Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Big Tech

Clock runs out on social media bill: lawmakers shield themselves and Polis from historic override
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Clock runs out on social media bill: lawmakers shield themselves and Polis from historic override

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice The Senate overrode the governor’s veto. The House never even had to say no. In Colorado politics, sometimes the clock matters more than the votes. Without casting a single "no" vote, Colorado lawmakers on April 28 killed a bipartisan attempt to override Governor Jared Polis’ veto of a social media regulation bill. Just days earlier, the Senate had voted 29–6 to override the veto of Senate Bill 25-086, marking the state's first successful chamber override of a policy bill in more than a decade.  But when the bill reached the House, members voted 51–13 to lay over the override until after the legislative session ended. As reported by The Colorado Sun, the maneuver guaranteed the bill’s death without a formal vote, allowing lawmakers to av...
Free speech or safer feeds? Colorado reacts after Senate overrides veto of social media bill
Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Free speech or safer feeds? Colorado reacts after Senate overrides veto of social media bill

By Marissa Ventrelli | Denver Gazette Several groups on Friday lauded the Colorado state Senate's veto override of a bill that seeks to impose certain regulations on social media platforms in the hopes they would crack down on users who violate their rules, while critics called the bill censorious and argued it would give tech companies "too much power" to "de-platform" people. The Senate voted to override the governor's veto on a 29-6 vote. The state House is expected to hold its override vote next week. Senate Bill 086 would require social media companies to evaluate reports of policy violations within 72 hours. If a user is found to have violated the policy, the platform must remove that person or entity within 24 hours. The bill would also require social media companies to sub...
Colorado Senate overrides Gov. Jared Polis veto of social media bill
Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Colorado Senate overrides Gov. Jared Polis veto of social media bill

By Marianne Goodland | Denver Gazette The state Senate voted 29-6 on Friday morning to override Gov. Jared Polis's veto of a social media bill. The 29-6 vote was five above the two-thirds majority required for an override. It's the first override of a Polis gubernatorial veto of a bill-or any bill from his three predecessors-since the administration of Gov. Roy Romer in 1988. There have been other veto overrides—in 2007 and 2011—but those were directions from the General Assembly to state agencies as part of the budget process. In at least three decades, no governor has vetoed a budget bill or even a line item in a budget bill, although they do veto those legislative directions occasionally. Senate Bill 86 would compel large social media companies to remove accounts engaged in ...
Polis faces pressure as veto showdown looms on sweeping social media bill
Approved, KUNC, State

Polis faces pressure as veto showdown looms on sweeping social media bill

By Bente Birkeland | CPR News On November 8, 2020, Chelsea Congdon’s life changed forever.  She and her husband had invited friends over for a backyard party at their home in Old Snowmass. They were building a bonfire when a car from the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Department pulled up.  “The policeman came and found us there and let us know that our son Miles had died in Boulder and his body had been discovered that morning,” she recently recalled to CPR News. “It felt very unreal. And it feels as if your entire life just shatters on the floor and for some reason, you’re still standing. I mean, it doesn’t make any sense. It’s impossible to put together losing a kid.” Her son, Miles Brundige, was a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Colorado. He’d grown up big ...
Federal Trade Commission launches probe into big tech’s censorship of Americans
Approved, National, The Daily Caller

Federal Trade Commission launches probe into big tech’s censorship of Americans

By Amber Duke | Daily Caller The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is opening up an official request for public comments on censorship by Big Tech companies. The agency is asking Americans to detail cases where they’ve faced consequences from companies for engaging in disfavored political speech, according to a draft document obtained by the Daily Caller. Requests for public comments by the FTC are often a precursor to formal investigations or agency-level policy changes, indicating the agency, helmed by Chairman Andrew Ferguson, does not intend to allow sweeping allegations of political censorship in prior years to go unchecked. “In case there was any doubt, Big Tech is on notice. We do not intend to take our foot off the gas any time soon. The days of censorship and monopolies are ...
Big tech companies ‘concerned’ after Australia bans social media for kids
Approved, National, The Daily Caller

Big tech companies ‘concerned’ after Australia bans social media for kids

By Julianna Frieman | Daily Caller Australia passed a law Thursday banning children younger than 16 from using social media, worrying some Big Tech companies. The Social Media Minimum Age bill requires social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and X, to prevent users below the age of 16 from accessing the websites or face fines, Reuters reported. Violations could cost Big Tech companies up to $32 million in penalties, according to the outlet. Australia’s social media ban for minors takes effect in one year. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DAILY CALLER
FCC’s Brendan Carr: big tech must dismantle ‘censorship cartel’ including ‘Orwellian’ newsGuard
Approved, Breitbart, National

FCC’s Brendan Carr: big tech must dismantle ‘censorship cartel’ including ‘Orwellian’ newsGuard

By Sean Moran | Breitbart Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Brendan Carr on Friday called on big tech platforms to dismantle the “censorship cartel,” charging that American democracy depends on it. Carr states that the tech Masters of the Universe, in conjunction with “the orwellian-named NewsGuard,” fact checking groups, and ad agencies, have enforced “one-sided narratives.” “Facebook, Google, Apple, Microsoft & others have played central roles in the censorship cartel. The Orwellian named NewsGuard along with “fact checking” groups & ad agencies helped enforce one-sided narratives. The censorship cartel must be dismantled,” Carr wrote on X/Twitter. Carr wrote to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Apple CEO Tim Cook ...
Frederick & Cochrane: Is FBI still colluding with big tech to interfere in our elections?
Approved, Commentary, National, The Daily Signal

Frederick & Cochrane: Is FBI still colluding with big tech to interfere in our elections?

By Kara Frederick  and Daniel Cochrane | Commentary, Daily Signal Four years ago this month, the FBI worked with Facebook and Twitter to suppress a New York Post story detailing the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop, just weeks before the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Today, on the eve of another contentious election, America could see a repeat of what federal District Court Judge Terry Doughty called the “most massive attack against free speech in United States’ history.” The FBI knew Hunter Biden’s laptop was authentic in November 2019. Yet, it repeatedly warned social media platforms of an impending “hack and leak operation” ahead of the 2020 election. READ THE FULL COMMENTARY AT THE DAILY SIGNAL Editor’...
‘Harris is engaged in censorship on an industrial scale,’ Vance says
Approved, National, The Federalist

‘Harris is engaged in censorship on an industrial scale,’ Vance says

By Breccan F. Thies | The Federalist The Republican vice presidential hopeful slammed his Democrat opponents for trying to rig the election by cracking down on Americans’ free speech. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, called out Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., for wanting to implement a mass censorship regime, blocking Americans from practicing their First Amendment rights. “I believe we actually do have a threat to democracy in this country. Unfortunately, it’s not the threat to democracy that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz want to talk about. It is the threat of censorship,” Vance said at Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate. “It’s Kamala Harris saying that rather than debating and persuading fellow Americans, she would like to censor people who engage in misinfo...
Meta CEO admits Biden-Harris admin pressured company to censor Americans
Approved, Fox Business, National

Meta CEO admits Biden-Harris admin pressured company to censor Americans

By Greg Wehner | Fox Business Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted in a letter on Monday that his company, Facebook, was pressured by the Biden-Harris administration to censor Americans, particularly regarding COVID-19 content. Zuckerberg made the admission in a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, more than a year after providing the committee with thousands of documents as part of its investigation into content moderation on online platforms. Along with documents, the Meta CEO said, the company has provided a dozen employees to be available for transcribed interviews, stressing Meta’s cooperation with the investigation. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX BUSINESS