NY AG, Governor: Section 230 Allows ‘Too Much Legal Immunity’

Social media platforms lack accountability for hosting harmful content because of Communications Decency Act Section 230, New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said in a report released Tuesday. The report showed Payton Gendron, the alleged mass shooter who killed 10 black people in Buffalo in May, was radicalized on fringe platforms like 4chan. Platforms largely provided an uneven response to his livestreaming efforts, the report said. James’ office reviewed thousands of pages of documents and social media content to explore how the alleged shooter used platforms to “plan, prepare and publicize his attack,” James said. Gendron was radicalized through “virtually unmoderated websites and platforms that operate outside of the mainstream internet, most notably 4chan,” James said, and livestreaming platforms like Twitch were “weaponized to publicize and encourage copycat” attacks. Section 230 allows “too much legal immunity” for platforms, even “when a platform allows users to post and share unlawful content,” James said.