By Thom Hartmann
WHY ARE WE NOT HOLDING TECH CEOS RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING ?
At a hearing on January 31 st this year , families whose children died as a result of interactions with social media companies confronted the industry ’ s top CEOs . The most dramatic moments were when Senator Lindsay Graham told billionaire Mark Zuckerberg that he had blood on his hands , and when Senator Josh Hawley demanded Zuck apologize to the grieving parents in the room — which he did ( sort of ).
But behind all that drama , which the TV networks loved , was a huge issue that the networks largely ignored because they benefit from it , too . It has to do with something called Section 230 .
The Republican case against regulation of business has always boiled down to arguing that when people are harmed by a company ’ s behavior they can sue for big bucks . If a car company knowingly markets a defective car , they can be sued by people who sustained injury . If your hospital kills a family member because they didn ’ t sterilize things properly , they can be sued . If your local restaurant makes you violently ill from food poisoning , you can sue them .
But the five fabulously wealthy CEOs who were grilled by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday occupy a unique space in American law : they can ’ t be sued , can ’ t be
32 x The Trial Lawyer