Regulating free speech on social media is dangerous and futile

Conservatives who celebrate constitutional originalism should remember that the First Amendment protects against censorship by government. Social media companies are all private businesses with discretion over the content they wish to promote, and any effort by government to influence what social media platforms promote risks violating the First Amendment. If conservatives genuinely believe in the value of competition and free choice, and at the same time believes that a more conservative social media platform would be of value to consumers, they should start a new platform rather than demanding the existing private platforms to become more inclusive of conservative ideas. Furthermore, acting to increase ideological diversity would be impossible. A candidate would hesitate to disclose party affiliation to an employer who may use it to make hiring decisions. I believe that we should accept such bias as a fact and refrain from regulating social media platforms or mandating them to attain a politically diverse workforce.

[Niam Yaraghi is a Brookings Nonresident Fellow in Governance Studies, Center for Technology Innovation]