Governor Ron DeSantis signs law Against Deplatforming As Trump Plans to Launch New Social Media Platform

By Eric Daugherty

Published May. 25, 2021, 3:34 p.m. ET | Updated Jan. 3, 2023

Republican Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida signed a bill into law instituting new legal penalties for social media companies who deplatform Floridians without reason.

SB 7072 is a unique piece of legislation not seen in any other state. This law will require large social media platforms to “be transparent about their content moderation practices and give users proper notice of changes to those policies.” Floridians who believe they have been wrongfully targeted now have a legal right to sue a company who suspends them permanently.

The passage of SB 7072 also legally prohibits political candidates in Florida from being suspended. Fines of up to $250,000 per day for statewide candidates and $25,000 for non-statewide candidates will be imposed if it is violated.

Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nuñez said Florida is, “taking back the virtual public square” where Americans are not censored for holding opposing opinions to those in power.

The anti-deplatforming movement has gained traction in recent years as several major conservative figures have been suspended on large social media websites. For example, earlier this month, conservative comedian and political commentator Steven Crowder was suspended from YouTube. Likewise, Founder and C.E.O. of Project Veritas, James O’Keefe, was suspended from Twitter.

This new law comes as Former President Donald Trump was permanently suspended from Facebook and Twitter. Critics of the decision argue that the suspension of the former president has questionable, if any, justification. Trump is currently a Florida resident, meaning that the new law would give him a legal right to sue the social media platforms as a private citizen.

A recent statement that came in this morning on RSBN from Donald J. Trump announced that his upcoming social media platform will be launched soon. There is currently no official launch day.

Trump hinted on conservative commentator Dan Bongino’s radio show that he may run for president in 2024. If Trump were to run in 2024, he would become a statewide candidate of Florida and the state government could legally fine the companies up to $250,000 per day.