The Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments in two cases regarding whether the First Amendment applies to public officials’ social media accounts when they block constituents online.
The appeals come after a federal court ruled in 2018 that former President Donald Trump violated individuals’ constitutional rights by blocking them from his personal Twitter account. | J. Scott Applewhite/AP PhotoThe Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear arguments in two cases regarding whether the First Amendment applies to public officials’ social media accounts when they block constituents online.
The parents felt that their concerns over race relations in the school district were going unheard and turned to social media to post hundreds of repetitive comments on the school board members’ Facebook and Twitter pages. The two school board members eventually blocked the parents for spamming their accounts., the city manager of Port Huron, Mich., blocked a resident from his Facebook page who was critical of the city’s Covid-19 restrictions.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the parents’ rights were violated in the California case, while the Sixth Circuit ruled in favor of the Michigan official. The 2018 ruling found that Trump and one of his aides cannot point to the president’s own First Amendment interests as justification for blocking the individuals — an argument his legal team had made. But in 2021, the Supreme Court threw away that ruling.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
'Absolutely offensive to the First Amendment': Restraining order against Arizona journalist assailed'We've always known that the only way to protect free speech and a free press is to not have the courts play a significant role in regulating it,' said Gregg Leslie, executive director of the First Amendment Legal Clinic at Arizona State University.
Read more »
How to protect our First Amendment freedoms | Faith MattersThe day of the conference was to be the first day of the trial between FOX News and Dominion Voting Systems and it was announced to the crowd of over 100 that a settlement was reached -- a fitting backdrop to the day’s panel discussions on whether the First Amendment can weather the storm of what Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa called “not misinformation but disinformation.”
Read more »
Supreme Court deals blow to oil companies by turning away climate casesDecision means lawsuits filed by municipalities seeking to hold companies liable for harms caused by carbon emissions can move forward in state court.
Read more »
Supreme Court to hear cases on government officials blocking critics on social mediaThe Supreme Court said Monday it will hear two cases in which public officials blocked critics on their personal social media accounts.
Read more »
AOC Rebukes Alito 'Tantrum' and\u00a0 'Highly Politicized' Supreme Court'In our system of checks and balances, SCOTUS’s reckless behavior warrants a check from the legislative and executive branches,' says AOC. This is not unprecedented, it's how our system is designed to avert tyranny.'
Read more »
Democrats breathe temporary sigh of relief after Supreme Court order on abortion pillDemocrats express cautious optimism and Republicans voice frustration after the Supreme Court's decision to allow the abortion pill mifepristone to remain widely available.
Read more »