S. Internet Platforms: Law and Responsibility

This course will meet back-to-back (Thurs. and Fri.) on the following dates:
Sept. 29-30
Oct. 6-7
Oct. 13-14
Oct. 27-28
Nov. 3-4
Nov. 17-18
Dec. 8-9

Should Twitter fact-check political tweets? Should Facebook allow politicians to lie in ads? Should Amazon be broken up? Should the US government prohibit end-to-end encryption? Internet-based platforms play a massive and increasing role in our lives. This class will address key legal issues facing the largest consumer-facing platforms and explore questions around whether and the extent to which these platforms should be held responsible for content posted on their services. It will begin by defining technology platforms, identifying attributes that are common to each of the major platforms, as well as what makes each of them unique. It will then turn to discrete units on content regulation (with an emphasis on intermediary liability), antitrust, law enforcement access to information (with an emphasis on encryption), and regulatory trends and legislative proposals. Discussion will focus on legal constraints with an emphasis on practical considerations animating company actions, and students will be encouraged to think pragmatically about the decisions facing companies and their regulators, drawing in part on the experience of the instructor as General Counsel of Facebook, Inc.