The Trump administration is considering setting up a panel to review cases of anti-conservative bias from major tech companies, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
In a comment to the Journal, a White House official appeared to confirm that tech bias was being prioritized by the administration, saying “Left-wing bias in the tech world is a concern that definitely needs to be addressed from our vantage point, and at least exposed [so] that Americans have clear eyes about what we’re dealing with.”
Via WSJ:
President Trump is considering establishing a panel to review complaints of anticonservative bias on social media, according to people familiar with the matter, in a move that would likely draw pushback from technology companies and others.
The plans are still under discussion but could include the establishment of a White House-created commission that would examine allegations of online bias and censorship, these people said. The administration could also encourage similar reviews by federal regulatory agencies, such as the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Election Commission, they said.
In comments to the Journal, major tech companies denied allegations of political bias. A Twitter representative said the site enforces its rules “impartially for all users.” A Facebook representative said that “people on both sides of the aisle disagree with some of the positions we’ve taken.” A Google spokesperson said the company builds its products “without any regard for political viewpoint.”
All of these companies have made similar assurances in the past, despite numerous high-profile cases of political bias, such as Facebook putting mainstream conservatives like Candace Owens and Brigitte Gabriel on a “hate agents review” list, Twitter taking days to remove violent threats against Trump-supporting high school students and refusing to take action against hate speech from New York Times editorial board member Sarah Jeong, and leaked footage of Google executives declaring their intention to make Trump’s populist movement a “blip” in history.
Are you an insider at Google, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, or any other tech company who wants to confidentially reveal wrongdoing or political bias at your company? Reach out to Allum Bokhari at his secure email address allumbokhari@protonmail.com.
Allum Bokhari is the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News.
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