2019 Symposium: Regulating Social Media

Thanks for a great Symposium!

Thank you to hundreds of participants who came to our annual Symposium, and special thanks to Masha Simonova and Laurie Ann Taylor for coordinating the entire event! This year, our annual Symposium addressed the important topic of regulating social media.

On November 5, 2019, Carrie Goldberg and Benjamin Wittes took part in a panel discussion moderated by Chris Bavitz. The panel covered online harassment, harmful speech online, non-consensual sharing of images, and similar topics. Carrie Goldberg is a pioneering lawyer in the field of online sexual harassment, sexual assault, as well as “revenge porn” law, with her own practice based in Brooklyn, NY. Benjamin Wittes is a lecturer at HLS, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and the Editor-in-Chief of Lawfare. Chris Bavitz is the Managing Director of HLS’s Cyberlaw Clinic.

On November 6, 2019, Olivier Sylvain and Jared Rinehimer participated in a panel discussion moderated by Kendra Albert. Olivier Sylvain is a professor at Fordham Law and has published numerous academic pieces on current controversies in communications policy, online intermediary liability, privacy, and copyright. Jared Rinehimer is an Assistant Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Division of the Massachusetts AG’s Office and is a member of the office’s data privacy and security team. Kendra Albert is a Clinical Instructor in the HLS Cyberlaw Clinic.

On November 7, 2019, Jonathan Zittrain, Hannah Bloch-Wehba, and Josh Simons took part in a panel discussion moderated by Jessica Fjeld. This panel discussed content moderation and governance of social media companies. Jonathan Zittrain is a professor at HLS, Hannah Bloch-Wehba is a professor at Drexel Law, Josh Simons is a Harvard-Kennedy scholar and PhD candidate in Harvard University’s Government Department, and Jessica Fjeld is the Assistant Director of the HLS Cyberlaw Clinic.

The symposium was co-organized with the Law & Technology Society. Our other partners included the Women’s Law Association, the Journal of Law & Technology, the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, and the DOS Grant Fund.