Top executives from Alphabet Inc.'s Google LLC, Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. will testify before Congress this week about their content moderation practices amid allegations of censorship from Republican lawmakers and increasing calls to modify big tech's legal liability shield.

The hearing, which is set for Oct. 28, will be titled, "Does Section 230's Sweeping Immunity Enable Big Tech Bad Behavior?"

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act is a piece of legislation that protects internet platforms from civil and criminal liability for content created and posted by users. According to a committee announcement, the hearing will examine whether the law has "outlived its usefulness" and "examine legislative proposals to modernize the decades-old law," among other topics.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Google CEO Sundar Pichai will all testify remotely before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

Ahead of the hearing, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., sent letters to Zuckerberg and Dorsey asking them to disclose any interactions their companies have had with presidential candidates and their campaigns.

Specifically he asked whether Facebook or Twitter had provided access to any data, analytics, or other information to either major political party, candidate or affiliates. "This includes information related to post or page performance, engagement, or other data that might shape or influence decision-making by the candidate or campaign," Wicker said, asking for a response by Oct. 26.

Section 230 has been threatened by members of both parties, though there are key areas of disagreement over which content moderation practices should be deemed objectionable. President Donald Trump, for instance, has long accused social media companies of censoring conservative voices online. In May, he signed an executive order seeking reform of Section 230 after Twitter appended fact checks to several of Trump's tweets regarding voting by mail.

In response to the executive order, an agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce petitioned the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to review and clarify the law. On Oct. 15, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said that he intends to move forward with a petition to clarify the meaning of the law.

The head of the Internet Association — a trade group representing online giants such as Twitter, Facebook and Google — has warned that rolling back Section 230 protections will make it harder for online platforms to make their sites and services safe for users.

On Oct. 22, a separate Senate committee, the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, authorized the issuance of subpoenas to Dorsey and Zuckerberg to testify before that committee regarding the companies' content moderation practices. Specifically, the motion mentioned recent actions by both companies to limit the sharing of a New York Post article about the alleged business dealings of Hunter Biden, the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

That testimony is set to take place on Nov. 17.

	Government
	Oct. 27	The U.S. Federal Communications Commission will host its monthly open meeting online.
	Oct. 28	The Senate Commerce Committee will host a hearing titled "Does Section 230's Sweeping Immunity Enable Big Tech Bad Behavior?"
	Oct. 30	The Wilson Center will host an event titled "The Global Digital Divide: Past, Present, and Future."
	Industry, legal and think tank events
	Oct. 26	The American Enterprise Institute will host an online event titled "Big Tech and antitrust: Assessing the House Judiciary Committee staff report."
	Oct. 27	AT&T Inc. will host a virtual event titled "What is the Ethical Algorithm and Can It Make the Internet Fairer?"
	Oct. 27	New America will host a webinar titled "Teetering on the Edge of Uncontrolled Decoupling: Getting Smart on International Tech Risks."
	Oct. 27	The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host a virtual event titled "American Innovators: America's Next Tech Upgrade."
	Oct. 28	Silicon Flatirons, a center for innovation at the University of Colorado Boulder, will host a virtual event titled "LEGAL CODE: The Digital Divide in the Time of COVID-19."
	Oct. 28	FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will participate in an online event to discuss "spectrum solutions" to connect more Americans to Wi-Fi.
	Oct. 29	The Washington Post will host an event with mayors and lawmakers to discuss the transformation to 5G.

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