Steve DelBianco

Steve DelBianco, President and CEO for NetChoice is here to debate the connection between big tech and governments.

NetChoice’s POV:

• Legislation like SB 7072 (Florida) and HB-20 (Texas) empowers state governments to police and control speech online, violating the First Amendment rights of online businesses. These bills trample the First Amendment by allowing the government to force private businesses to host speech they’d otherwise remove or restrict. Internet platforms have a First Amendment protection to curate content and decide whether to host specific kinds of speech.

• NPR-ization of the Internet: Proponents of these laws claim they will protect free expression and free enterprise when they actually move us closer to state-run media and state-run internet. This is exactly why our Founders created the First Amendment—to protect us from the government telling us what we can and cannot say.