U.S. Supreme Court justices in oral argument Monday repeatedly challenged and tested Cox Communications' claim that it bears no liability for online piracy by its broadband subscribers. Cox is challenging a 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that upheld a lower court's contributory copyright infringement finding against the ISP (see 2408160034). The docket is 24-171.
Social Media
Social media platforms are facing intense scrutiny over how they collect, share and monetize user data. As new state and federal laws focus on age verification, parental controls and transparency requirements, social media companies face legal risks around algorithmic targeting, third-party tracking and children's safety. This page follows key legislation, investigations and lawsuits shaping privacy practices for major social platforms.
Recon Analytics is finding that the frequency with which consumers access and use AI is tied to how they get online, analyst Roger Entner said last week during a Fiber Broadband Association webinar. Among consumers who use satellite or DSL, only about 10% use AI on a daily basis, compared to 28% for fixed wireless access, 32% for cable and 45% for fiber, he said.
A recent social media post from President Donald Trump condemning proposals to lift the national TV ownership cap doesn’t definitively spell disaster for broadcasters, said New Street analyst Blair Levin in a note to subscribers Tuesday. Trump’s post was focused on preventing ABC and NBC from growing (see 2511240055), but that isn’t a likely consequence of lifting the cap, Levin wrote. “One should not assume that the President understands what he is talking about when it comes to this post, or that it is a deeply held point of view, as it relates to law and process.”
A social media post by President Donald Trump on Sunday condemning proposals to do away with the national cap on TV station ownership drew a flurry of responses Monday from NAB, Nexstar CEO Perry Sook and Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy, who wants the cap to remain in place. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has been widely seen as likely to do away with the cap, but he has also been clear about his deference to Trump. “If this would also allow the Radical Left Networks to ‘enlarge,’ I would not be happy,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “ABC & NBC, in particular, are a disaster - A VIRTUAL ARM OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY. They should be viewed as an illegal campaign to the Radical Left. NO EXPANSION OF THE FAKE NEWS NETWORKS. If anything, make them SMALLER! President DJT.”
A state law barring the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) from sharing information about Lifeline program subscribers with other government agencies, including immigration authorities, means the state can no longer do its own Lifeline subscriber verifications, according to the FCC. The Wireline Bureau ordered Thursday that the state could no longer opt out of using the National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD) federal verification system. "Going forward, federal processes will be used to conduct eligibility verifications and perform duplicate checks for federal Lifeline program applicants in California."
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr signaled a possible broadcast hoax or news distortion probe of PBS and NPR in a letter sent Wednesday to those entities, as well as the BBC. The letter came a day after the agency opened a proceeding that appeared to be aimed at encouraging broadcasters to more frequently preempt shows, as they did with Jimmy Kimmel Live! President Donald Trump again called for Kimmel’s firing in a social media post Thursday.
Final BEAD proposals from 18 states and territories have been approved, NTIA said Tuesday. They are Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. One of those, Louisiana, has signed the National Institute of Standards and Technology award amendment, letting the state start accessing BEAD funds, NTIA added.
The FCC could soon look at strengthening broadcast affiliate stations’ right to preempt network programming, Chairman Brendan Carr told a group of reporters outside an NTCA event Tuesday. In a press conference the same day, President Donald Trump suggested that Carr should take action against ABC.
Alabama state Rep. Juandalynn Givan (D) reintroduced legislation Wednesday proposing to create an Ebony Alert System for missing Black youths. Under HB-48, local law enforcement could request that the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency activate an Ebony Alert, with radio, TV, cable, satellite and social media systems "encouraged to cooperate" with disseminating it. The bill was referred to the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee. Givan introduced similar legislation in 2024.
Noting that many judges aren't technology experts, 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Patrick Higginbotham expressed concern Monday that many legal issues are decided using court documents instead of jury trials. “One of the frustrations” that stems from long-running litigation is that “a trial judge … never got to hear the full evidence,” he said during oral argument in CCIA v. Paxton.