Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden called for the internet industry’s sweeping legal immunity over user-generated content to be “immediately” removed in an interview published today, escalating the political attacks on a much-debated segment of internet law that companies are already fighting to defend.

During an interview with The New York Times editorial board, Biden singled out Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg as targets that should be “submitted to civil liability” over posts on the social network. He lashed out at the tech giant and its chief for “propagating falsehoods they know to be false.”


The former vice president said Facebook and other companies should no longer receive protections under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the 1996 law that shields digital services firms from lawsuits over user posts and over good faith efforts to remove harmful material.