Hearings

Liability or Deniability? Platform Power as Section 230 Turns 30

March 18, 2026
10:00 AM

 Chairman Cruz Announces Hearing to Debate the Future of Section 230 

WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a full committee hearing titled “Liability or Deniability? Platform Power as Section 230 Turns 30” on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at 10:00 am EST. Thirty years after enactment of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, this hearing will take testimony from legal experts on the role Section 230 has played in the digital era. Witnesses will discuss how Section 230 affects the regulation of online expression and conduct, as well as the constitutional limits on congressional policymaking imposed by the First Amendment.  

Upon announcing the hearing, Sen. Cruz said: “Big Tech—the most powerful companies on Earth—can exercise monopoly power to make views they dislike disappear and that should scare everyone. When it comes to viewpoint suppression, however, repealing section 230 might increase censorship. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses and discussing possible reforms to section 230 so online platforms are a free and open marketplace for ideas.” 

Witnesses: 

  • Ms. Daphne Keller, Director of Platform Regulation, Program in Law, Science, and Technology, Stanford Law School
  • Ms. Nadine Farid Johnson, Policy Director, Knight First Amendment Institute 
  • Mr. Matthew Bergman, Founding Attorney, Social Media Victims Law Center  

An additional witness may be announced at a later date.  

Hearing Details: 

WHAT: Full Committee Hearing titled “Liability or Deniability? Platform Power as Section 230 Turns 30” 

DATE: Wednesday, March 18, 2026 

TIME: 10:00 AM EST 

LOCATION: Committee Hearing Room, Russell 253 

LIVESTREAM: The hearing will stream live on the Committee web site and YouTube. 

MEDIA INFO: Reporters wanting to attend the committee should contact their respective media gallery to RSVP. 

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