Bill > A4738

Introduced Session

This bill establishes requirements for social media companies concerning content moderation practices and establishes a cause of action against social media companies using content moderation practices on their platforms. This bill provides that it is an unlawful practice and violation of the New Jersey consumer fraud act for a social media company to fail to comply with the requirements set forth in the bill. Among other requirements enumerated in the bill, a social media company is to publish the standards it uses or has used for determining how to censor, "selectively suspend," or implement an "anonymous user ban," as these terms are defined in the bill, and apply censorship, selective suspensions, and anonymous user banning standards in a consistent manner among its users on the platform. Additionally, social media companies are prohibited from knowingly taking any action to censor, selectively suspend, or implement an anonymous user ban against a journalistic enterprise based on the content of its publication or broadcast. Under this bill, a social media company that uses post suppression is prohibited from censoring a user's content or material on the social media platform without providing notification, as described in the bill, to the user who posted or attempted to post the content or material, unless the content or material is obscene. Additionally, a social media company is prohibited from requiring users to interact with a political advertisement directing the user to contact a State or federal legislator or public official before the social media company allows the user to access the user's account. This bill also provides that a user may bring a private cause of action against a social media company for certain violations under the bill. Nothing in this bill is to require disclosure of any trade secret or abrogate any work product protection. Nothing in this bill is to supersede federal law, or to interfere with any existing duty of a social media company, including any duty to preserve evidence.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Paul Kanitra (R)*,  Bob Auth (R), 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee (on 09/12/2024)

Official Document