'Release the Memes': Babylon Bee Scores Free Speech Win After Newsom Tried to Make Parody Illegal

Leah Barkoukis | October 23, 2024 10:00 AM

Free speech advocates are celebrating after California agreed it would not enforce one of its new censorship laws targeting political satire and parody.

The development comes less than a month after Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys, on behalf of The Babylon Bee and attorney Kelly Chang Rickert, sued the state over two new laws that aim to censor online content.

Because one of those laws, AB 2839, went into effect immediately, The Babylon Bee and Rickert—as well as a plaintiff in another case—asked the federal judges to immediately put that law on hold. That law applies around election time to censor digitally edited content that is “materially deceptive” and addresses candidates, elected officials, and other election material related to California elections. The law also forces speakers to include a disclaimer when posting satire and imposes severe penalties, allowing anyone who sees the content to sue and obtain attorneys’ fees, costs, and damages. (ADF)

“California’s war against political memes is censorship, plain and simple," said ADF Vice President of Litigation Strategy and Center for Conscience Initiatives Jonathan Scruggs. "We shouldn’t trust the government to decide what is true in our online political debates. Gov. Newsom has no constitutional authority to act as the humor police. While lawmakers act as if posting and resharing memes is a threat to democracy, these laws censor speech California politicians don’t like. We are grateful that California’s unconstitutional law can no longer be applied to censor The Babylon Bee and Ms. Rickert while the case continues and that they are again free to exercise their First Amendment rights to poke fun at political leaders.”