Christian satire site, The Babylon Bee and video sharing website Rumble are each suing Rob Bonta, the Attorney General of California, over a law that they are saying is tantamount to censorship.
The Babylon Bee also took the state of Hawaii to court in June of this yr over a law which penalises portraying a politician in a way that damages their “fame or electoral prospects”. “Materially deceptive media” can also be banned under the law.
Rumble can also be considered by some to be something of a free speech champion, often hosting the videos or channels of those that are banned or demonetised on YouTube, or who fear that they will likely be.
Now they’ve teamed as much as challenge California law AB 2839, which critics argue prohibits certain types of online political commentary, including memes and parodies. Law AB 2655 can also be being challenged on the grounds that it requires large tech corporations to act as the federal government’s enforcers of censorship rules.
Both Rumble and The Babylon Bee are being assisted by legal advocacy group ADF International.
Their Senior Counsel, Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse, said, “AB 2839 and AB 2655 are probably the most recent iterations of California’s try to censor and compel speech it doesn’t like. Courts have already ruled that state officials can’t force social media platforms to say things they don’t need to say.
“Now California is doubling down and trying to manage the speech of on a regular basis Americans posting satirical content on the web. Everyone should recognize that this sort of censorial power will likely be abused. That’s why these laws violate the First Amendment.”
Seth Dillon, CEO of The Babylon Bee, also appealed to the First Amendment.
“Our job is tough enough when our jokes keep coming true, as in the event that they were prophecies,” he said.
“But it becomes significantly harder when self-serving politicians abuse their power to try to regulate public discourse and clamp down on comedy. Unfortunately for them, the First Amendment secures our right to inform jokes they don’t like.”
