On July 31, 2026, the Knight Institute filed an amicus brief in the New York Court of Appeals in Patterson v. Meta Platforms, Inc., a case addressing whether Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 immunizes internet platforms from claims challenging their use of recommendation algorithms.

The case arose from a May 2022 mass shooting at a supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York. Survivors and victims’ family members brought products liability and other claims against major social media platforms, alleging that the platforms radicalized the teenage gunman by recommending racist and violent content. The Fourth Department held that Section 230 barred the claims.

The Institute’s amicus brief in this case, like its amicus brief in Gonzalez v. Google, argues that categorically excluding recommendation algorithms from Section 230 immunity would have devastating consequences for free speech online. The brief further argues that Section 230 is best read to immunize platforms for their use of recommendation algorithms except where they materially contribute—in a manner that goes beyond the mere amplification of speech—to the alleged illegality. This reading would immunize platforms for decisions that are inextricable from publication, but not for design, engineering, or other decisions that cause harm.

 

Status: Oral argument is scheduled for September 15, 2026.

Case Information: Patterson v. Meta Platforms, Inc., APL-2025-00158 (N.Y. Court of Appeals).