U.S. court says 'like' something on Facebook is free speech

            A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that'liking' something on Facebook is a form of protected free speech in a closely watched Virginia case that tested the limits of the First amendment in the digital age.  Facebook users who employ the website's "like" feature to show support for a political candidate engage in legally protected speech, a U.S. appeals court said, reviving a lawsuit examining the limits of what people may constitutionally do online. The fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond rejected a lower court's opinion that clicking the ubiquitous "thumbs up" icon was not "actual speech," an opinion that would have had wide-ranging implications for millions of Facebook users and other new forms of expression on the web it it had stood.

                             Liking is the Internet equivalent of displaying a political sign in one's front yard, which the Supreme court has held is substantive speech," the three judge panel wrote in their 81 page opinion. Other courts have ruled that posts on the social network are protected as free speech, but Jackson differentiated between making full statements and just clicking a button to like something. Facebook and the American Civil Liberties Union became involved with the case, both filing friend of the court briefs. The Constitution doesn't distinguish between 'liking' a candidate on Facebook and supporting him in a town meeting or public rally, the ACLU's Ben Wizner said in a statement.

                                  Down on the corner, in supporting Carter's bid for reinstatement, Facebook said the "like" button is crucial to the Menlo Park California-based social media company's more than 500 million users. It added that using the button to express support for a candidate is no different from standing on a street corner and announcing one's liking a candidate, which is protected speech. On the most basic level, clicking on the 'like' button literally causes to be published the statement that the User 'likes' something, which is itself a substantive statement.The court ruled unanimously on the Facebook issue. It said three of the six fired employees may pursue claims for reinstatement. The appeals court upheld the dismissal of claims by the other three fired employees, finding no genuine factual dispute concerning their First Amendment rights. One judge dissented on the qualified immunity issue.