Otherwise Objectionable: Will Section 230 Survive?

At a time when Section 230 has become one of the most politically divisive tech policy issues, our final episode of the Otherwise Objectionable podcast brings together an unusual panel for a “roundtable discussion” between myself, Jessica Melugin of CEI, Charles Cooke from the National Review, and Dave Willner (well-known trust & safety expert who has worked at Facebook, Airbnb, and OpenAI).

While these voices span the ideological spectrum and likely disagree on many policy issues, all of them think that Section 230 is an important and useful law. And in this discussion, we explain why we all believe Section 230 was (and remains) the right law for the internet.

Much of the discussion focused on whether or not there were any lessons from Section 230 for new technologies, like AI. There was also surprising optimism about 230’s chances for survival — though I remain more skeptical given the current political climate (and widespread ignorance about the law).

This episode wraps up this eight-part podcast series. It was really fun to work on, and I think is especially useful for folks who want to understand the history of why Section 230 exists and how well it’s worked.

Looking back across the episodes, what’s struck me most is how a law that was crafted in response to a specific bad early-internet court ruling has proven remarkably adaptable to challenges of an evolving internet. While the debates around Section 230 have become increasingly heated, the fundamental principles — that we want to encourage community, user empowerment, and innovation at the internet’s edges — remain as vital as ever.

If you missed it, here are all the episodes:

• Episode 1: The Most Misunderstood Law on the Internet
• Episode 2: The Dawn of the Internet
• Episode 3: Law and Disorder
• Episode 4: The Solution
• Episode 5: Blowback, and the Dust Settles
• Episode 6: The Rest of the World
• Episode 7: The Future of Speech Online
• Episode 8: Prescriptions to Save the Internet

This was a fascinating project to work on, and it was great to see it regularly ranked in the top tech podcasts on Apple’s podcast charts over the last few months. Thanks to everyone who listened! While this series is now done, you can continue to listen to the Techdirt podcast and Ctrl-Alt-Speech in your podcast apps of choice!