“Big Tech is out to get conservatives, and is increasingly willing to undermine First Amendment values by complying with the Biden Administration’s directives that suppress freedom of speech online,” incoming House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) told Big Tech executives Wednesday.
“Big Tech accountability is coming,” Rep. Jordan promised Wednesday, in a tweet posting his letter to the heads of Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft, requesting information on the companies’ communications regarding their “moderation, deletion, suppression, restricting, or reduced circulation of content.”
Big Tech accountability is coming.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) December 14, 2022
APPLE: https://t.co/Jx0420GIsg
AMAZON: https://t.co/NPgG1Xux6v
GOOGLE: https://t.co/gQ4BZ5aOBN
FACEBOOK: https://t.co/yaN3GOLmcT
MICROSOFT: https://t.co/qOxq8MNmhr
The letter asks for information about the companies’ censorship “collusion with the Biden Administration”:
Publicly available information suggests that your companies’ treatment of certain speakers and content may stem from government directives or guidance designed to suppress dissenting views. Therefore, we write to request more information about the nature and extent of your companies’ collusion with the Biden Administration.
Specifically, Judiciary Committee Republicans want to find out if the government has infringed on conservative Americans’ First Amendment rights:
Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee are investigating Big Tech’s commitment to freedom of speech online and the Biden Administration’s collusion with Big Tech to censor, silence, or reduce the reach of certain information and viewpoints. Congress has an important interest in protecting and advancing fundamental free speech principles, including by examining how private actors coordinate with the government to suppress First Amendment-protected speech.
The letter also asks the Big Tech executives to identify employees who might be responsible censoring content: “A list of the individuals, along with their current and prior titles, who are or have been responsible in any way for developing your companies’ policies referring or relating to the moderation, deletion, suppression, restricting, or reduced circulation of content.”
Additionally, the letter issues a warning to Facebook and Amazon, which have been unresponsive to previous requests for information:
House Republicans have written a number of prior letters to you in attempts to obtain relevant information. You have not provided responses that have satisfied our concerns or produced the requested documents or information. Committee Republicans will continue to pursue these matters, including into the 118th Congress if necessary.
Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
Editor's Note: This piece was originally published on CNSNews.com
