A front-page article is one that appears on the top of a newspaper’s first page. It often teases stories in the rest of the edition. A front-page article may be about a significant event or an important person. It can also be about something that has happened in a particular country.
In 2014, three Jane Does who were sex trafficked as minors sued Backpage in federal court. They claimed that their traffickers used the site to post ads offering them for sex. The district court ruled that Backpage’s business and editorial practices were not protected by CDA Section 230, but in an appeal the First Circuit court of appeals agreed with the lower court’s conclusion that the Jane Does’ case was likely to succeed at trial and that the site’s actions were traditional publisher functions and therefore shielded by Section 230.
In 2013, a number of state governments attempted to legislate Backpage out of existence by passing laws to eliminate its adult section or shut down the website altogether. In August of that year, a federal judge enjoined New Jersey’s attempt to do so, finding that the law is preempted by CDA Section 230 and violates the First Amendment’s protection of free speech.