Providing immunity against claims based on content posted to their platforms, Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act protects internet companies against suits for defamation, libel and dozens of other state law claims that seek to hold the platform companies responsible for what appears on their sites.
On appeal, the plaintiffs focused on a cluster of different aspects of YouTube's operation that they argued took the case outside of Section 230. One by one, the state Court of Appeal shot down each argument. In each case, what was being sought, in the court's opinion, was either to impose liability on YouTube for things done by the scammers, or for decisions that YouTube made as a publisher or editor -- particularly its decision not to remove the content.