Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) drilled Big Tech leaders on choosing what content Americans were allowed to post at a House “disinformation” hearing. He even agreed with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that banning a sitting president is an uncomfortable move.
The congressman called out Big Tech for censoring organizations that it does not politically agree with. “Whether it’s censoring pro-life groups like Live Action or pro-Second Amendment groups like The Well Armed Woman, your platforms continually shut down law-abiding citizens and constitutional discussions and commerce that don’t align with Big Tech views and [its] worldview,” Walberg said.
He then added that he agreed with statements made by Sanders. The far-left senator said that he wasn’t comfortable with censorship in an interview on “The Ezra Klein Show '' podcast: “But if you’re asking me, do I feel particularly comfortable that the president, the then-president of the United States [Donald Trump] could not express his views on Twitter? I don’t feel comfortable about that.”
The hearing, titled “Disinformation Nation: Social Media's Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation,” featured testimony from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. The three CEOs testified before the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology and the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce on March 25.
Walberg questioned Zuckerberg and Dorsey on their decisions to censor conservative content. He asked the two Big Tech leaders: “Do you think the laws should allow you to be the arbiters of truth as they have under Section 230?” Zuckerberg responded, “Congressman, I think that it is good to have a law that allows platforms to moderate content, but as I said today, I think that there, that we’d benefit from more transparency and accountability.” Dorsey quickly followed up stating, “I don’t think we should be the arbiters of truth, and I don’t think the government should be either.”
Despite their responses, Facebook and Twitter banned Trump in January, and Zuckerberg seemingly blamed the former president for the Jan. 6 riot. The three platforms represented in the hearing have appeared to grow more bold in banning content that they disagree with politically since. Big Tech’s willingness to ban conservatives was on full display in the House’s hearing, and it showed that nothing will likely change until America’s elected officials act on the issue.
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 at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
