Free Speech on Social Media: The Complete Guide
The First Amendment protects individuals from government censorship. Social media platforms are private companies and can censor what people post on their websites as they see fit. But given their growing role in public discourse, it’s important to ask ourselves – what exactly are their censorship policies? How do they compare to each other, and to the First Amendment’s protections? Here's a deeper dive into free speech on social media.
Free speech on social media: What can and can't you say?
Mouseover or tap each social media icon for more information.
| Type of Speech | Censorship | ||||||||
|
|||||||||
HateHate speech is speech that offends or attacks people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, disease, or other traits. |
|||||||||
First Amendment:
|
|||||||||
ObscenityObscenity is famously hard to define, but in general refers to content that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. |
|||||||||
First Amendment:
|
|||||||||
MisinformationMisinformation is false or inaccurate information. Examples of misinformation include false rumors, insults and pranks, while examples of more deliberate disinformation include malicious content such as hoaxes, spearphishing and propaganda. Also referred to as fake news. |
|||||||||
First Amendment:
|
|||||||||
HarassmentHarassment refers to unwanted behavior that makes someone feel degraded, humiliated or offended. We do not define it to include true threats of violence, which are banned by all of the platforms below and are not protected by the First Amendment. |
|||||||||
First Amendment:
|
|||||||||
Legend
= Snapchat
= Tumblr
= Youtube
Related Resources
- Instagram Community Guidelines
- Instagram Terms of Use
- Facebook Community Standards
- Reddit Content Policy
- Twitter Rules
- Tumbler Community Guidelines
- Snapchat Terms of Service – Safety
- Snapchat Support – Community Guidelines
- YouTube Community Guidelines
- YouTube Official Blog – Our ongoing work to tackle hate
Lata Nott is a fellow for the First Amendment at the Freedom Forum. Follow her on Twitter at @LataNott.
Watch: First Five Now: The Fight for Free Speech
Teachers Face Limits on Their Election-Related Speech
Related Content
Honoring Champions of Free Expression
