The following article is a supplement to the MRC Report: The Biden Administration Waged War on Free Speech with 57 Censorship Initiatives.
Initiative #1
The Framework for Censorship
Type of Censorship: Policy or rulemaking
Agencies Involved:
- Department of State
- Bureau of Global Public Affairs
- Counter Foreign Information Manipulation & Interference (FIMI) Hub
- Global Engagement Center (GEC)
- Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor (DHRL)
- Office of the Assistant Secretary for DHRL
- United States Embassy to Montenegro
- Bureau of Global Public Affairs
Summary:
Secretary of State Tony Blinken spearheaded the GEC’s creation of the deceptively-named “The Framework to Counter Foreign State Information Manipulation.” The Framework, a formal compact between powerful sovereign nations, called for the funding of censorship organizations and for the government to direct tech companies to censor so-called “disinformation.” The first countries to join the U.S. were Canada and the United Kingdom, with Blinken traveling to Europe to rope in additional countries (the compact eventually exceeded 20 members).
After the Framework was adopted, the GEC still sought new nations to join its censorship alliance, with the U.S. Embassy in Montenegro strong-arming the chronically corrupt microstate into belatedly joining the compact.
Key Individuals:
- Elizabeth Allen, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy & Public Affairs
- Antony Blinken, Secretary of State
- James Rubin, GEC Special Envoy & Coordinator
- Judy Riding Reinke, U.S. Ambassador to Montenegro
