There's an old saying that goes, "How do you know when a politician is lying? His lips are moving." These days, one can ask, "How do you know when Section 230 is being misunderstood?" and answer, "A politician is talking about it."
Adopted in 1996, Section 230 was proposed as a way to counter efforts to censor internet speech. Its authors, then–Reps. Chris Cox and Ron Wyden, did this by walking a delicate line. Their legislative language promoted the development of parental controls and filtering as an alternative to government censorship, and encouraged online platforms to allow free communication by immunizing them from liability for hosting speech by third parties. Crucially, Section 230 also ensured online platforms' ability to regulate posts that violate their terms of service.
