Tag: social media censorship

FBI Agent’s Testimony Implicates Headquarters Brass in Social Media Censorship

Just the News

An FBI agent’s testimony in a freedom of speech case confirms that the bureau ran an operation during the 2020 election that requested social media companies remove content as disinformation, suggesting the government’s requests succeeded about half of the time and were conducted with a “headquarter stamp of approval.”

Elvis Chan, the FBI assistant special agent in charge of the Cyber Branch in San Francisco, told lawyers for the Missouri and Louisiana attorneys general in a lawsuit over social media censorship that he supervised a “command post” in his home city that helped the nationwide disinformation censorship operation function in fall 2020.

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Feds Reeling from New Vax Study, Lawsuits on Social Media Censorship and COVID Stat Manipulation

Just the News

Public health agencies are facing perhaps the most serious threats to their control over information since the COVID-19 pandemic started, playing defense in lawsuits that have already exposed substantial federal involvement in censorship and could next uncloak alleged manipulation of data that has driven COVID policy from the start.

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Republican U.S. Senate Hopeful Jim Lamon: ‘We Must Beat Mark Kelly in This Race’

Neil Jones

U.S. Senate candidate Jim Lamon appeared Thursday with four of his fellow Republicans at a debate to address a broad range of issues important to Copper State Republicans. Hosted by FreedomWorks, the gathering marked the last opportunity for the candidates to confront one another on stage as they vy for the Republican nomination to go on to face Democratic incumbent, Senator Mark Kelly.

“Arizona holds the key to the United States of America in the Senate race. We must beat Mark Kelly in this race. You need to pick someone who’s a fighter. You hear a lot of talk up here tonight. You hear a lot of talk in the campaign. Pick someone who does things, who’s gotten stuff done in this country, who’s been a veteran, who’s built billion-dollar companies. Someone you can trust,” said Lamon in his opening statement.

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Twitter Locks The Tennessee Star Account for Reporting Facts

Peter D'Abrosca

After reporting a factual story about Gov. Bill Lee (R) signing a bill into law making anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin available over-the-counter, Twitter has locked The Tennessee Star out of its account.

The company said that The Star’s reporting might pose a risk to public health, and in response, The Star will not be able to make posts for several hours. 

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LinkTree Cancels LibsOfTiktok After WaPo Doxxing

Peter D'Abrosca

One of the most popular right-wing Twitter accounts Wednesday said that it has been banned from using an online link-sharing service.

“Linktree just deleted my account citing ‘inappropriate use of this service,'” said Twitter account LibsOfTikTok. “When I try to log in it says my account is no longer accessible. Why am I suddenly being censored?”

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Texas Governor Signs Law Preventing Social Media Companies from Banning People for Their Views

Admin
Gov. Greg Abbott signs law

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law Thursday preventing social media companies from banning users for their political views.

The law, known as HB 20, prohibits social media platforms from banning or suspending users, and removing or suppressing their content, based on political viewpoint. The bill was introduced by state Sen. Bryan Hughes partly in an effort to combat perceived censorship of conservatives by Facebook, Twitter, Google-owned YouTube, and other major tech companies.

“Social media websites have become our modern-day public square,” Abbott said in a statement. “They are a place for healthy public debate where information should be able to flow freely — but there is a dangerous movement by social media companies to silence conservative viewpoints and ideas.”

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Former New York Times Journalist Alex Berenson Permanently Suspended by Twitter

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Alex Berenson

Twitter has permanently banned Alex Berenson, a former New York Times journalist who has become a major critic of Big Tech censorship and coronavirus lockdowns and mandates.

Responding to an inquiry from Fox News, where Berenson has been a frequent guest during the pandemic, a spokesperson for Twitter replied that “The account you referenced has been permanently suspended for repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation rules.”

Berenson responded on his Substack page, where he posted a message titled “Goodbye Twitter.”

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Potential Ohio Legislation Aimed at Curbing Social Media Censorship

The Center Square

Social media companies would not be allowed to censor Ohioans from expressing their views without notifying the user and offering an appeal process or risk being sued under a proposed bill.

Rep. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, said he plans to introduce legislation that prohibits social media platforms from censoring users unless statements violate state or federal law.

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Twitter Suspends Accounts Documenting Arizona Audit

Corinne Murdock

Twitter permanently suspended several accounts dedicated to documenting the Arizona audit. The social media giant also permanently suspended other similar or affiliated accounts covering the audit or calls for an audit in Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.

The suspended accounts were: @arizonaaudit, @AuditWarRoom, @AuditMichigan, @AuditWisconsin, @AuditNevada, @AuditGeorgia, @Audit_Arizona and @Audit_PA. The latter 7 accounts are associated with an Instagram account, @auditwarroom, that hasn’t been suspended from the Facebook-owned platform. That account notified the public that it joined GETTR, a social media platform created by former President Donald Trump’s aide Jason Miller.

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Trial Update on Tennessee Principal Placed on Leave for Warning Students About Social Media Censorship

Corinne Murdock

A lawsuit filed by a Shelby County Schools (SCS) principal placed on leave for warning students about social media censorship is making steady progress. As The Tennessee Star reported in January, Cordova High School Principal Barton Thorne had lectured students during a weekly “principal’s message” on the importance of free speech and the marketplace of ideas following the Capitol Hill riot, which he condemned.

Shelby County Board of Education (SCBE) reinstated Thorne the day that he filed the lawsuit against them. The Liberty Justice Center (LJC) is representing Thorne in the case, Thorne v. Shelby County Board of Education. In the lawsuit, Thorne alleged that SCBE violated his right to free speech and had damaged his career, reputation, and family through their response to the public and media.

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Free Speech Bills Making Their Way Through the Tennessee General Assembly

Corinne Murdock

The General Assembly is considering several bills to further expand upon the protected rights of free speech. These bills address free speech in areas of public life such as college campuses, social media, state governments, and elections.

Several legislators proposed a bill to create accountability for social media companies and the government entities that use them. State Senator Frank Niceley (R-Strawberry Plains) and State Representative Jerry Sexton (R-Bean Station) introduced legislation that would prohibit state agencies from utilizing any social media platforms that censor the free speech of others on the basis of political ideology, viewpoint discrimination, or personal animus. The language of the bill claimed that using those platforms was a “tacit acceptance” of the practice to limit or censor free speech and therefore a violation of the state constitution. That legislation is in committee currently in both the House and Senate.

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Vanderbilt Law Professor Says Social Media Platforms Should be on the Offensive, Not Defensive, When It Comes to Regulating Speech

Corinne Murdock

Vanderbilt School of Law Professor Gautam Hans opined that social media companies should be on the offensive when it comes to regulating speech. In a spotlight series called “Ask an Expert” curated by Vanderbilt University, the assistant clinical professor suggested that these platforms ought to modify their approaches to content moderation.

In the brief video, Hans asserted that proactive approaches could improve the current dissatisfaction shared across party lines.

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Twitter Suspended Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Account for 12 Hours

Corinne Murdock

Twitter suspended Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene from her personal account temporarily on Sunday. The suspension occurred shortly after Greene posted allegations that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer Gabriel Sterling were to blame for potential voter fraud.

Greene had issued a response to Sterling’s tweet which claimed that Greene, Doug Collins, and President Donald Trump were to blame for a significant drop-off in Republican turnout. Just over 270,000 less Republicans voted in the runoff elections, as compared to nearly 166,000 less Democrats.

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