Advocates for free speech, an open internet, and sensible tech policy were anxiously awaiting the Supreme Court's decision in Gonzales v. Google, a case that gave the Court a chance to weigh in on a controversial law called Section 230. Now that ruling is here—and it's good news for civil libertarians concerned about Section 230's fate.
Sometimes described as "the internet's First Amendment," Section 230 protects "interactive computer services" from some liability for user speech. It has faced constant attacks in recent years from politicians and advocates on the left and on the right. Section 230 haters want to give individuals and states more ability to bring successful civil suits against tech companies for all sorts of harms allegedly caused by user content. Doing so would, of course, seriously weaken the incentives and protections for free speech online.
