[76lsjumb]

Tangent -- are bots an element of free speech?  Are the tweets of bots protected by the 1st Am?  I suspect they should/are not...

Is that really a tangent? I think you're right on. I also suspect they should/are not. Also, paid advertising on Facebook and
Twitter that greatly magnifies the reach of what looks like a personal post/tweet ... isn't that commerce?

Are all those printed sheets of paper so widely distributed by The NY Times corporation (or Jeff Bezos’ company, for that matter) protected by the First Amendment?

I’ll bet you suspect they should/are... and I would agree with you. So why not bots?

[76lsjumb]

Tangent -- are bots an element of free speech?  Are the tweets of bots protected by the 1st Am?  I suspect they should/are not...

Is that really a tangent? I think you're right on. I also suspect they should/are not. Also, paid advertising on Facebook and
Twitter that greatly magnifies the reach of what looks like a personal post/tweet ... isn't that commerce?

Are all those printed sheets of paper so widely distributed by The NY Times corporation (or Jeff Bezos’ company, for that matter) protected by the First Amendment?

I’ll bet you suspect they should/are... and I would agree with you. So why not bots?