Federal appeals court finds no tech conspiracy against conservatives

The D.C. appeals court upheld a lower court decision dismissing a claim by conservatives that the tech companies, Twitter, Facebook, Apple and Google, conspired to stifle conservative views online. Freedom Watch and a YouTube personality Laura Loomer claimed the companies worked together to discriminate against conservative voices in violation of the First Amendment. (Bloomberg News, May 27, 2020, by Erik Larson)

In a 3-0 decision, the court ruled that as private companies they could not violate the First Amendment and said that Freedom Watch did not show that the tech company platforms were engaged in state action and thereby subject to the First Amendment. President Donald Trump argued on Twitter that the platforms silenced conservatives and threatened to regulate them or shut them down. (Politico, May 27, 2020, by Josh Gerstein)

For related FAC coverage, click here, here and here.