September 17, 2020 |
FCC Nominee Nathan Simington Helped Write Trump Section 230 Order |
LOS ANGELESâDonald Trump this week nominated former telecommunications industry corporate lawyer Nathan Simington, a critic of the foundational internet law known as Section 230, to a seat on the five-member Federal Communications Commission. Simington reportedly played a major role in authoring a petition to the FCC for a âreviewâ and rewrite of Section 230, according to a report by the tech news site The Verge. Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act is known as the âFirst Amendment of the Internet.â The law allows online platforms to post a nearly unlimited range of content by shielding those platforms from legal liability for content posted by users. But in May, the Trump signed an executive order calling for Section 230 to come under review, claiming that the law permitted social media companies to censor conservative viewpoints, including his own Twitter postings. Responding to the order, the National Telecommunications and Information Agency (a branch of the Commerce Department) submitted a written petition to the FCC, asking the commission to undertake a review and rewrite of Section 230. Simington, who now serves as senior adviser to the NTIA, was one of the driving forces behind that petition, according to The Verge. The FCC must vote on whether to take up the petition, and the addition of Simington â assuming his nomination is confirmed by the Senate, which appears likely â gives Trump three votes in favor. Trump had previously nominated current Republican FCC commissioner Mike OâRielly to a third term on the board. But he pulled the renomination after OâRielly gave a speech in which he expressed skepticism about moves by both Republicans and Democrats to regulate speech on the internet â the issue at the heart of the Section 230 controversy. âAs a conservative, Iâm troubled voices are stifled by liberal tech leaders,â OâRielly tweeted, following the signing of Trumpâs executive order. âAt same time, Iâm extremely dedicated to First Amendment which governs much here.â In his July 29 speech, OâRielly said the First Amendment applies to âcorporate entitiesâ as well as individuals and the press. Though he was quick to state that his views were ânot in any way directed toward President Trump or those in the White House," they were taken as a signal that he may not support Trumpâs proposed rollbacks to Section 230 protections. By contrast, according to a Reuters report, Simington helped write Trumpâs executive order, as well as the NTIAâs subsequent petition. Photo by Nathan Simington Linkedin Page
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