Problem
In May 2016, a Facebook subscriber posted a comment expressing "frustration with the push to open showers, locker rooms, and bathrooms to all comers," which was attacked as "transphobic." A University of California senior then posted: "Better to be 'transphobic,' than reality phobic. The truth is that no amount of scalpel cuts, dresses, or wigs can make a man a woman. All it can do is make him look like a woman." Facebook removed the comment because it did not comport with Facebook's Community Standards and placed a 24-hour block on postings by the senior. After Facebook removed the block, the senior posted: "Friends: I am returning from a 24-hour ban from FB. Apparently, Comrade Zuckerberg does not tolerate the inconvenient truth that no amount of scalpel cuts can make a man a woman." Facebook removed that post as well, this time imposing a three-day ban. Did Facebook handle this situation appropriately? Would it matter if the posts were on a chat site sponsored by a public or private university? How should university administrators balance long-standing protections for academic freedom with calls for "safe spaces" and the "right" to be free of "microaggressions"? What role should faculty and fellow students play?
Following incidents such as this and the issues surrounding false and misleading information published on social media and internet message boards, Congress is considering eliminating the Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 which protects websites for information posted by third parties. Your CEO has been asked to serve on an inter-industry advisory panel to provide Congress with industry recommendations. Your CEO has asked you to provide her with the three priority issues from your industry's perspective if the liability shield is eliminated and law suits are able to be more readily brought against companies hosting internet sites. What are three priorities you advise your CEO to focus on and why? List the three priorities as bullet points, and in one paragraph your reasons these are the priorities for your industry.