
Clare Morell
Fellow
Clare Morell is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where she directs EPPC’s Technology and Human Flourishing Project. Prior to joining EPPC, Ms. Morell worked in both the White House Counsel’s Office and the Department of Justice, as well as in the private and non-profit sectors. She is also the author of the forthcoming book, The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones, which will be published by Penguin Random House.
Clare Morell is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where she directs EPPC’s Technology and Human Flourishing Project. Prior to joining EPPC, Ms. Morell worked in both the White House Counsel’s Office and the Department of Justice, as well as in the private and non-profit sectors. She is also the author of the forthcoming book, The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones, which will be published by Penguin Random House.
At the Department of Justice, Ms. Morell worked as an Advisor to Attorney General Bill Barr. As part of her work for the Attorney General, she helped oversee the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice and served as Editor of the Commission’s final report. A major focus of the Commission’s report was the challenges that Big Tech’s end-to-end encryption presents to law enforcement for gaining lawful access to crucial intelligence in criminal investigations, like domestic terrorism, as well as human and drug trafficking crimes. Ms. Morell also supported the Attorney General’s work on Section 230 reform as one of his main priorities.
Prior to her role with the Office of the Attorney General, Ms. Morell worked on judicial nominations for the White House Counsel’s office and monitored all nominations data to create high-level presentations for briefing White House leadership. From her experience, Ms. Morell brings an intimate knowledge and understanding of how policy is advanced within the Executive Branch of the federal government, particularly in the Department of Justice and the White House.
Ms. Morell has had opinion pieces published in the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Bloomberg News, The New York Post, Newsweek, the Washington Examiner, National Review, First Things, National Affairs, American Affairs Journal, Deseret News, The Federalist, The Hill, Public Discourse, WORLD Magazine, The American Conservative, the Washington Times, and the Daily Signal. Her policy work has also been featured in The New York Times. She has also conducted print and television interviews with The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox, Blaze TV, EWTN, and Epoch TV.
Ms. Morell received a B.S.F.S. from Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, where she majored in Science, Technology, and International Affairs. She graduated summa cum laude and received the Edmund A. Walsh Award for academic achievement in international law. She also is proficient in Spanish.
Ms. Morell lives with her husband and three children in Washington, D.C.
The Supreme Court Should Review Section 230’s Interpretation
Clare Morell
Under current judicial precedent, Section 230 has been interpreted in a way that gives blanket immunity to internet platforms, to the point that tech companies face little or no liability from even their own wrongdoing. The proper interpretation of Section 230 is thus long overdue for review by the Supreme Court—and now there is an opportunity.
Articles
Newsweek / November 4, 2021
Protecting Journalism From Google
Clare Morell
To protect all publishers, but especially small ones, the United States should follow Australia, which this year began using antitrust-competition laws to unlock payments big enough to help journalism survive.
Articles
National Review Online / October 23, 2021
How Sex Trafficking Funds the Taliban and Terrorism
Clare Morell
There is a critical intersection between human trafficking and illicit finance.
Articles
Washington Times / September 16, 2021
On Regulating Social-Media Platforms, Follow Texas, Not Florida
Clare Morell
For all its strengths — especially its legal defensibility in court — Texas’s social-media law should be applauded and replicated. Indeed, it’s high time that other states around the nation go forth and follow.
Articles
National Review Online / September 15, 2021
Setting the Record Straight on Reining in Big Tech
Clare Morell
Big Tech companies could be treated by statute as common carriers for purposes of applying antidiscrimination principles.
Articles
National Review Online / August 5, 2021
On Censorship, Big Tech Has It Both Ways
Clare Morell
Tech companies enjoy the privileges of common carriers without the responsibilities. State antidiscrimination laws are one promising remedy.
Articles
The Wall Street Journal / July 30, 2021
Conservatives Agree Big Tech Is a Problem, But Split on the Right Solution
Clare Morell
Something must be done to stop Big Tech censorship, but what? Here’s how lawmakers differ when it comes to antitrust law, Section 230 reform, and common carrier law.
Articles
The Federalist / July 8, 2021
INTERVIEW: The Right Is Still Divided on Big Tech
Clare Morell
In an interview with National Review’s Sean-Michael Pigeon, [Clare] Morell brings up the issue of antitrust, the real harms presented by tech companies, and the possibilities (and dangers) of bipartisanship on this issue.
Articles
National Review / June 30, 2021
Fathers Matter
Clare Morell
Fathers are essential to the flourishing of our country. Having a father in the home dramatically reduces a myriad of harms….
Articles
National Review Online / June 20, 2021