Monthly Archives: May 2022

My first personal recollection of feeling censored was when a valued but left-leaning client corrected me in mid sentence. I had used the word Democrat instead of Democratic. After a few of these encounters I noticed myself, slowly falling in line, guarding my speech, in an attempt not to offend in my work place.

Fast forwarding a few years, Ive watched the divide between the news organizations grow. The information they choose to present reveals their bias as they echo the same talking points in unison. No matter if their information is true or not, they forge on, never apologizing for misinformation or actual lies.

The 2016 and 2020 presidential elections confirmed the great political divide between Americans. It was during these years more informed and engaged citizens started self censoring. Too many people associated with only those they agreed with politically. Partisans watched the news outlets that bolstered their political agenda and were content repeating talking points without sufficient research to substantiate their accuracy.

Today we have media outlets and big tech telling us what we can say and what we can see. The fact checkers successfully covered up the Hunter Biden laptop story before the 2020 Presidential election. It is now being exposed by the New York Times as truth. Why now? Probably because it no longer stands in the way of their agenda or more likely, incriminating evidence is about to be revealed. The fact checkers have proven themselves to be partisan hacks.

Now lets explore the high gas prices with these facts in mind. When President Trump left office we were energy independent. President Biden on his first day in office shut down the construction of the Keystone Pipeline. He also stopped the extraction of oil on federal lands. Did that cause the price of gas to go up? Yes, it did. Biden was sending a message to the fossil fuel industry that he was starting the great shut down of Americas most valuable asset, fossil fuel. Does Ukraines war have a part in high gas prices? Yes, but prices were already heading upward before the war.

Since the invasion of Ukraine, Biden has imposed sanctions on Russian petroleum. Who will this impact more, the Russians or the US? I dont know. What I do know is I support exploration and development of all energy sources. Biden should abandon his quest to cripple the fossil fuel industry and get on the Drill Baby Drill bandwagon, ASAP.

Biden is begging Venezuela, Mexico and the Saudis to ramp up their drilling and send the US more oil. Begging other countries to potentially pollute their own environment so the US can claim the moral high ground of environmental purity, screams of hypocrisy.The green economy Biden envisions is being hoisted on the American people at a time when the technology is not sufficient to meet the demand. This is a suicidal act that will destroy our economy and crush the middle class in our country.

For years I have heard the drum beat of Russia, Russia, Russia. The media and the government have told us about all the misinformation Russia is spreading. My thoughts on this issue lead me to more questions than answers. Could Russia be feeding Europe and the US misinformation about climate change to curtail our production of fossil fuels? Could Russia be funding non-profits to produce bogus climate models to sway the public with fear? Is Putin using Europes dependency on Russian petroleum as leverage in his war in Ukraine? So many questions and so few answers.

In my childhood I remember how terrible I thought it was that Russia censored their newspapers. Back then it seemed unimaginable censorship would ever be used in the United States.

We are living in a time when Americans are accused daily, by fact checkers aka censors, of spreading misinformation. Whether its Hunter Bidens laptop, COVID, spying on a sitting president, etc., we are censored. When scoffed at stories are eventually proven to be factual, the media or the government never acknowledges it with an apology and seldom a correction. They just move on, not caring if you notice.

Though some of us do not recognize our own country these days, we are not living in a foreign land, we are simply living in foreign times. I conclude with a quote attributed to the 6th century Greek storyteller Aesop, United we stand, divided we fall.

Lorraine Christensen is a retired Oroville business owner.

Excerpt from:
Censorship and misinformation what are we to think? | Editor For A Day - Chico Enterprise-Record

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EXCLUSIVE TUSK, a censorship-free web browser for conservatives with an emphasis on free speech, launched on Tuesday, allowing users to "browse right" on the internet.

TUSK founder and Virtual World Computing CEO Jeff Bermant feels "most popular browsers and search engines are inherently left-leaning and biased" and he wanted to create a place where conservatives can see what like-minded people are saying.

"TUSK was developed with the idea of free speech, because if you go to other browsers and you go to their news feeds, you'll find that its center left or it's left and you weren't getting the full story," Bermant told Fox News Digital.

LEVIN: THE NEW YORK TIMES 'WORSE THAN FAKE NEWS'

Bermant, who was inspired by the work of high-profile conservatives such as Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and Mark Levin, believes that right-leaning news organizations werent easy to find through popular search engines that millions of Americans rely on. TUSK is a private browser intended to bring free speech and provide conservative information that Bermant created after Levin called for conservatives to fight back against what he calls American Marxists.

"One of the things I have a talent of is knowing how to build browsers We built a news feed that is basically a conservative news feed and we built what you would call the links or the tiles. Instead of populating them with some brands you might want to buy, we populated them with conservative sites," Bermant said. "You know, tech, or the web, is basically controlled by liberals."

Because of liberals controlling tech, Bermant believes many conservative news organizations are buried and hard to find using traditional search engines such as Google. "There wasnt an easy place to go," he said.

NEW YORK TIMES SCOLDED FOR HANDLING OF HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP STORY

Bermant feels TUSK can help change the web-browsing experience for conservatives.

"Its really needed because otherwise you dont really realize that youre being censored," he said. "Youre not seeing the news that you want."

Bermant said many conservative websites get placed on the third or fourth page of results when a user is searching for something on traditional search engines, even if the article is exactly what they were looking for.

"As the scientists know who built the web, you wont go to that page," he said.

Unlike other search engines, TUSK doesnt monitor users, collect data to sell for profit or create profiles.

"We want to respect your privacy," Bermant said, noting that a portion of proceeds from sponsored ads will go to veterans groups.

"Most popular browsers and search engines are inherently left-leaning and biased," according to TUSKs founder. (bernardbodo)

While TUSK targets conservatives and provides easy access to right-leaning information, users can also find liberal news organizations on the search engine if they want to simply by pushing a few buttons.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"We're all about free speech," Bermant said. "We want you to see what the other side is saying we built this for free speech because we felt that basically Americans are being censored in their browsers, in their search engines."

TUSK is available for download for mobile and desktop devices by visiting the App store or tuskbrowser.com.

Fox News' Matthew Wall contributed to this report.

Excerpt from:
Censorship-free web browser launches for conservatives with an emphasis on free speech - Fox News

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) One year after YouTube removed from its site a video in which an Ohio attorney touted lies about COVID-19, eight Republicans approved a bill to counter what they called Big Techs suppression of free speech.

In an 8-4 vote Thursday, the Civil Justice Committee approved House Bill 441 to prohibit social media platforms from censoring expression based on a users viewpoint not including speech thats already deemed illegal under federal law, like harassment or shouting fire in a crowded theater.

The bill joins an increasingly national discourse concerned with the uptick in social media sites deplatforming or restricting users ranging from the permanent suspension of former President Donald Trumps Twitter account due to incitement of violence to removing individual Facebook posts promoting Holocaust denial conspiracies.

By preventing Big Tech companies from continuing to engage in viewpoint discrimination, we hope to protect the free exchange of ideas and information in Ohio, Rep. Scott Wiggam (R-Wooster) said in his testimony before the Civil Justice Committee.

While the bill does not equip the state with the power to enforce the censorship ban, it does allow individual Ohioans to file a civil suit against social media companies with more than 50 million U.S. users that block, remove or restrict them from using their site.

Bill co-sponsors Wiggam and Rep. Al Cutrona (R-Canfield) did not respond to requests for comment.

Since January 2020, Twitter has challenged nearly 12 million accounts, suspended more than 8,000 and removed nearly 84,000 posts the social media giant said constituted potentially harmful and misleading information about the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Twitters Transparency Center.

A Fremont attorney who testified against Gov. Mike DeWines COVID-19 shutdown orders before a House committee in 2021 was also the victim of what Wiggam called a government-induced attempt to regulate speech.

A video recording of Thomas Renz was removed from YouTube after the platform determined his speech violated their terms of service by spreading COVID-19 misinformation including a debunked claim that no Ohioans under the age of 19 died from the virus, according to the Associated Press.

Big Tech companies have censored individuals in response to suggestions and pressures from government officials and so have censored Americans on behalf of the government, Wiggam said in his written testimony.

Gary Daniels, chief lobbyist of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio who testified against HB 441, said its unlikely the legislation would survive a legal battle in court.

Unlike government agencies or public entities, social media platforms are private actors and thus arent required to abide by free speech protections under the First Amendment, he said.

These are private entities; they make the decisions whether they have a policy or not, Daniels said. They make these decisions ultimately as to what they want to host or entertain or have on their social media sites.

Ohio itself, Daniels said, could be found in violation of the First Amendment if HB 441 is enacted, as governments are prohibited from compelling speech in other words, forcing an individual or company like Facebook to support or broadcast certain expressions.

Mandating a social media platform to maintain certain content on its site, Daniels said, would be the similar to the government dictating what a newspaper can print or requiring an anti-abortion group to spread messaging supporting a persons right to an abortion.

The idea that the government can do this with private entities would essentially mean all bets are off government controls speech thats out there and will force you to say whatever the government thinks is appropriate, Daniels said.

HB 441 also doesnt clarify what type of action is deemed viewpoint discrimination by social media companies, Daniels said, creating a murky, ambiguous body of law that could open the door for the proliferation of frivolous lawsuits.

It doesnt have to be political speech. It can be for some reason, you know, Facebook wants to remove your cupcake recipe, he said. Everybody agrees they shouldnt be doing something like that thats unfair and not what the people need or want. But again, its their website. Its their social media company.

Cutrona, however, contended that social media platforms act as common carriers like the U.S. Postal Service, phone companies and public transportation that are responsible for the transmission of goods via services open to the general public.

Commons carriers are required to operate with neutrality, which Daniels said explains the fact that the post office cant refuse to deliver a National Rifle Association newsletter because it disagrees with the NRAs speech. And Amtrak, he said, generally does not concern itself with a passengers political views.

These services are affected with a public interest, are public accommodations, are central public forums for public debate, and have enjoyed governmental support in the U.S., Cutrona said in his written testimony. As such, Ohio is well within its rights to stop Big Tech from censoring users based on their viewpoint.

But Daniels said social media giants dont operate or advertise themselves as common carriers, as they obviously exercise control over speech, enforcing myriad speech-related rules within their terms of service.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a similar bill into law allowing residents to sue social media companies over speech violations only to be served with a preliminary injunction blocking its enforcement by a federal judge in June 2021.

The legislation now at issue was an effort to rein in social-media providers deemed too large and too liberal. Balancing the exchange of ideas among private speakers is not a legitimate governmental interest, the Florida judge wrote in his injunction order.

A Texas bill restricting a social media companys ability to regulate users speech was also hit with a preliminary injunction by a federal judge in December 2021.

The judge said the enacted legislation would radically upset the ways in which social media platforms operate by stifling their ability to maintain safe, useful, and enjoyable sites for users.

Content moderation and curation will benefit users and the public by reducing harmful content and providing a safe, useful service, the federal Texas judge wrote in his injunction order.

Despite Daniels certainty that HB 441 will witness a similar fate in court, hes convinced the bills sponsors are using the legislation as a bully pulpitto garner the publics attention toward the issue.

Even the threat of introducing a law, the threat of having a bill out there and passing it into law those types of things they hope, essentially, will cause social media companies to change what they are doing.

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Ohio bill would allow users to sue Facebook, Twitter over censorship - NBC4 WCMH-TV

The Biden administrations formation of a disinformation board has sparked momentum for two states to sue the U.S. government, alleging pressure and collusion with Big Tech corporations to censor political content that challenges the government line.

If we wouldve tried to bring this lawsuit two or three months ago, I think they wouldve laughed us out of court, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry told The Daily Signal in a phone interview about the new Disinformation Governance Board inside the Department of Homeland Security.

People are really starting to raise their eyebrows and its mostly because of this disinformation branch, Landry said. In other words, the government and Big Tech have become basically brazen in the face of the American people, saying, We are going to give you the information that we deem you need.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined Louisianas Landry last week in filing a federal lawsuit that alleges top-ranking government officials worked with social media giants such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to censor free speech and truthful information regarding COVID-19, election reforms, and other matters.

The two states lawsuit names President Joe Biden, White House medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Nina Jankowicz, director of the Disinformation Governance Board, among other administration officials.

When the government strong-arms, or basically forces, a company to do something that it would be unconstitutional for them to do, then basically what happens is that those companies then become an arm of the government, Landry told The Daily Signal.

Among the points in the 86-page complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, are:

Fauci is both the chief medical adviser to the president and the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

The lawsuit by Louisiana and Missouri names as defendants Biden, Jankowicz, Psaki, Murthy, and Fauci as well as Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas; Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra; and Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

As alleged further herein, Defendants have coerced, threatened, and pressured social-media platforms to censor disfavored speakers and viewpoints by using threats of adverse government action, the two states lawsuit says, adding:

As alleged further herein, as a result of such threats, defendants are now directly colluding with social-media platforms to censor disfavored speakers and viewpoints, including by pressuring them to censor certain content and speakers, and flagging disfavored content and speakers for censorship. These actions violate the First Amendment.

In addition, the lawsuit alleges action in excess of statutory authority and violations of the Administrative Procedure Act by both HHS and DHS officials.

Landry said the lawsuit would focus on both public information but also explore nonpublic information.

Whats amazing is theyve been pretty brazen. What Psaki has done, Jen has gone out there and said it, basically, that theyve worked with some of the Big Tech companies in order to censor the information, Landry said, adding:

Were going to use the public statements in order to go after the discovery of exactly what youre looking at. I cant wait. I cannot wait to lift the hood of that vehicle and see whats underneath it. I can tell you, itll be extremely interesting. And again, the interesting part is that all of the information and the communication between the government and Big Tech is certainly a matter of, it should be a matter of, public record.

Americans regularly use social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, now ubiquitous in society, to discuss topics such as public health, Missouris Schmitt said in a formal statement.

In direct contravention to the First Amendment and freedom of speech, Schmitt said, the Biden administration has been engaged in a pernicious campaign to both pressure social media giants to censor and suppress speech and work directly with those platforms to achieve that censorship in a misguided and Orwellian campaign against misinformation.

Have an opinion about this article? To sound off, please emailletters@DailySignal.com, and well consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular We Hear You feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.

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Biden 'Disinformation' Panel Gives Ammo to Case on Big Tech Censorship - Daily Signal

China maintains a tight grip over the internet, with legions of censors scrubbing out posts that cast the Communist Party's policies in a negative light.

From quoting the national anthem to referencing Hollywood blockbusters and George Orwell's dystopian novel "1984", Chinese web users are using creative methods to dodge censorship and voice discontent over Covid measures.

China maintains a tight grip over the internet, with legions of censors scrubbing out posts that cast the Communist Party's policies in a negative light.

The censorship machine is now in overdrive to defend Beijing's stringent zero-Covid policy as the business hub of Shanghai endures weeks of lockdown to tackle an outbreak.

Stuck at home, many of the city's 25 million residents have taken to social media to vent fury over food shortages and spartan quarantine conditions.

Charlie Smith, co-founder of censorship monitoring website GreatFire.org, said the Shanghai lockdown had become "too big of an issue to be able to completely censor".

Hell-bent on getting their messages out, wily web users were turning to tricks such as flipping images and using wordplay, he said, using a pseudonym due to the sensitivity of his work.

In one example, censors deleted a popular hashtag on the Weibo social media platform quoting the first line of China's national anthem: "Arise, those who refuse to be slaves."

The line was being shared alongside a torrent of anti-lockdown fury.

Others hijacked a hashtag about American human rights failings to make tongue-in-cheek barbs about home confinement in China.

In a similar attempt, netizens rallied to push Orwell's fiction "1984" to the top of a list of popular titles on the Douban ratings site, before it was blocked.

Censors also raced to kill off a menagerie of memes and hashtags based on a government official who previously said foreign journalists were "secretly loving" the fact they had safely seen out the pandemic in China.

Users then devised a series of oblique puns on that quote, eventually prompting censors to block the hashtag "La La Land".

Last month the internet police floundered in quashing viral video "Voices of April" that featured stories from distressed Shanghai residents in lockdown.

Web users rapidly re-edited and shared the six-minute clip to outrun largely automated screening software, which struggled for hours to identify the different versions.

One frustrated Shanghai local said netizens shared the various formats "to make a point" even though each post vanished within minutes.

"It was us against the AI," the resident told AFP, requesting anonymity.

People in Shanghai have become more "willing to pay the price" for airing critical views, said Luwei Rose Luqiu, an assistant professor at Hong Kong Baptist University.

The "hardship, discontent and anger" they have endured in lockdown have "far outweighed the fear" of punishment for posting sensitive content, she told AFP.

Gao Ming, 46, said he received calls from police last month telling him to delete anti-lockdown posts on Twitter and Facebook, which are blocked in China.

But the public relations professional has so far refused, telling AFP he is "against censorship" and wants to spread debate about China's Covid strategy.

"I'm totally against the current policy," he said, arguing that the lockdown has caused unnecessary deaths by cutting access to regular medical care.

Top Chinese leaders vowed at a meeting on Thursday to stick "unwaveringly" to zero-Covid and "resolutely fight against all words and deeds that distort, question or reject our nation's disease control policies".

State media has played up the positives and "sidelined private difficulties", said a Beijing-based journalism professor who requested anonymity.

The approach has created "two Shanghais", where official portrayals contrast sharply with what people view online, the professor added.

Online outrage is unlikely to prompt the Communist Party to relax its hardline approach, particularly with the country's president so invested in zero-Covid, said Yaqiu Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch.

"It's harder for the government to walk back when it becomes an ideological issue that's attached to Xi Jinping personally," she said.

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Chinese web users get creative to dodge Covid-19 censorship - HT Tech