Senator Wyden on Breaking Up Facebook, Net Neutrality, and the Law that Built the Internet

A Q&A with Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR).

As a congressman, Wyden co-authored Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a piece of legislation that, in 1996, limited internet companies’ liability for what was posted on their platforms by third parties. For better or worse, Section 230 built the internet as we know it, allowing companies like Facebook to become the giants they are today. In his more than two decades as a senator since then, Wyden has continued to be a staunch defender of internet freedoms, introducing net neutrality legislation as far back as 2006 and spearheading the congressional fight over SOPA/PIPA, a legislative battle that ignited the internet and helped set the modern playbook for digital activism. When asked, "Are you concerned about the role Facebook has in American democracy?" Sen Wyden said, "Yeah, of course. I think that if they’re given a pass after all the problems that have come to light, I think we’ll see a whole new wave of problems. There will be more and more inventive ways to do this. If Facebook is allowed to get through this with glorified business as usual, and cozy, gauzy ads on TV about how this is not going to be Facebook anymore, I think we will see more of what we’ve seen the last few years: the milking of peoples’ data for private profit."