Over the past year, there have been a number of discussions about social media and freedom of speech. Some critics blame social media companies for inadequately monitoring their content and promoting “fake news” at the instigation of foreign governments. Others criticize these companies’ new algorithms or content mediation policies, revised in some instances to respond to the first set of criticisms, as aimed at or disadvantaging certain sets of views. Meanwhile one leading tech company fired an employee for expressing views on the reasons for the company’s lack of gender diversity on the company’s listserv that were then published widely and condemned on social media on the ground that the views were offensive and could be seen as creating a hostile work environment.What kinds of responsibility do/should social media companies have for what is published on their sites? To what extent should this be determined by the companies themselves? By the market? By a body of outside experts? By government regulation?
Featuring:

Justin (Gus) Hurwitz, Nebraska College of Law (moderator and panelist)
Richard Epstein, NYU School of Law, University of Chicago Law School
J.S. Nelson, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law
Hannibal Travis, Florida International University Law School
Aaron Wright, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law