Adam Candeub, a recognized critic of Massive Tech, seems poised to hitch the Federal Communications Fee (FCC).
Candeub will probably be common counsel of the FCC, reports Semafor, which cites direct affirmation from FCC chairman Brendan Carr. TechCrunch has reached out to the FCC for extra data.
Candeub has lengthy been a vocal critic of Part 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996. Part 230 protects tech corporations and on-line service suppliers from prosecution based mostly on what their customers publish on their platforms. The argument towards repealing Part 230 is that tech entities, together with social media corporations, would grow to be chargeable for what’s posted on their platforms, which may result in censorship.
In 2020, Candeub was one of many lead writers of an administrative petition that requested the FCC to become involved with the continuing debates round social media content material moderation. The debates have been sparked after Donald Trump accused social media websites of censoring conservative voices after corporations like X — Twitter on the time — moderated his inaccurate claims of voter fraud within the 2020 election.
That try and curb Part 230’s energy wasn’t profitable. More moderen challenges have additionally failed. In 2023, the Supreme Court docket took Google and Twitter’s respective sides in adjoining instances that attempted to carry the platforms accountable for permitting content material from the Islamic State that promoted the terrorist group.
The dialog round Part 230 was already prone to come up throughout this administration once more. Candeub joins the FCC alongside lately appointed chairman Carr, who has already been vocal about hoping for adjustments to Part 230 throughout this administration.
Candeub beforehand served as an advisor to the FCC within the early 2000s. He joined the Trump Administration in 2019 as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Telecommunications and Data and also assumed the role of Appearing Assistant Secretary. He joined the Division of Justice as Deputy Affiliate Lawyer Basic within the waning weeks of Trump’s presidency in late 2020. Candeub is at the moment a legislation professor at Michigan State College; he first joined its legislation school again in 2004.