Ninth Circuit Panel Goes Out of Its Way to Question Section 230–DOE vs. Meta
4 hours ago
- #Section 230
- #Ninth Circuit
- #Meta Platforms
- The Ninth Circuit panel addressed Section 230 in a case involving Rohingya plaintiffs suing Meta, even though the lower court dismissed the case solely on statute of limitations grounds, making the panel's focus on Section 230 an act of judicial activism.
- The panel rejected the plaintiffs' arguments that Myanmar law should apply, affirmed that Section 230 protects Meta as a U.S. company, and emphasized that algorithmic content matching and promotion constitute publishing conduct covered by Section 230.
- Judges Berzon and Fletcher concurred, calling for an en banc review to reconsider Section 230's scope, arguing that algorithms and content recommendations should not be immune, while Judge Nelson separately concurred, criticizing the court's broad interpretation of Section 230.