A New Bill Takes Aim at Government Pressure to Silence Lawful Online Speech

Senators Ted Cruz and Ron Wyden introduced the JAWBONE Act, bipartisan legislation that creates a federal cause of action against government officials who coerce private companies into censoring lawful, First Amendment-protected speech and requires transparency in government communications with these intermediaries. The bill addresses "jawboning"—when the government pressures platforms to remove content—exemplified by the U.S. Attorney General's demand that Apple remove the ICEBlock app, which was used to report immigration enforcement activity. The Electronic Frontier Foundation supports the legislation while cautioning that it must balance protecting free speech against legitimate government-platform communication and preserve platforms' own First Amendment rights to moderate content.