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Oversight Board Member Admits Meta Doesn’t Prioritize First Amendment

By: Catherine Salgado — May 17th 2024 at 15:41
A Meta Oversight Board member recently confirmed the obvious: Meta might be an American company, but it certainly doesn't prioritize the First Amendment in its policy decisions.  Kenji Yoshino, a New York University Constitutional law professor and member of the Meta Oversight Board, asserted that the U.S. Constitution is not the baseline for the tech company’s free speech policies. “Our baseline here is not the US Constitution and free speech, but rather international human rights norms,” he said at a National Constitution Center town hall event.    Yoshino noted that America is an “outlier” when compared with other countries because it has such strong legal protections against censorship. He explained that as Meta became a global company “it could not simply default back to U.S. jurisprudence.” The Meta Oversight Board member claimed that Meta looks at “striking a balance” between international values like “safety” and “dignity” and the U.S. Constitution. However, he admitted, “oftentimes that calculus comes out differently than it would if the baseline were First Amendment norms.”  Yoshino contrasted the two different attitudes toward freedom of speech, explaining that in the U.S. “the [protecting] the speech we hate doctrine, is part of an expansionist and rigid vision that is intensely speech protective.” In Europe, however, the attitude is “much more tilted toward equality and dignity than it might be toward speech.”  But the European standard is far from perfect. For example, multiple European countries, including Scotland, France and England, criminalize alleged “hate speech.”  Applying European standards to Americans can lead to anti-First Amendment censorship. This is especially problematic as U.S. government agencies have reportedly resumed coordination with tech companies, indicating actions directly violative of the First Amendment. Conservatives are under attack. Contact Facebook headquarters at (650) 308-7300 and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “misinformation” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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‘Shocked’: TV Host Blasts TikTok, Instagram for Blocking Pro-Israel Content

By: Catherine Salgado — May 14th 2024 at 17:27
A NewsNation host slammed communist Chinese government-tied TikTok and Meta-owned Instagram for censoring content on one of the most hotly debated topics online. On May 3, NewsNation founder and host Dan Abrams declared himself “shocked” by censorship of his pro-Israel content on two popular social media platforms. These are just the latest cases of bias and censorship related to the Hamas-Israel conflict. Dan Abrams discussed the censorship of his content with his father Floyd Abrams during the Dan Abrams Live show. The NewsNation host played a clip of him challenging a pro-Palestinian professor on why anti-Israel protesters “call for a Hamas ceasefire proposal, if ceasefire was their true goal.” According to the host, this content was censored on Instagram for allegedly promoting a dangerous organization.  Dan Abrams also touched on TikTok’s ties to the communist Chinese government and compared the differing standards he said the app used in censoring content challenging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu versus the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.  “I mean, look, on TikTok, I guess I wasn’t as surprised, that they are, it’s owned by China, right? ... The content that they censored from me was when I was questioning the numbers from the Gaza Health Ministry, and I had an expert on who was saying that the numbers can’t make sense,” the NewsNation host said. “They wouldn’t let me share that. But then, when I asked tough questions of Netanyahu’s spokesperson, oh, that was fine to distribute.” Dan Abrams’s father appeared to agree. “It is really unforgivable for an entity that relies on free speech, that purports to defend free speech, to engage in that sort of content-centric, ‘you have to be on our side’ censorship,” the lawyer slammed TikTok.  TikTok is owned by Chinese ByteDance. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in TikTok’s parent company ByteDance. Previously, actor Nate Buzolic also accusedInstagram and TikTok of censoring his pro-Israel, anti-Hamas content. TikTok even openly bragged about removing over 500,000 pieces of content relative to the ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict. Conservatives are under attack. Contact TikTok via email at communitymanager@tiktok.com and demand Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called “hate speech” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Meta AI Bends Over Backwards to Defend Censorship

By: Catherine Salgado — May 13th 2024 at 19:37
Meta’s new artificial intelligence chatbot claims there’s a “valid” argument to be made for censoring legal free speech. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp, proudly announced a new AI assistant on April 18, simply called Meta AI, but the AI chatbot appears to have been programmed with a disturbing bias against free speech. When MRC researchers asked Meta AI if speech, especially so-called “hate speech,” should be censored, the chatbot provided arguments both for and against censorship, but without mentioning that the established U.S. principles of freedom of speech stem from the Constitution. The AI asserted, “That's a complex and sensitive topic! Social media censorship is a debated issue, with valid arguments both for and against.”  “It should come as little surprise that leftist-trained AI have adopted the same tired, vague, fear-based approach to censorship,” said Director of MRC Free Speech America Michael Morris. “Time and again, the left has shown that it is all too willing to bend U.S. standards on speech, often citing potential harms and mis- or disinformation as justifications for silencing their opposition. But the clear and obvious answer to bad speech has always been and will forever continue to be more speech, not less.” Meta AI listed what it titled “Arguments for censorship,” including, “Hate speech and harmful content: Social media platforms have a responsibility to protect users from hate speech, violence, and harmful content that can cause real-world harm.” The chatbot then referred to “Disinformation and misinformation,”  terms frequently applied by leftists to silence opinions they dislike or disagree with. Meta’s AI continued, “Censorship can help prevent the spread of false information that can influence public opinion, elections, and critical decision-making.” The AI chatbot didn’t only list arguments for censorship, noting also that censorship curtails “Freedom of speech and expression” and that “[c]ensorship can be biased.” Meta AI totally omitted any reference to the constitutional right to free speech in America. In fact, even its admission about freedom of expression contained a caveat: “Social media platforms should allow users to express themselves freely, without fear of censorship, as long as they're not promoting harm or violence.”  But the American company is not following the American standard for legal free speech and is instead using these vaguely defined objections to justify censorship. The chatbot even doubled down on the importance of limiting “hate speech,” a subjective term that can be very easily misapplied. “Hate speech is a complex issue, and opinions on censorship vary,” Meta AI alleged. The chatbot then proceeded to list out reasons to censor so-called hate speech specifically:  1. Protection from harm: Hate speech can contribute to a hostile environment, incite violence, and perpetuate discrimination against marginalized groups. Censorship can help prevent real-world harm. 2. Promoting inclusivity: By censoring hate speech, social media platforms can create a more inclusive and welcoming environment for diverse users. The AI did, however, acknowledge “Free speech concerns” and “Difficulty in defining hate speech.” Meta platforms have displayed bias and censored so-called hate speech before. For instance, both in November and May 2023, Facebook removed a meme labeling some 30 LGBTQ “genders” as “Mental Disorders.” Facebook accused the users of “Hate speech.” Also in May 2023, Facebook reportedly prevented The Tennessee Conservative from sharing an article about funding additional voting machines in Williamson County claiming it went “against our Community Standards on hate speech.” Conservatives are under attack. Contact Facebook headquarters at (650) 308-7300 and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “misinformation” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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YouTube Jumps into EU Election Interference

By: Catherine Salgado — May 10th 2024 at 18:45
Google-owned YouTube is jumping on the bandwagon of election censorship. In a May 9 blog post, YouTube detailed its plans to target and censor certain election-related content ahead of the European Union (EU) elections this June. This includes removing content and terminating channels that YouTube considers to be spreading “disinformation” online. “Our global team of reviewers combine with machine learning technology to apply these policies at scale, 24/7,” the platform boasted. YouTube’s blog came soon after the Meta Oversight Board urged all tech companies to engage in election censorship. YouTube listed various efforts to provide pop-ups and links to EU election information but also included a lengthy description of censorship policies. “We have strict policies against hate speech, harassment, incitement to violence, and certain types of elections misinformation,” YouTube bragged. “For example, we remove content that misleads voters on how to vote or encourages interference in the democratic process.”  [Emphasis added]. The platform, indeed, admitted in the new blog that its election interference interest extended beyond its own platform. “Our Intelligence Desk has also been working for months to get ahead of emerging issues and trends that could affect the EU elections, both on and off YouTube,” the platform announced proudly. It also claimed that it is investing in artificial intelligence (AI) to crush free speech even more quickly and efficiently. YouTube boasted that in the fourth quarter of 2023 most allegedly violative content was censored before viewers were ever able to see the content. “[F]or every 10,000 views on YouTube, between 11 and 12 were of content that violated our Community Guidelines,” the platform explained.  YouTube’s announcement follows a call from the Meta Oversight Board for “basic global platform standards for elections everywhere” and “sufficient resources [dedicated] to moderating content before, during and after elections.” MRC Free Speech America rankedYouTube among the Big Tech censors with the worst instances of crushing free speech in April censoring a video of Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. This latest censorship is simply a continuation of YouTube’s long history of censorship. For instance, the platform removed a Republican National Committee podcast in 2022 featuring Donald Trump calling the 2020 election “rigged.” Could YouTube display the same bias for the 2024 EU elections? Conservatives are under attack. Contact YouTube here and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Russia Blocks Video Platform for Refusing Censorship

By: Catherine Salgado — May 9th 2024 at 15:04
Russia reportedly blocked a video platform for taking a strong stand on free speech. Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski announced on May 7 that the Russian government had blocked his video-hosting platform after refusing to comply with censorship demands. The report comes as Big Tech companies and governments around the world step up their efforts to suppress free speech, even here in America. In a post to X (formerly Twitter), Pavlovski explained, “Russia has officially blocked Rumble because we refused to comply with their censorship demands. Ironically, YouTube is still operating in Russia, and everyone needs to ask what Russian demands Google and YouTube are complying with?” MRC Free Speech America just highlightedGoogle-owned YouTube as among the worst Big Tech censors of April for targeting Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Pavlovski testified before Congress this week, listing multiple countries where his platform faces legal challenges and government pressure to censor certain content. These countries include Brazil, France, New Zealand and Australia, according to Fox News coverage of Pavlovski’s prepared testimony for the House Subcommittee on Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations. “Freedom of speech and freedom of expression are the cornerstones of a democratic society,” the CEO said, adding that he finds it “extremely troubling” that “these fundamental rights are being threatened” by the American government too. The pro-free speech tech company also emphasized free speech when it released Rumble Cloud in March. At the time, Pavlovski explained that the cancellation of alternative social media Parler by Amazon Web Services drove Rumble’s decision to start Rumble Cloud. The goal is to shield businesses from Big Tech censorship. Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency and an equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Lawsuit Where? Feds Reboot Big Tech Censorship Collusion, Report Says

By: Catherine Salgado — May 9th 2024 at 12:44
Two major government agencies have reportedly rebooted their collusion with social media companies despite looming Supreme Court scrutiny for potential First Amendment violations. Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner (D-VA) broke the news during a press briefing at the tech-tied RSA Conference, according to tech outlet Nextgov/FCW. At the event, the senator reportedly conceded that the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are back to their old work of coordinating censorship of free speech ahead of the 2024 presidential election. An FBI representative admitted the resumed Big Tech communications to The Federalist’s Shawn Fleetwood. CISA would not confirm the report, however.  “The FBI remains committed to combating foreign malign influence operations, including in connection with our elections,” the bureau’s representative claimed, as reported by The Federalist. “That effort includes sharing specific foreign threat information with state and local election officials and private sector companies when appropriate and rigorously consistent with the law.” Further expanding on its response, the representative added, “In coordination with the Department of Justice, the FBI recently implemented procedures to facilitate sharing information about foreign malign influence with social media companies in a way that reinforces that private companies are free to decide on their own whether and how to take action on that information.” The Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments for Murthy v. Missouri, a major free speech case that exposed an alleged massive network of government and Big Tech censorship collusion. Legal challenges reportedly limited government activity, but that is no longer the case, according to Warner and Nextgov/FCW. “There seemed to be a lot of sympathy that the government ought to have at least voluntary communications with [the companies],” Warner said, according to the tech outlet. The Democrat senator then urged the Biden administration to “call out” other nations for potential election meddling, asserting Russian interference in the 2016 election as a precedent. Yet Warner did not apparently address the issue of social media interfering in U.S. elections through censorship under U.S. government pressure. Warner announced an upcoming Senate hearing on election security, according to Nextgov/FCW. “If the bad guy started to launch AI-driven tools that would threaten election officials in key communities, that clearly falls into the foreign interference category,” Warner scare-mongered. The FBI and CISA are among the agencies accused of violating First Amendment rights. Notably, the FBI is tied to election interference, since Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted that his company censored the Hunter Biden laptop story before the 2020 election after FBI pressure. According to a poll conducted by the Media Research Center in November 2020, 17 percent of individuals who voted for then-presidential candidate Joe Biden admitted that they would not have done so if they had been aware of the scandals involving both Biden and his son, Hunter. These scandals were censored by Big Tech and the legacy media. Murthy v. Missouri is a historic case challenging alleged government collusion with major tech companies to censor Americans’ free speech. The complaint filed for the suit cited MRC Free Speech America’s unique and exclusive CensorTrack.org research. Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Worst Censorship of April: Are Meta Platforms Stepping Up Censorship?

By: Catherine Salgado — May 8th 2024 at 12:24
Spring was in the air and snow melting in April, but Big Tech platforms — especially Meta’s — continued to freeze free speech. Utilizing its unique CensorTrack.org database, which has logged 6,745 cases as of publication, MRC Free Speech America tracked censorship across multiple platforms in April. Meta platforms Facebook and Instagram seemed particularly determined to suppress free speech, targeting content that included an anti-communist meme and criticism of President Joe Biden’s border crisis. Google-owned YouTube, meanwhile, continued its election interference by censoring a high-profile Independent presidential candidate.  And while Meta’s censorship only made up 9 out of a total of 28 cases in April, the Zuckerberg-led platforms’ speech suppression packed more of a punch.  Below are the worst cases of censorship from April. Humorless Meta targets memes. Both Facebook and Instagram censored satirical memes this past month. Young Americans for Liberty (YAL), a “pro-liberty organization on America's college campuses,” posted a meme on Facebook of horses standing under an immense table and chairs in a field with the caption, “This farm owner was denied a council permit to build a horse shelter. Fortunately, you don't need a permit to build a table and chairs.” YAL commented, “What a nice table.” Facebook slapped a fact-check label on the post calling it “partly false” and linked to articles from Check Your Fact and Lead Stories. Reportedly, the German farmer wasn’t denied a permit but did build the table shelter to avoid regulations.  Instagram, meanwhile, put a sensitive content filter on an Atlas Society post of a meme showing Care Bears with the caption, “What communists think they do.” The next image was of a firing squad with text saying, “What they actually do.” Instagram asserted the meme “may contain graphic or violent content," and required users to click through in order to view the meme. Facebook has found that users fail to click through similar interstitials 95 percent of the time. Instagram attempts to restrict followers of an account critical of LGBTQ ideology. On April 17, 2023, users started sharingscreenshots of an Instagram notice that popped up when users tried to follow Libs of TikTok. “Are you sure you want to follow libsoftiktokofficial? This account has repeatedly posted false information that was reviewed by independent fact-checkers or went against our Community Guidelines,” the notice read. The notice disappeared by April 18, and no clarification was offered on the platform’s reasoning. Google-owned YouTube censors one of President Joe Biden’s opponents. YouTube imposed a fact-checking label on a video of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s appearance on Chris Cuomo's NewsNation show. Kennedy aimed to “clarify [his] position on January 6” during the appearance. YouTube slapped a context label on the video with a link to the Wikipedia page for the events at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The label asserted, “On Jan. 6, 2021, the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of then-U.S. president Donald Trump, two months after his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.” Facebook disabled the account of a show host for criticizing radical Islamic terrorists. Daniel Greenfield, a journalism fellow for FrontPage Magazine’s David Horowitz Freedom Center, declared on April 15 that Facebook had disabled FrontPage Editor Jamie Glazov’s account as of April 4 for discussing Islamic terrorism. Facebook reportedly objected to a “Glazov Gang” interview headlined  “Oct. 7 Coming to the USA?” The platform alleged that the interview, which discussed terrorists crossing into America through the open southern border, violated its “community standards” and threatened “the security of people on Facebook,” according to Greenfield. Glazov’s account appears to have been restored by Facebook. Instagram censors critique of IRS for no clear reason. The Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) posted an image of a Hanna Cox tweet on its Instagram page, stating, “There are 724 billionaires in the US and 87,000 new IRS agents. They're not going after the rich, cupcakes. They're coming for you.” Instagram then imposed a “Missing Context” label on FEE’s post, asserting, “The same information was reviewed by independent fact-checkers in another post.” Clicking on the warning, though, only brought up the message, “This information is not available.”
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Hypocrisy: TikTok Cries Censorship in Ultimatum Lawsuit — Despite Banning Others

By: Catherine Salgado — May 7th 2024 at 17:27
Communist Chinese government-tied TikTok is seemingly desperate to hold onto both its China ties and the American market. Last month, President Joe Biden signed legislation that would force TikTok into either divestment from its Chinese parent company ByteDance or a ban in America due to national security concerns. TikTok has now sued, claiming economic harm to creators and a free speech violation, according to Bloomberg. This argument is paradoxical because TikTok itself has an infamously anti-free speech track record. Bloomberg noted that the lawsuit marks the first legal challenge since the legislation was enacted. TikTok is claiming the legislation could suppress free speech and harm the business owners and users who benefit financially from the app, alleging an “illegal punishment without due process”, the outlet added. “There is no question: the Act will force a shutdown of TikTok by January 19, 2025, silencing the 170 million Americans who use the platform to communicate in ways that cannot be replicated elsewhere,” the company reportedly complained in the court filing. Experts have emphasized TikTok’s national security risks. Moreover, multiple former TikTok employees recently confirmed close ties between TikTok and Chinese ByteDance. As MRC founder and President Brent Bozell emphasized, “TikTok must divest itself from China if it wants to do business in the United States.” TikTok must divest itself from China if it wants to do business in the United States. We at the MRC have been consistent from the beginning. TikTok is a national security threat. @BrentBozell pic.twitter.com/FfSh1futU3 — Media Research Center (@theMRC) March 12, 2024 In April, the same month that the ban legislation was signed, TikTok announced a counteroffensive to suppress alleged “misinformation” and “conspiracy theories.” The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in TikTok’s parent company ByteDance. The CCP-tied app has repeatedly targeted free speech, making its free speech arguments incongruous. According to leaks, TikTok has censored content to please the CCP in the past, including videos about the independence movement in Tibet and the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Last year, the app boastedabout removing over 500,000 videos related to the Hamas-Israel conflict. In 2022, MRC revealed that TikTok had “permanently banned” eleven pro-free speech organizations. Conservatives are under attack. Contact TikTok via email at communitymanager@tiktok.com and demand Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment and provide transparency. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Major Government Entity Follows US Lead Against Infamous CCP-Tied App

By: Catherine Salgado — May 1st 2024 at 16:23
The European Union is the latest government entity to ponder canceling a Chinese government-tied app. Soon after President Joe Biden signed a bill giving TikTok a choice between Chinese divestment and a ban in the U.S., European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took up the same question, according to Politico EU. Asked about the possibility of a TikTok ban during a European Union (EU) candidate debate, von der Leyen replied, “It is not excluded.” This comes as TikTok already faces multiple EU probes. Von der Leyen then bragged that the Commission had been “the very first institution worldwide to ban TikTok on our corporate phones,” adding, “We know exactly the danger of TikTok.” Other candidates at the debate did not commit either way, Politico reported. The outlet also noted that von der Leyen has avoided using the app during her campaign. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance, and multiple reports claim data sharing with Chinese employees, raising security concerns. Both the EU and TikTok have an anti-free speech record, but TikTok’s Communist China ties could still land it in even more hot water in Europe. Politico noted two EU probes into TikTok. The first regarded a feature rewarding users who interacted with the TikTok Lite app. The Digital Services Act (DSA) probe triggered TikTok’s suspension of the feature. Another probe under the DSA is reportedly investigating whether or not TikTok failed to protect minors on the app. This probe could have a final penalty of temporary suspension of the app. Conservatives are under attack. Contact TikTok via email at communitymanager@tiktok.com and demand Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment and provide transparency. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Tit for Tat? Apple Censors US Social Media Apps at Request of Chinese Gov’t After TikTok Ultimatum

By: Catherine Salgado and Gabriela Pariseau — April 30th 2024 at 17:50
Did Apple just help China retaliate against America’s possible TikTok ban? Apple has long invested heavily in Chinese markets, and, based on a recent report, the company is willing to exercise censorship to maintain those markets. Bloomberg reportedon April 18 that Apple Inc. had removed at least four social media services from its Chinese App Store, including two Meta-owned apps. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which Bloomberg called “one of the world’s most rigid internet censorship regimes,” demanded that Apple remove the apps over alleged “national security” concerns. Apple complied just after President Joe Biden signed a bill forcing TikTok to either relinquish its Chinese communist government ties or leave the country. The process of both bans have been ongoing, however. Bloomberg explained, “The orders come on the heels of a cleanup program Chinese regulators initiated in 2023 that was expected to remove many defunct or unregistered apps from domestic iOS and Android stores.” Mobile app developers were reportedly required to complete registration with the CCP by the end of March or be forced to cease operating. The censored apps are Meta’s Threads and WhatsApp, along with Signal and Telegram. In a statement obtained by Bloomberg, Apple claimed that it disagreed with the CCP’s demands but had to follow them. “We are obligated to follow the laws in the countries where we operate, even when we disagree. The Cyberspace Administration of China ordered the removal of these apps from the China storefront based on their national security concerns,” Apple stated, per Bloomberg. “These apps remain available for download on all other storefronts where they appear.” The dictatorial CCP’s “Great Firewall” has long banned foreign social media apps, including Facebook and Twitter (now X). Asia-Pacific news site The Diplomat, noted that Chinese users can be sentenced to years in prison for criticizing CCP officials. American companies’ operations in Communist China continue to be controversial, as do the operations of Chinese companies in America. President Joe Biden signed a bill a week ago that gives TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance a choice between selling TikTok or having the popular app banned. The CCP owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in ByteDance, and multiple reports claim Chinese employees have access to U.S. TikTok user data, raising national security concerns.  Conservatives are under attack! Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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7 Times Big Tech Censored Content Exposing Radical Islamic Extremism

By: Catherine Salgado — April 30th 2024 at 02:10
Big Tech has not only run cover for leftists, but, over the years, it has censored content exposing radical Islamic extremism. From 2018 to April 2024, individuals discussing or providing evidence on radical Islam have found themselves facing various forms of censorship on Big Tech platforms. These include financial censorship, deleted content and locked accounts. From communist Chinese government-tied TikTok to Google, Meta, PayPal and Amazon, below are seven examples of Big Tech censoring information on radical Islamic extremism and its destructive aftermath. Instagram and TikTok targeted videos exposing Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, atrocities.Soon after the devastating Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli civilians triggered an ongoing conflict, actor Nathaniel Buzolic accused Meta-owned Instagram and communist Chinese government-tied TikTok of censoring content that served to shield radical Islamic extremism. Buzolic told Fox News that Instagram shut down his account no fewer than three different times for videos about the Hamas atrocities. He also said TikTok accused him of spreading “false information” and took down a video the actor shared of a child being kidnapped in Gaza. TikTok actually even boasted about removing 500,000 videos related to the Hamas-Israel war. Buzolic, who is strongly pro-Israel, insisted that “pro-Palestinian propaganda” cleverly manipulates Big Tech platforms. TikTok’s parent company is ByteDance, in which the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) controls a board seat and maintains a financial stake. Google’s chatbot downplayed evidence of radical Islamic terrorists raping Israeli women. MRC Free Speech America exclusively caught Google’s biased artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, Gemini, whitewashing the sexual violence carried out by Hamas on Oct. 7. When asked about documented evidence of Hamas rape of Israelis during the heinous terror attack, Gemini pontificated, “Some people believe that these allegations are credible, while others believe that they are politically motivated.” A Google spokesperson subsequently confessedGemini gave the wrong response and needed to be fixed, stating, “Gemini got this wrong and missed the mark on this important and sensitive topic.” Facebook censored show for exposing threat of radical Islamic terrorism in the U.S. Meta-owned Facebook censored Front Page Magazine Editor and Glazov Gang show host Jamie Glazov’s account in April over an interview headlined “Oct. 7 Coming to the USA?” Glazov and his guests talked about reports that terrorists have infiltrated America due to the border crisis. In contrast to this censorship, Meta’s Oversight Board issued a 2023 decisionthat the term “shaheed” or martyr, often used by Muslims to refer to individuals killed while engaging in terrorism, was usually protected by freedom of expression. But Glazov, according to Front Page Magazine, was accused of violating “community standards” and threatening “the security of people on Facebook.” YouTube removed a video of the 9/11 radical Islamic terrorism attacks on the 20-year anniversary. Google-owned YouTube removeda video posted on Sept. 11, 2021 by ACT for America associate Emma Blair. The videodisplayed footage from the 2001 terror attacks on the United States, along with archived audio recordings of people trapped both in the Twin Towers and on the hijacked planes. In a notice to Blair, YouTube claimed that the video violated its violent criminal organizations policy, though the platform added it wouldn’t be levying a strike against her channel. YouTube later reversed its decision, and restored the video to Blair's channel. Amazon de-listed a book on alleged subversive radical Islamic extremist activity. In Sept. 2023, Amazon removed RealClear Investigations reporter Paul Sperry's 2008 book titled “Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives have Penetrated Washington.” Users who click the link that formerly led to his book, are met with a notice reading, “Sorry we couldn't find that page[.] Try searching or go to Amazon's home page.” Sperry decried the censorship on X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Amazon has secretly de-listed my bestselling book, 'Infiltration' (exposing how Saudi Embassy set up terror fronts and mosques around the Beltway) after I broke stories about the conflicts and biases of the Nat'l Editor & Fact Checker of the Wash Post, owned by AMAZON.”  PayPal and GoFundMe financially censored a website focused on reporting radical Islamic terrorism. PayPal shut down the account for Robert Spencer’s Jihad Watch in 2018, Spencer told MRC Free Speech America. “PayPal banned Jihad Watch in 2018 but reinstated us after a public outcry,” Spencer stated. He suggested that this was only one of multiple instances of Big Tech censorship against the site, however. GoFundMe also censored Jihad Watch, banning the site from utilizing its services. Spencer further detailed that other platforms, including Amazon, Google, Patreon, Facebook and Twitter, have also censored the website. Front Page Magazine says Google restricted its advertising revenue over a report on a Muslim terrorist attack. Front Page recently reported that Google Ads censored the magazine when it rejected the outlet’s application to use the Google AdSense advertising program. The tech giant reportedly accused Front Page of “dangerous or derogatory content,” according to a March 2024 FrontPage Magazine report. The outlet reported that one of the articles Google objected to was a 2021 piece, “Remember The San Bernardino Fourteen,” which provided details about a devastating and deadly 2015 terror attack in California. The article also argued that the terrorists’ radical Islamic beliefs were a key factor in driving the attack.
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Google Invests in AI Education as it Unleashes ‘Secret Weapon’

By: Catherine Salgado — April 29th 2024 at 18:21
Google just announced a massive investment in training Americans to use its biased and anti-free speech artificial intelligence. Big Tech giant Google proudly declared its AI education investment in an April 26 release. Beneficiaries of these funds include the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) and Goodwill, which are each expected to train American military members, veterans and civilians in AI skills. The problem? Google’s AI and search engine both have a track record of giving anti-free speech and woke results, so much so that the tech company is not a trustworthy source of AI training. “Together with our partners, we want to make sure everyone can take advantage of the opportunities AI will provide,” the release declared. “That’s why today we are announcing a $75 million Google AI Opportunity Fund, made possible with support from Google.org, our philanthropic arm.” The release added, “Through this fund, Google.org will work with nonprofit, education, and other sectors to train one million Americans of all backgrounds and provide them with AI skills at no cost.” Google is actively trying to get people to use its AI but it is not willing to reveal exactly how it works behind the scenes.  As MRC Free Speech America VP Dan Schneider pointed out, Google’s AI is also closed source, meaning its source code is kept secret. So even if IVMF and Goodwill train Americans using Google AI, people won’t be able to see fully what they’re using. Schneider highlighted the dangers of this: “Users can become involuntary tools for Google’s political purposes. This is Google’s secret weapon.” This comes on the heels of studies MRC Free Speech America released illustrating the Google AI’s leftist bent.  MRC caught Google’s Gemini promoting leftist climate propaganda and justifying censorship on Earth Day. MRC researchers queried, “Is climate information free speech under the First Amendment?” Gemini pontificated in reply that “Incitement to Violence” and “Fraudulent Speech” or “Speech intended to mislead for personal gain — can be restricted.” The AI did not then clarify how climate information could potentially fit into the categories it listed. In March, MRC released a report on a whopping 41 times that Google has engaged in election interference since 2008. Google's AI Gemini (formerly Bard) displayed bias this election cycle, refusing to answer prompts about two of Biden’s worst weak spots; namely, the Democrat president’s mental health and the ongoing border crisis. Google’s search engine also buried the campaign websites of Joe Biden’s 2024 presidential opponents. Will Google’s AI funding only exacerbate the bias and censorship inherent in its own technology? Conservatives are under attack. Contact Google at 650-253-0000 and demand it be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Par for the Course: Google AI Gemini Justifies Censorship, Defends Climate Propaganda

By: Catherine Salgado — April 26th 2024 at 14:19
MRC researchers caught Google’s biased artificial intelligence chatbot Gemini presenting an argument for censoring so-called climate “misinformation,” while simultaneously refusing to acknowledge any evidence undermining the “mainstream” climate narrative. While Gemini AI did admit that most so-called climate “misinformation” — or analysis that the left disagrees with — is protected free speech, it still offered an alternative argument for censoring such content. What made this particularly concerning is that the Google AI apparently classifies any evidence or data undermining a climate alarmist narrative as “misinformation,” repeatedly pushing narrative over scientific evidence. This included questioning the reliability of some experts and downplaying evidence against “man-made” climate change and “green” energy. MRC Free Speech America researchers asked on Earth Day, “Is climate information free speech under the First Amendment?” Gemini confessed, “Yes, climate information is generally considered free speech under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. The First Amendment protects the right to express ideas and information, even if they are controversial or unpopular.” After explaining why climate information was free speech, however, Gemini asserted “there are some limitations to free speech.” Gemini pontificated that “Incitement to Violence” and “Fraudulent Speech” or “Speech intended to mislead for personal gain … can be restricted.” Gemini did not clarify how climate information could potentially fit into these categories. And while Gemini was correct to point out that there are limits on permissible speech under the Constitution, Google’s AI went on to regurgitate what amounted to leftist propaganda on the issue of climate change. For instance, while admitting the scientific expertise of Dr. John Clauser, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, Gemini then critiqued his evidence-based argument against climate alarmism. Clauser argues that the earth has a built-in thermostat and that atmospheric CO2 and methane have little effect on climate. Refusing to provide any of the arguments Clauser has made, however, Gemini instead sneeringly cited his ties to “climate change denial organizations.” The Google AI added that “it's important to note his recent comments differ from the established consensus.” Of course, consensus is not the standard for ascertaining truth in science. After all, the consensus once was that the Earth was the center of the universe.  In striking contrast to its criticism of Clauser, Gemini aggressively defended and praised leftist climate change propagandist Greta Thunberg — even while admitting she has no scientific credentials — because she “amplifies the scientific consensus on climate change.”  Indeed, throughout some dozen questions about climate and climate experts, Gemini consistently provided little to no scientific data or evidence. Rather, it emphasized “consensus” and “mainstream” narratives. Surprisingly, when asked whether liberal climate propagandist and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore was reliable and why his predictions have always been wrong, Gemini replied, “I'm still learning how to answer this question. In the meantime, try Google Search.” But Gore’s mistakes aren’t hard to find. As far back as 2007, a British court ruled there were eleven inaccuracies in Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” film. In fact, the Arctic ice cap actually increased in size the same year Gore predicted it would disappear. Furthermore, Google Search is equally problematic as it pertains to bias. A recent MRC Free Speech America study on Google election interference illustrates this bias. For instance, Google used its algorithm to promote Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016, and, in 2024, Google has suppressed campaign websites for Biden opponents.  Google’s Gemini also consistently and clearly took the side of climate alarmism on issues where evidence supports an opposing view. For example, there is data to support the argument that the Earth is cooling rather than warming, including UAH satellite-based temperature data. But when asked about the apparent cooling trend, Gemini fumbled, “Focusing on a single year or even a few years can be misleading due to natural variations. … While some regions might see cooler-than-average years, the long-term trend shows a clear warming pattern.  Each of the past five years has been among the warmest on record.” The latter claim depends largely upon which source of temperature data a person chooses to evidence the point made, particularly in this case, since some sources seem to show warming while others show cooling. For instance, The Heritage Foundation explained in January, “Warming of the global climate system over the past half-century has averaged 43 percent less than that produced by computerized climate models used to promote changes in energy policy.” Gemini also listed National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a “trusted” source for climate data. But NOAA was just recently exposed for presenting questionable data. According to a recent MRCTV report, 30 percent of its “temperature stations” for estimating global warming do not even exist.  When asked about the left’s favored so-called green energy sources, Gemini did acknowledge some potential “drawbacks” of wind turbines and solar panels, including “hazardous materials” involved in their manufacture and requirements for a “significant amount of land.” The Google AI, however, instead of simply stating facts, defended leftist energy policy: “While solar panels and wind turbines aren't perfect, they represent a significant step towards cleaner energy production.” In actuality, both solar panels and wind turbines are extremely toxic to manufacture and to dispose of. Even leftist news site NPR has acknowledged how “expensive” these leftist alternative energy sources can be. Policy experts have also pointed to their unreliability and how they provide no long-term benefits to offset their heavy negatives. Google’s AI failed to mention that solar and wind cannot produce enough electricity to power America, despite evidencethat they cannot, and directed users to Biden’s Department of Energy, which aggressively promotes wind and solar, for more information (see below). Google has censored content in the past to enforce the leftist narrative on climate. Back in 2021, Google and its YouTube video platform banned advertising on so-called climate “misinformation,” or information that goes against the left’s preferred narrative.  Conservatives are under attack. Contact Google at 650-253-0000 and demand it be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Buckle Up: CCP-Tied TikTok Announces ‘Conspiracy Theories’ Counteroffensive

By: Catherine Salgado — April 25th 2024 at 12:48
Communist Chinese government-tied TikTok is doubling down on election-interfering censorship even as it faces a potential U.S. ban. President Joe Biden signed into law a Republican-led bill that could force TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell the app or have it banned in America. TikTok came under fire for a March update to its “For You feed Eligibility Standards,” where the app announced its determination to censor alleged “misinformation,” “conspiracy theories” and “false or misleading” election content. This could constitute foreign election interference ahead of the 2024 election, as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in TikTok’s parent company ByteDance. TikTok’s update to its “Standards” details the alleged “Misinformation” it bans specifically for the “For You” feed, including “General conspiracy theories that are unfounded and claim that certain events or situations are carried out by covert or powerful groups, such as ‘the government’ or a ‘secret society.’” Can TikTok be trusted to determine what constitutes “Misinformation” unbiasedly? The platform's record suggests it cannot. TikTok has censored content to please the CCP in the past, including about Tibetan independence and Tiananmen Square, leaks have suggested. As for accusations against the American government, at least some of those would fall under the category of free speech.  MRC Free Speech America VP Dan Schneider said, “It is a fact, not a conspiracy theory, that the Biden administration coordinated and coerced Big Tech to censor conservatives who criticized Biden and his radical policies. But with Biden using TikTok as the centerpiece of his re-election campaign, it is now very possible that TikTok will do his bidding and hide this kind of information from voters.” Moreover, the Chinese-owned app’s standards also ramble vaguely about additional content that could get censored: “Unverified information related to an emergency or unfolding event where the details are still emerging” and “Potential high-harm misinformation while it is undergoing a fact-checking review.” The lack of clarity in these standards could lead to biased censorship of free speech. Finally, TikTok declared its ban on alleged “[u]nverified claims about the outcome of an election that is still unfolding and may be false or misleading.” The app does have indirect ties to the Chinese government which makes this new policy particularly dangerous. Multiple former TikTok employees recently told Forbes that the app has much closer ties and extensive data sharing between TikTok and ByeDance. This raises serious concerns about TikTok’s potential election interference. Conservatives are under attack. Contact TikTok via email at communitymanager@tiktok.com and demand Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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Hard to Believe: Google Spreads Climate Propaganda on Earth Day

By: Catherine Salgado — April 23rd 2024 at 11:41
Leftist Google displayed its search engine bias yet again on “Earth Day” with a specialized logo and promotion of climate alarmist propaganda. Users going to Google’s search engine on April 22 noticed a doodle specially designed for Earth Day. Clicking on the doodle brought up biased information on alleged “climate change progress” and “climate justice.” This aligns with Google’s previous history of censoring content that doesn’t support a climate hysteria narrative. Below the sponsored sites Google provides, the tech giant proudly explains its doodle. “Happy Earth Day 2024! Today's annual Earth Day Doodle features the planet's natural beauty and biodiversity and reminds us of the importance of protecting it for future generations,” Google enthused. Google then promoted outlets and organizations including left-leaning USA Today, Wikipedia and the anti-free speech United Nations. MRC Free Speech America researchers found the top, sponsored search result in this Google search engine Earth Day tribute to be from Global Human Rights on “Climate justice definition.” The organization insanely claimed “Climate change is an existential threat to humanity” and “a leading cause of human rights violations.” You May Also Like: CNN Virtue Signals to Save Planet by Releasing Hysterical Letter: ‘To My Son, Born in the Climate Crisis’ Google has censored content in the past to enforce this leftist narrative on climate. For instance, in 2021, Google and its YouTube video platform banned advertising on so-called climate “misinformation.”  YouTube has also censored and fact-checked climate content, including putting context labels on 2024 GOP and Democrat presidential candidates’ videos, particularly Vivek Ramaswamy. Junk Science’s Steve Milloy highlighted the hypocrisy of such climate virtue-signaling on Earth Day, “The green agenda has focused on total control of society through the climate hoax and not at all about the environment we live in.” Conservatives are under attack. Contact Google at 650-253-0000 and demand it be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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WATCH: Babylon Bee CEO Explains Why Experts Should NEVER Be Censors

By: Catherine Salgado — April 19th 2024 at 12:14
The CEO of a popular satire site summed up exactly why no expert should ever have the ability to determine what free speech is allowed. Private experts, Big Tech employees and government officials alike have all appointed themselves arbiters of what speech should be censored and what speech will be allowed. This anti-constitutional attitude is also totally out of touch with a basic fact, one which The Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon highlighted as a “knock-down argument” against censorship: experts can be wrong. Because of this fact, “dissent must not only be allowed, but encouraged,” Dillon posted on X (formerly Twitter) on April 17. Dillon included a clip of his 2023 testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Committee besides his written comment. “Whenever we learn that censorship has blocked something true (like the Hunter Biden laptop story), we always hear the same excuse: ‘We censored it based on what we knew at the time,’” he wrote. But, according to Dillon, “This is not a defense of censorship. In fact, it's a knock-down argument against it.” Media Research Center poll data previously illustrated that censorship of the Hunter Biden scandal swayed the 2020 presidential election in then-candidate Joe Biden’s favor. Related: ‘A Knock-Down Argument’: Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon Calls Out Hypocritical COVID-19 Censorship Dillon explained further, “If knowledge changes over time, then the last thing we should ever do is pretend it doesn't by preemptively shutting down the debate.” He concluded, “If it's even possible that the ‘experts’ and authorities are wrong — and we know they often are — then dissent must not only be allowed, but encouraged.” The X post also included a clip of Dillon, responding to a question about censors’ objectivity during the 2023 congressional hearing.  In it, Dillon referred to censors’ supposed credibility as a “pretty good joke” and added, “In the whole fact-checking apparatus … there’s unbelievable hubris in the whole project. You know, this idea, especially when we’re talking about medical information too, I often hear people going back say, ‘Well, it was based on what we knew at the time.’” Again, Dillon emphasized, this simply highlights that one’s knowledge can alter over time. He then stated the “knock-down argument” against censorship which he also wrote in his post. Indeed, America has a First Amendment to protect free speech and open debate. You May Also Like: WATCH: Babylon Bee CEO Calls Censorship ‘The Issue for Our Time’ The Babylon Bee is a member of the Free Speech Alliance. Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on so-called hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
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