Bevvy

It’s an adage that cuts to the heart of how we believe influential people or organizations ought to behave. Even if popularized by the Spider-Man comic books and movies, its merits are widely recognizable even for those who do not consider themselves fans of superhero stories.

As Big Tech exercises powers scarcely dreamed of by the heads of state or business tycoons of the past, however, Americans rightly wonder whether it is doing so responsibly.

Take censorship. Mass censorship is at odds with our country’s tradition of free speech, yet some tech companies seem willing to indulge their ability to silence speech. Even worse, they do so without clear standards for what they consider impermissible. Terms like “misinformation” or “disinformation” have too often equated to political opinions the companies do not like, and offenses are punished arbitrarily and without a sense of process.

The social media giants are the most obvious offenders in this regard, but they are not the only ones. Recently, the financial tech company PayPal unveiled a user agreement that would prohibit t***sactions that “involve the sending, posting or publication of any messages, content, or materials” deemed objectionable, including for “misinformation,” at “PayPal’s sole discretion.” Offenders would face a $2,500 fine.

The steep penalty, opaque standards, and apparent restrictions on speech all provoked significant concern about the new policy. PayPal later retracted the user agreement as an incorrect one sent out in error and said it would not fine people for misinformation.