No ideological splits, only worried justices as High Court hears Google case

Jose Hernandez and Beatriz Gonzalez, stepfather and mother of Nohemi Gonzalez, who died in a terrorist attack in Paris in 2015, talk Tuesday to reporters outside the U.S. Supreme Court following oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

A worried and wary Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday in a case that could revolutionize the architecture of the internet and social media companies. At issue in the case is a 1996 law that shields internet platforms from being sued for material that appears on their sites.

On one side of the case is the family of an American student killed in a terrorist attack in Paris. Her family claims that YouTube, owned by Google, aided and abetted in the attack by recommending ISIS videos to people who might be interested in them. The argument is that by recommending these videos Google promoted ISIS recruiting, propaganda and terrorist attacks.