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No. Right now, they are in fact just private companies. They are not de jure social utilities, even if they act as if they are de facto. Now, maybe they should
by 1propionyl 6y ago
No. Right now, they are in fact just private companies. They are not de jure social utilities, even if they act as if they are de facto.
Now, maybe they should be, and should be regulated as such. Maybe we should have a conversation about delegating services which are key to our social fabric to what are just private companies. But that's somewhat orthogonal to the issue at hand.
Additionally, should be noted: if the government attempted to coerce or strong-arm Twitter to keep Donald Trump's account online, that would absolutely be a textbook 1st Amendment violation.
Corporations are legal persons, and have constitutional rights under the 14th Amendment. Coerced speech is not free speech.
- tempsy 6y agoI didn’t say that they were social utilities right now, I’m saying this could very well spark interest in regulating social media as more than just any old private business with zero regulatory framework attached to them.
- 1propionyl 6y ago> ...these companies are more than just private companies they are social utilities. They are not though. They are just private companies. We can argue until the cows come home about how people see them, how they use them, how they feel about them... but at the end of the day they are just private companies. I agree that we should consider whether that should remain the case. But right now... it is the case.