from how other countries are attempting to regulate social media platforms? And how does one deal with the fact that online Free Speech rules cross borders?
  7. Do you agree that the First Amendment was intended to “protect the process of self-government,” as suggested by Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University? Would regulating social media hinder or help that goal?
  8. Has Congress abdicated its responsibility to the public in allowing profit-oriented tech platforms to set the rules for what people can and cannot say online?
  9. Should Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act be reformed, and if so, how might changes affect free expression and platform accountability? Has it harmed or helped free speech online?
  10. What are the ethical implications of using social media algorithms that prioritize sensational or divisive content? Should there be regulatory oversight of such algorithms?

Additional View

 

Social Media and the First Amendment

Social Media and the First Amendment

Posted by The Free Speech Project at Georgetown University on Monday, September 23, 2019

 

In September 2019, the Free Speech Project and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University hosted “Social Media and the First Amendment,” an impassioned forum on the confluence of online privacy, regulation, and rights.

Activity

Click on these themes below: Social Media + Legal Action + Artistic Expression

Discuss: What does this confluence of stories with these filters tell us about free speech issues and social media? Free speech and the ability to post online?

Tracker Entries

Themes

Categories