新法案打击政府施压压制合法网络言论
SOURCE / EFF-Updates · A New Bill Takes Aim at Government Pressure to Silence Lawful Online Speech
原文
A New Bill Takes Aim at Government Pressure to Silence Lawful Online Speech
完整原文
Español Last week, Senators Ted Cruz and Ron Wyden introduced the Justice Against Weaponized Bureaucratic Overreach to Networked Expression, or JAWBONE Act. The bipartisan legislation creates a federal cause of action against government officials who coerce or attempt to coerce broadcasters, interactive computer services, or AI providers into taking actions against lawful, First-Amendment-protected speech, and establishes a transparency system for government communications with those intermediaries about user expression. We thank the Senators for their leadership on this important issue. Jawboning occurs when the government pressures private companies to censor speech protected by the First Amendment, and it’s not always obvious to the public or to the victims what has actually happened. Deleting posts or cancelling accounts because a government official or agency demanded it or even made threats in making those demands—just like spying on people’s communications on behalf of the government—raises serious free speech concerns. Among other things, this bill would provide a new legal right to bring claims against the government in federal court, in addition to what the First Amendment provides. At EFF, we’re continuing to fight back on behalf of those censored by government coercion. One recent example: we represent the creator of ICEBlock, an app that allows the public to report immigration enforcement activity in their communities. In June 2025, high-ranking federal officials began threatening to investigate and prosecute the creator of ICEBlock, Joshua Aaron. In October 2025, the U.S. Attorney General demanded Apple remove ICEBlock from the App Store, and the company complied. The government’s coercion violated Aaron’s First Amendment rights. We’ve also filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the same government agencies that threatened Aaron and other services that provided forums to report ICE activity. The lawsuit seeks the disclosure of the government’s communications with Apple, Google, and Meta that forced the services to remove lawful speech. When federal officials pressure private companies into censoring protected speech, it can violate the First Amendment. But, not every communication from a government agency to a platform is unconstitutionally coercive. Treating legitimate communication and information-sharing between the government and private actors as though it were always unconstitutional would chill the valuable, good-faith engagement that supports a healthier and safer internet and nation for all Americans. This is a complex issue, and one that is important for Congress and the courts to get right. Finally, contrary to what many in Congress have been saying, social media platforms and other internet intermediaries have their own First Amendment rights to decide how they moderate users’ speech. They are not “state actors” and do not have an obligation under the First Amendment to allow all user speech on their platforms. EFF filed an amicus brief setting out our position in 2018, and we’ve said it in many cases since. The Supreme Court recognized again in the Netchoice cases that these services have a right to curate and edit their users’ speech, whether or not it aligns with the government’s position. And, it’s important to defend that First Amendment right so that governments cannot dictate how to edit a company’s site according to the government’s wishes and desires. To prevent jawboning by default, companies must be free to curate their platforms as they wish. EFF applauds Senators Cruz and Wyden for taking this critical issue seriously, and we look forward to working with Congress on this bipartisan bill as it moves through the process. We hope it lands on the right balance to provide additional protections for everyday users around freedom of expression.
归纳
美国参议员Ted Cruz和Ron Wyden提出《反官僚越权压制网络表达法案》（JAWBONE Act），建立联邦诉因以追究政府官员胁迫广播商、互联网服务或AI提供商压制受第一修正案保护的言论的行为，并要求政府与中介就用户表达的沟通透明化。电子前哨基金会（EFF）支持该法案，指出政府胁迫私人公司审查受保护言论（如迫使苹果下架ICEBlock应用）侵犯公民权利。但法案也需平衡，避免将合法政府沟通视为违宪。互联网平台自身拥有第一修正案权利，可自主管理用户言论，不应被政府强制干预。
点评
法案针对美国联邦政府通过胁迫互联网和AI提供者压制第一修正案言论的行为，反映了政府越权干预平台内容管理的合规风险。
法律视角点评
AI 生成 · 人工审核核心关切
法案针对美国联邦政府通过胁迫互联网和AI提供者压制第一修正案言论的行为，反映了政府越权干预平台内容管理的合规风险。
实务启示
中国法律人应关注互联网平台在配合政府指令时，需严格依法界定权限边界，避免超越法律依据的言论干预行为。