3 ms·

I tend to agree, then again historically (pre-1980s), the town square included where ever people congregated or traversed. For instance the sidewalk https://en

I tend to agree, then again historically (pre-1980s), the town square included where ever people congregated or traversed. For instance the sidewalk https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh_v._Alabama https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh_v._Alabama There’s quite a history there: https://mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/824/public-forum-doctrine https://mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/824/public-forum-do... It’s pretty hard to argue Facebook wasn’t an intended public forum. Literally you have your public wall and your newsfeed, etc.

maxerickson 5y ago
Casually glancing at the first paragraph of your second link, I see the phrase "government property".
- Jtype 5y ago
  Read more. If you delve into this topic a bit more you will see that free speech rights are also available in private spaces as well. Most notably in regards to unions
  - maxerickson 5y ago
    Under a "public forum" doctrine?
jcranmer 5y ago
That's not exactly the correct legal take on Marsh v Alabama. The key question in Marsh v Alabama centered on whether or not that the sidewalk being owned by a company town caused it to cease to be a government for First Amendment purposes. If you look to the subsequent rulings section of the Wikipedia article, you'll notice that courts have--on multiple occasions--explicitly been asked to extend this analysis to "large internet companies are basically public square" arguments and declined to do so every time. The basis of distinguishing between the company town in Marsh v Alabama and Facebook is that Facebook doesn't perform any acts that look like government action--no "powers traditionally exclusive to the state." > It’s pretty hard to argue Facebook wasn’t an intended public forum. Literally you have your public wall and your newsfeed, etc. It's very easy to argue: Facebook wasn't created by the government. That is the nexus of the public forum, as far as SCOTUS precedent is concerned.
- WarOnPrivacy 5y ago
  This is a really good synopsis.

maxerickson 5y ago

Casually glancing at the first paragraph of your second link, I see the phrase "government property".

Jtype 5y ago
Read more. If you delve into this topic a bit more you will see that free speech rights are also available in private spaces as well. Most notably in regards to unions
- maxerickson 5y ago
  Under a "public forum" doctrine?

jcranmer 5y ago

That's not exactly the correct legal take on Marsh v Alabama. The key question in Marsh v Alabama centered on whether or not that the sidewalk being owned by a company town caused it to cease to be a government for First Amendment purposes. If you look to the subsequent rulings section of the Wikipedia article, you'll notice that courts have--on multiple occasions--explicitly been asked to extend this analysis to "large internet companies are basically public square" arguments and declined to do so every time. The basis of distinguishing between the company town in Marsh v Alabama and Facebook is that Facebook doesn't perform any acts that look like government action--no "powers traditionally exclusive to the state." > It’s pretty hard to argue Facebook wasn’t an intended public forum. Literally you have your public wall and your newsfeed, etc. It's very easy to argue: Facebook wasn't created by the government. That is the nexus of the public forum, as far as SCOTUS precedent is concerned.

WarOnPrivacy 5y ago
This is a really good synopsis.