US federal judge dismisses lawsuit by X against nonprofit anti-hate speech organization News
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US federal judge dismisses lawsuit by X against nonprofit anti-hate speech organization

A federal judge in California dismissed Monday a lawsuit brought by X (formerly known as Twitter) against the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), a nonprofit organization that researches digital hate speech and campaigns for social media reform.

X, owned by Elon Musk, filed its suit in July 2023, alleging that by reporting instances of hate speech and misinformation on X, the CCDH “scraped data” from X in violation of its terms of service. According to the suit, the CCDH “embarked on a scare campaign to drive away advertisers from the X platform.” X sought damages for losses caused by the CCDH’s reports and enjoinment of the nonprofit from accessing and using the data it obtained from X.

In its motion to dismiss, the CCDH relied on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) in arguing that X’s suit failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. It also reasoned that California’s anti-SLAPP law, which serves to protect the First Amendment rights of parties being sued, undercuts the validity of the claims set forth in the action.

Judge Charles R. Breyer first found that the CCDH successfully demonstrated that the claims X brought under California law “arise from [an] act in furtherance of the [CCDH’s] right of petition or free speech … in connection with a public issue” as required for a dismissal under the anti-SLAPP law. He reasoned that those claims arise from the CCDH’s “newsgathering and writing,” which further its free speech rights.

Breyer explained that the wrongdoing X alleges is the CCDH’s “scraping” of its site; however, X failed to show any damages “stemming directly” from the alleged wrongdoing. According to the order, the action “only seeks damages based on the reactions of advertisers (third parties) to CCDH’s speech.” Ultimately, Breyer concluded that the suit was “about punishing the [CCDH] for [its] speech” and dismissed the suit.

In response to their win, the CCDH expressed their satisfaction with X by stating “We’ll continuing exposing hate and lies on X, and campaigning for social media bosses like Musk to be held accountable.” The nonprofit’s CEO also said in a press release that “[w]e hope this landmark ruling will embolden public-interest researchers everywhere to continue, and even intensify, their vital work of holding social media companies accountable for the hate and disinformation they host and the harm they cause.”

Last year, several US representatives urged Musk to handle the rise in hate speech on the social media platform since he acquired it in October 2022.

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