California consents to remove sections of social media legislation contested by Elon Musk's X
The state DOJ has announced it will uphold the remaining aspects of the law, despite X's contention that it infringes on free speech rights.
TroibNews 
SACRAMENTO, California — California has agreed to retract parts of a law mandating that large social media companies disclose their policies on managing hate speech, disinformation, harassment, and extremism in response to a legal challenge from Elon Musk’s X.
The settlement, announced on Monday between state Attorney General Rob Bonta and Musk’s social media platform, does not eliminate the entire law, which X had sought when it initiated the lawsuit in 2023, citing First Amendment concerns.
This agreement poses a setback to California's initiative to illuminate how social media platforms define and regulate speech. It arrives at a time when other Big Tech leaders, including Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, are attempting to gain favor with Former President Donald Trump by relaxing their own content moderation practices and reducing the involvement of third-party fact-checkers.
The settlement follows a September ruling from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that temporarily halted the law from being enacted after a three-judge panel determined that certain aspects of the law infringed upon the First Amendment.
X contended that the law infringed on social media companies’ free speech rights by compelling them to provide detailed explanations regarding their assessment and regulation of vaguely defined categories of political content.
Attorneys for X have not responded to a request for comment.
Elissa Perez, a spokesperson for California’s justice department, stated on Monday evening that the department "is committed" to enforcing the remaining provisions of the law, first enacted as AB 587 in 2022.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, a Democrat and the law's author, expressed in a statement to PMG his “disappointment by the outcome," while acknowledging that "important provisions of the law remain in effect." He added, "I look forward to working closely with my colleagues as we consider additional legislation to protect our communities."
As stipulated in the settlement, social media platforms are no longer required to inform state officials regarding their definitions of hateful, extremist, or misleading speech. The state is also prohibited from mandating platforms to disclose data on the frequency of posts flagged or removed for violating content moderation rules.
However, platforms must continue to make their terms of service publicly available and provide state officials with a summary of any changes semi-annually. These reports will also detail how companies enforce their terms of service and manage content that violates their rules.
The settlement is now pending final judgment from a federal judge.
Frederick R Cook contributed to this report for TROIB News
The settlement, announced on Monday between state Attorney General Rob Bonta and Musk’s social media platform, does not eliminate the entire law, which X had sought when it initiated the lawsuit in 2023, citing First Amendment concerns.
This agreement poses a setback to California's initiative to illuminate how social media platforms define and regulate speech. It arrives at a time when other Big Tech leaders, including Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, are attempting to gain favor with Former President Donald Trump by relaxing their own content moderation practices and reducing the involvement of third-party fact-checkers.
The settlement follows a September ruling from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that temporarily halted the law from being enacted after a three-judge panel determined that certain aspects of the law infringed upon the First Amendment.
X contended that the law infringed on social media companies’ free speech rights by compelling them to provide detailed explanations regarding their assessment and regulation of vaguely defined categories of political content.
Attorneys for X have not responded to a request for comment.
Elissa Perez, a spokesperson for California’s justice department, stated on Monday evening that the department "is committed" to enforcing the remaining provisions of the law, first enacted as AB 587 in 2022.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, a Democrat and the law's author, expressed in a statement to PMG his “disappointment by the outcome," while acknowledging that "important provisions of the law remain in effect." He added, "I look forward to working closely with my colleagues as we consider additional legislation to protect our communities."
As stipulated in the settlement, social media platforms are no longer required to inform state officials regarding their definitions of hateful, extremist, or misleading speech. The state is also prohibited from mandating platforms to disclose data on the frequency of posts flagged or removed for violating content moderation rules.
However, platforms must continue to make their terms of service publicly available and provide state officials with a summary of any changes semi-annually. These reports will also detail how companies enforce their terms of service and manage content that violates their rules.
The settlement is now pending final judgment from a federal judge.
Frederick R Cook contributed to this report for TROIB News
