Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

US Media Watchdog Grades Big Tech Average 'F' Over Suppression of Free Speech

US Media Watchdog Grades Big Tech Average 'F' Over Suppression of Free Speech

In recent years, US watchdogs have noted an increase in the incidence of censorship by the tech giants of Silicon Valley against their users in the field of free speech regarding political issues and, in particular, information about the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the third quarter of 2021, Big Tech censorship became even more significant, the US Media Research Center's NewsBusters reported on Tuesday, giving the companies controlling major social media a median "F" grade for their policies.

According to the report, the censorship was particularly concerning because the platforms "didn’t have much farther to fall from their pathetic second quarter grades." On Google, Twitter, and Facebook, online freedom has continued to dwindle. And this quarter saw massive censorship of conservative information once again.

This comes amid numerous reports and accusations toward the Big Tech companies of altering their algorithms and containing the spread of the information which contradicted the mainstream media narrative.

Silicon Valley's Failing Grades


The watchdog organization examines in detail the main events and measures taken on the basis of which the companies were assessed in their research.

US Media Research Center's Big Tech Report Card of Quarter 3, 2021


The watchdog recalled that in his new book, Zach Vorhies, a former Google senior software engineer, claimed that Google changed its news algorithm to target former President Donald Trump.

Also during this quarter, The Wall Street Journal began its "Facebook Files" research, which produced stories based on Facebook's internal documents that were damaging to the site. The initiative began with the revelation that Facebook has a "VIP list" of people whose content is not monitored as rigorously as that of other users.

In addition, according to Twitter's most recent transparency report, released in July, the company erased roughly 4 million tweets in just six months last year.

Between September 2020 and August 2021, Twitter took action against over 11 million accounts for COVID-19-related content, according to the company. It also attempted to keep a Project Veritas, blocked on the platform, video of Johnson & Johnson employees making negative remarks about the company's COVID-19 vaccine from being shared, according to CensorTrack.org.

Moreover, this quarter, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted that his business had purged more than 20 million COVID-19-related posts. YouTube has banned at least 1 million videos for so-called "dangerous information" related to COVID-19, reportedly including one of Sen. Rand Paul talking about masks.

"Since February of 2020 we’ve removed over 1M videos related to dangerous coronavirus information, like false cures or claims of a hoax," the company said in a blog post in August.


According to the report, remarkably, Amazon's grades slightly increased. The platform was the only one that improved its grades this quarter, in particular, because it has reportedly refused to budge in the face of pressure from both its employees and left-leaning politicians to delete books that addressed transgender problems. According to reports, the platform also reversed a decision to reject ads for a critical book about Black Lives Matter.

TikTok made its first appearance on the list this quarter, earning a D in Online Freedom. In this quarter's report card, TikTok took the place of Apple. TikTok has topped 1 billion monthly active users and is censoring an increasing amount of content.

The watchdog noted that in general, the intensified censorship garnered favorable coverage on the primetime news broadcasts. On network evening news, pro-censorship stories and mentions outnumbered those advocating free speech 12-to-0. Much of the focus was on network support for President Joe Biden's campaign to limit COVID-19 material.

According to the study, about 20% of network evening news broadcast stories about Big Tech censorship researched for the report were neutral. None of the pieces allegedly advocated for free speech, based on analysis of news coverage on ABC, CBS, and NBC evening news.

Alternative Media Still Too Insignificant to Evaluate


Conservatives across the US criticized Big Tech platforms for "censorship and suppression" of free expression online, which prompted their exodus to create their own platforms.

Parler, Rumble, Gab, GETTR, FreeTalk, and CloutHub are among the alternative platforms that have risen to the challenge, with some professing to uphold free speech values. Big Tech has blocked and attempted to shut down at least one of the new alternative platforms, even after some of the more well-known firms, such as Parler and Gab, began to thrive.

Notably, in January, following the January 6 Capitol mayhem, Amazon Web Services, a server and hosting provider, stopped procuring its services to the Parler app, which was accused of being the primary platform used by Trump supporters who broke into the Capitol to coordinate their actions. The app was pulled from Google Play and Apple's App Store, two of the most popular online marketplaces.

However, later in the year, the app was reinstated in its rights on all platforms and is still available to download.

The watchdog noted that because these alternative platforms are so new, there is not much data about how they manage content. On July 1, Trump adviser Jason Miller announced the start of GETTR.

Moreover, both Telegram and Rumble are becoming more and more popular places to post controversial content in order to avoid being blocked, as well as to report about censorship on other platforms.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×