• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

Melinda French Gates' advice to new IPO millionaires: 'Give half your money away'

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

Melinda French Gates' advice to new IPO millionaires: 'Give half your money away'
TechSocial Media

How Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wants to fix social media

By
Danielle Abril
Danielle Abril
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Danielle Abril
Danielle Abril
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 5, 2021, 7:54 PM ET

Our mission to make business better is fueled by readers like you. To enjoy unlimited access to our journalism, subscribe today.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wants to rein in social media companies and he has an idea of how to do it: Regulate them like public utilities. 

In a response to a Supreme Court ruling on Monday over former President Donald Trump blocking his critics on Twitter, Thomas argued that companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Google have too much power to kick people off their services or make their content harder to find. To fix that, he said that legislators will soon “have no choice” but to pass new laws that curtail the power of social media companies to choose who’s voices are heard.

“Today’s digital platforms provide avenues for historically unprecedented amounts of speech, including speech by government actors,” Thomas wrote. “Also unprecedented, however, is the concentrated control of so much speech in the hands of a few private parties.”

Thomas’ solution is for the federal government to at least partly regulate social media companies as “common carriers” like telecommunications services and public utilities. If so, they would be required to host user posts regardless of what those posts say, much like phone companies host all telephone calls despite their content.

Thomas argued that social media companies and telephone companies are similar in a couple of key areas. First off, social media carries information from one person to another, similar to telephone companies. Secondly, like phone utilities, tech giants have no “comparable competitors” and hold immense control over speech. 

“If the analogy between common carriers and digital platforms is correct, then an answer may arise for dissatisfied platform users who would appreciate not being blocked: laws that restrict the platform’s right to exclude,” Thomas wrote.

Currently, social media services set their own policies that let them kick users off as they see fit. And like other Internet services, they also have special protections under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which prevents the companies from being held liable for what their users post.

Under Thomas’ plan, social media users would be able to post misinformation and hate speech. But they could still remove posts that are not protected by the First Amendment like child pornography or incitement to commit illegal acts.

Critics argue that Thomas’ approach strips Internet services of the power to keep their services safe. They worry that without legal protections that let services police the content their users publish, harmful posts will become an even bigger problem and could lead to even more real-world consequences.

By weighing in on the topic in a Supreme Court decision, Thomas is dialing up pressure on lawmakers to change current regulations. He’s also echoing claims by conservatives who say that social media companies are unfairly censoring their views.

Thomas’ response is the latest addition to a growing bipartisan call for Section 230 reform. After laying out his opinion over 12 pages, he ended by recognizing that the case at hand—Trump blocking his critics— doesn’t allow the court to address the larger issue.

“If the aim is to ensure that speech is not smothered, then the more glaring concern must perforce be the dominant digital platforms themselves,” he says. “This petition, unfortunately, affords us no opportunity to confront them.”

Thomas was the only justice to include his comments on the ruling of the nine Supreme Court Justices. The court ultimately dismissed the Trump case, saying it was “moot” because Trump is now out of office.

About the Author
By Danielle Abril
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

SpaceX went from three consecutive rocket explosions and near-bankruptcy in 2008 to the biggest IPO in history
Startups & VentureSpaceX
SpaceX went from three consecutive rocket explosions and near-bankruptcy in 2008 to the biggest IPO in history
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJune 14, 2026
2 hours ago
A 1% mistake costs $10 billion: Inside the impossible math of managing Elon Musk’s trillionaire SpaceX wealth
Personal FinanceElon Musk
A 1% mistake costs $10 billion: Inside the impossible math of managing Elon Musk’s trillionaire SpaceX wealth
By Sydney LakeJune 14, 2026
2 hours ago
Whop CEO Steven Schwartz
SuccessMillionaires
The Gen Z cofounder of $1.6 billion Whop says his platform has minted over 650 millionaires—he wants to make work fun and money worries obsolete
By Emma BurleighJune 14, 2026
4 hours ago
nexstar
CommentaryAntitrust
Nexstar CEO: big tech swallowed local newspapers. Local TV could be next
By Perry A. SookJune 14, 2026
5 hours ago
The hottest debate on Wall Street right now: Does the flood of mega-IPOs and new shares signal a downturn ahead? That depends
InvestingIPOs
The hottest debate on Wall Street right now: Does the flood of mega-IPOs and new shares signal a downturn ahead? That depends
By Jason MaJune 13, 2026
14 hours ago
You can ignore AI giants like SpaceX, but your 401(k) won’t
Investingindex funds
You can ignore AI giants like SpaceX, but your 401(k) won’t
By Stan Choe and The Associated PressJune 13, 2026
16 hours ago

Most Popular

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Sydney LakeJune 13, 2026
1 day ago
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
AI
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
By Jeremy KahnJune 13, 2026
1 day ago
Melinda French Gates' advice to new IPO millionaires: 'Give half your money away'
Startups & Venture
Melinda French Gates' advice to new IPO millionaires: 'Give half your money away'
By Emma HinchliffeJune 13, 2026
1 day ago
SpaceX CFO Bret Johnsen quietly engineered its historic IPO and became an overnight billionaire
C-Suite
SpaceX CFO Bret Johnsen quietly engineered its historic IPO and became an overnight billionaire
By Sasha RogelbergJune 13, 2026
1 day ago
Trump expects to sign a deal with Iran on Sunday, but Tehran may want to avoid giving him a gift on his birthday
Middle East
Trump expects to sign a deal with Iran on Sunday, but Tehran may want to avoid giving him a gift on his birthday
By Jason MaJune 13, 2026
17 hours ago
'It's not a jailbreak' — Research leading to U.S. export restrictions on top Anthropic models was for defense, cybersecurity CEO says
AI
'It's not a jailbreak' — Research leading to U.S. export restrictions on top Anthropic models was for defense, cybersecurity CEO says
By Jason MaJune 13, 2026
20 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.