The Wall Street Journal recently published a new op-ed by President Joe Biden on the need for Congress to pass strong legislation to hold Big Tech accountable. In response, Free Speech For People renewed its call for Congress to pass the Big Tech Accountability Act – the organization’s model federal legislation crafted to protect the privacy of all Americans and to hold social media companies accountable when they amplify disinformation and violence on their platforms.

The President’s new piece calls for action to protect Americans’ privacy and hold Big Tech accountable “for the content they spread”:

First, we need serious federal protections for Americans’ privacy. That means clear limits on how companies can collect, use and share highly personal data—your internet history, your personal communications, your location, and your health, genetic and biometric data. It’s not enough for companies to disclose what data they’re collecting. Much of that data shouldn’t be collected in the first place. These protections should be even stronger for young people, who are especially vulnerable online. We should limit targeted advertising and ban it altogether for children.

Second, we need Big Tech companies to take responsibility for the content they spread and the algorithms they use. That’s why I’ve long said we must fundamentally reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects tech companies from legal responsibility for content posted on their sites. We also need far more transparency about the algorithms Big Tech is using to stop them from discriminating, keeping opportunities away from equally qualified women and minorities, or pushing content to children that threatens their mental health and safety.

Free Speech For People drafted the Big Tech Accountability Act following the events of Jan 6 2021, when hundreds of violent insurrectionists – incited by lies amplified on social media platforms – stormed the U.S. Capitol in an effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. FSFP’s model legislation provides a complete and comprehensive remedy for President Biden’s stated concerns about the lack of accountability for social media companies that plagues our democracy.  While many have called for social media reform, Free Speech For People’s Big Tech Accountability Act is the only proposal that would ensure accountability for social media platforms that amplify disinformation and violence and that would prevent the aggregation and exploitation of personal information at the heart of the Big Tech business model.

Read President Biden’s full piece in the Wall Street Journal here.

Learn more about the Big Tech Accountability Act here.