Senator Amy Klobuchar, a key Democratic voice on tech regulation, said she advocated for legislation that would deprive tech corporations of legal protection when they "amplify" hate speech or electoral hoaxes.
This follows the recent news circulating about Elon Musk, his takeover of Twitter, and his stance on free speech.
The Minnesota senator made it clear during an interview that she does not trust Musk to oversee the operation of the social media site, Bloomberg reported.
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Depriving Tech Giants of Legal Immunity
On NBC's "Meet the Press" program, aired on Sunday, Oct. 30, Sen. Klobuchar remarked that digital giants are "making money off of this violence." The legislator was referring to the disturbing and brutal assault on 82-year-old Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Sen. Klobuchar is head of the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee and author of antitrust legislation that targeted large tech corporations. She has argued that Congress should revoke the protection it provided to online platforms in 1996 for the information posted by third parties.
She stated that she would lower these companies' immunity in a manner that would enable people to go after them when they are earning profit from the amplification of electoral hoaxes and hate speech.
The senator went on to say that members of Congress from both parties have shown an interest in modifying this kind to the immunity clause. The mentioned clause was included in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996.
Klobuchar on Musk-Twitter Saga
The Musk-Twitter story has been making the rounds, and it was one of the subjects mentioned throughout the NBC program.
When Sen. Klobuchar was asked whether she trusted Musk to manage Twitter, which he had purchased recently, she said, "No, I do not."
WATCH: @SenAmyKlobuchar (D-Minn.) says tech companies “are making money off of us. They are making money off of this violence."@chucktodd: "Now that Elon Musk runs Twitter, do you trust him?"
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) October 30, 2022
Klobuchar: "No, I do not." pic.twitter.com/GZK226g0QC
Reportedly, Musk has stated that political figures like former President Donald Trump should be given more leeway before they are permanently banned from Twitter for their tweets.
According to Bloomberg, he has put off reinstating access to the site for those individuals who have been banned for engaging in hate speech, bullying, or disseminating election disinformation while the firm is in the process of setting up a content moderation board.
While Klobuchar acknowledged that Musk's support for establishing the said moderation board is "one good sign," she continued to express her concern.
"I think you have to have some content moderation. Because when you look at what this guy [Musk] was looking at, he was looking at just horrendous things you don't even want to talk about on your show," said the Senator during the interview.
"He was posting anti-Semitic tropes. He was showing memes that showed violence and all of this [election-denying,] pro-Trump, MAGA crowd rhetoric. That's what we're dealing with here."
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Written by Trisha Kae Andrada
