Thoughts on Internet Content Moderation from Spending Thousands of Hours Moderating Volokh Conspiracy Threads (Repost from 2022)

Orin S. Kerr | 2.19.2024 4:38 PM

Note to readers: I first published the blog post below in 2022, after the Fifth Circuit's ruling. I thought I would repost it in light of the Supreme Court's oral argument in the case next week. — Orin

Reading the Fifth Circuit's decision in Netchoice v. Paxton brings me back to the old days of the Volokh Conspiracy. A little bit of context: Back when we were at volokh.com, we introduced open comment threads. For a few years, I spent over an hour a day, every day, moderating Volokh Conspiracy comment threads. I stopped after we moved to The Washington Post in 2014, where comment moderation was up to them. I'm very glad I don't do comment moderation anymore. But my comment moderation experience at volokh.com left a lasting impression.

I think three of those impressions might be relevant to thinking about Netchoice.

First: It is a strange rule of human nature that most people who are........

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