Internal Twitter deliberations surrounding the censorship of the New York Posts reporting on Hunter Bidens laptop from hell reveal the companys management engaging in willful ignorance of the facts of the story in order to justify censoring it on the platform.

Matt Taibbi, the journalist tasked by Elon Musk to reveal the internal communications, explains that Twitter management at the time used the companys hacked materials policy as an excuse to squelch the Posts reporting, but knew it wasnt going to hold. The reason it wasnt going to hold was because the Post explained that the reporting was based on a hard drive abandoned at a computer repair shop, not hacked material, and produced a federal subpoena given to the repair-shop owner to bolster the claim.

Jack Dorsey and Twitter employees (@Jack/Twitter)

Twitter Exec Vijaya Gadde (Fortune Brainstorm TECH/Flickr)

Former Trust and Safety chief Yoel Roth messaged colleagueVijaya Gadde, The policy basis is hacked materials though, as discussed, this is an emerging situation where the facts remain unclear. Given the SEVERE risks here and lessons of 2016, were erring on the side of including a warning and preventing this content from being amplified.

Another member of management, Brandon Borrman, then asks, Can we truthfully claim that this is part of the policy?

Jim Baker, Twitters then-Deputy Legal Counsel and former senior member of the FBI, adds, [We] need more facts to assess whether the materials were hacked. At this stage, however, it is reasonable for us to assume that they may have been and that conclusion is warranted.

Baker then admits, per the Posts reporting in the story in question, that there is evidence indicating that the computer was either abandoned and/or the owner consented to allow the repair shop to access it for at least some purposes.

But during the time this communication was underway, Twitter did not contact the New York Post to inquire about whether the reporting was based on hacked material, and the story in question explained exactly how the Post obtained the material it was reporting on.

In the story headlined, Smoking-gun email reveals how Hunter Biden introduced Ukrainian businessman to VP dad, published on October 14, 2020, it says that the correspondence between Burisma board memberVadym Pozharskyi and Hunter was contained in a massive trove of data recovered from a laptop computer.

The Post published that it had the entire hard drive, which was originally obtained by a computer repair shop in Delaware.

The computer was dropped off at a repair shop in Bidens home state of Delaware in April 2019, according to the stores owner, the Post wrote in the initial story.

The customer who brought in the water-damaged MacBook Pro for repair never paid for the service or retrieved it or a hard drive on which its contents were stored, according to the shop owner, who said he tried repeatedly to contact the client.

The shop owner couldnt positively identify the customer as Hunter Biden, but said the laptop bore a sticker from the Beau Biden Foundation, named after Hunters late brother and former Delaware attorney general.

Photos of a Delaware federal subpoena given to The Post show that both the computer and hard drive were seized by the FBI in December, after the shops owner says he alerted the feds to their existence.

But before turning over the gear, the shop owner says, he made a copy of the hard drive and later gave it to former Mayor Rudy Giulianis lawyer, Robert Costello.

Steve Bannon, former adviser to President Trump, told The Post about the existence of the hard drive in late September and Giuliani provided The Post with a copy of it on Sunday.

The Post also published an image of a federal subpoena, showing the computer was in the FBIs possession, after being turned in by the computer repair shop owner, who has now been publicly identified as John Paul Mac Isaac.

Emma-Jo Morris is the Politics Editor at Breitbart News. Email her atejmorris@breitbart.comor follow heronTwitter.

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Morris: Internal Twitter Deliberations on Laptop from Hell Censorship ...

New Zealand’s government has officially admitted that it has partner access to Facebook’s controversial content takedown portal.

This portal is designed specifically for government agencies to flag content to Facebook for censorship. According to The Intercept, which reported on the portal in October, government partners can also use the portal to report disinformation directly to Facebook.

And in a recent response to a New Zealand Official Information Act (OIA) request, which asked whether the government has partner access to Facebook’s takedown portal, the New Zealand government confirmed that the Department of Internal Affairs has access. While this was the only government department that was confirmed to have access to the portal, the OIA response also said we cannot advise if any other government agency has access to the takedown portal.

We obtained a copy of the OIA response for you here.

The OIA response didn’t detail how much content had been censored via this Facebook takedown portal. However, other reports on similar types of backdoor content takedown arrangements between governments and Big Tech have shown that governments regularly use them to target legal content such as parody accounts, accounts questioning the effectiveness of Covid vaccines, and so-called election misinformation.

Publicly, the New Zealand government has endorsed the censorship of legal content with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying disinformation should be regulated like guns, bombs, and nuclear weapons. Big Tech companies have also agreed to a censorship pact in the country where they suppress misinformation and harmful content.

Most other governments haven’t admitted that they have access to these portals. However, last year The White House did admit that the United States (US) Surgeon General’s Office is flagging posts for Facebook to censor.

The Intercept’s report on this Facebook content takedown portal claimed that several other United States (US) government agencies have access to the portal, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Documents released as part of 2021 lawsuits suggest that the California Secretary of States Office of Elections Cybersecurity (OEC) also has access to the Facebook takedown portal and a similar type of portal on Twitter.

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New Zealand admits it has direct access to Facebook takedown portal ...

Trump Vows To Dismantle Censorship Cartel If Hes Re-ElectedAn Apparent Nod To Musks Twitter Files Release  Forbes

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Trump Vows To Dismantle Censorship Cartel If Hes Re-ElectedAn Apparent Nod To Musks Twitter Files Release - Forbes

Relationship between writer and society should not be one of censorship, says Geetanjali Shree  The Hindu

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Relationship between writer and society should not be one of censorship, says Geetanjali Shree - The Hindu

This is a recipe for chilling speech in public education, using the threat of punishment to pressure teachers into giving any potentially controversial topic a wide berth, said Jonathan Friedman, PEN Americas director of free expression and education programs.

The new rules require schools that offer gender-inclusive bathrooms and locker rooms to notify parents and outline their supervision procedures for these facilities. Though these guidelines dont outright ban schools from designating their bathrooms in any way different from biological sex, they undermine the U.S. Department of Educations recent guidance aimed at preventing discrimination against students based on things such as gender identity.

[The rule] essentially puts a target on the backs of trans kids, by notifying all of their parents about this, said Maxx Fenning, the founder and president of PRISM, an organization that works to expand access to LGBTQIA+-inclusive education and sexual health resources for youth in south Florida.

The issue of gender identity and bathrooms has been a longstanding and contentious one in Florida. In 2020, the 11th Circuit Court ruled that a Florida school boards refusal to allow a transgender boy to use the bathroom matching his gender identity was unconstitutional. In 2021, the school board asked a federal appeals court to again consider whether the student should have been allowed to use boys bathrooms. Oral arguments were heard in early 2022, and a decision is still pending. While the latest rules concerning bathrooms do not ban transgender students from using the facility that corresponds with their gender identity, advocates say it will only discriminate against transgender students and put them in harms way.

Unfortunately, the rule forces these school districts to put out these memos to parents letting them know, just an FYI, trans kids are going to be using the bathrooms that your kids are in, said Fenning. So it puts an uncomfortable target on the back of trans kids and singles them out in a way that is potentially really damaging.

A second rule includes an expansion of the Stop WOKE Act, also known as House Bill 7, by barring subjecting [students and employees] to training, instruction, or any other required activity that espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels any of the concepts related to their administrations definition of critical race theory.

A third rule offers specifications on House Bill 1467, which mandates that elementary school libraries post their educational and reading materials online and make them accessible for parents to search through. Friedman says this will force librarians to reconsider including books with LGBTQIA+ contenteliminating representation that has been crucial for LGBTQIA+ students.

These new rules continue an alarming pattern of censorship by intimidation in Florida schools, said Friedman. The new rules go beyond the provisions and language of what was passed into law this year, subjecting teachers and students to an all-encompassing regime of prohibitions and punishments. There seems to be little concern about how these provisions will stymie the work of teaching basic literacy, or in effect suppress information and ideas that many families and students want available in their public schools.

Any teacher who intentionally provide[s] classroom instruction to kindergarten through third-grade students on gender identity or sexual orientation will face revocation or suspension of the individual educators certificate, or the other penalties as provided by law. As it stands, the law gives parents the right to sue a school district if they suspect that the law has been violated. However, it is unclear how the laws will be enforced and what will constitute classroom instruction. Friedman posits that a teacher answering a students question related to the two topics would technically be considered a violation.

Each of the laws alone is problematic when you think about the purpose of education and open inquiry and freedom to learn, said Friedman. But in tandem, its especially pernicious, and the fact that violating the Dont Say Gay bill can result in teachers explicitly having their licenses revoked and suspendedif they werent already wary of running afoul of these laws, that will make them more so.

The vague, punitive, and extreme nature of the law, Friedman says, is what is driving teachers away from the classroom. As of 2021, Florida Education Association said there were nearly 9,000 teaching and staff vacancies. At the beginning of 2022, FEA said that the number had grown to nearly 10,800 total openings.

Schools ought to be welcoming places for students, Friedman said. It is my hope that teachers will not be bullied into never mentioning LGBTQIA+ people. Its my hope that teachers can continue to be there for their students and be supportive of them, and particularly at the high school level, be able to teach the truth about peoples identities and American history, but all of that appears to be at risk.

Prism is an independent and nonprofit newsroom led by journalists of color. Our in-depth and thought-provoking journalism reflects the lived experiences of people most impacted by injustice. We tell stories from the ground up to disrupt harmful narratives, and to inform movements for justice. Sign up for our newsletter to get our stories in your inbox, and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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Florida adds more homophobic censorship laws to Dont Say Gay suite ...

At a campaign event Friday, President Joe Biden complained about upcoming changes to Twitters censorship rules.

It seems the president is not happy that Musk plans to implement the platforms content moderation rules fairly.

Politicoreported that Biden said that Twitter is an outfit that spews lies all across the world.

Last week, NewsBusters reported Musks declaration that Twitters new content moderation team would consist of widely diverse viewpoints.

Twitter will be forming a content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints, Musk tweeted. No major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen before that council convenes.

Changes to the platforms content moderation rules are long overdue.

During the 2020 presidential election, the rules overwhelmingly benefited Biden and other Democrats who ran for election.

In April, MRC Free Speech America published its report of 646 cases in its CensorTrack database of pro-Biden censorship between March 10, 2020, and March 10, 2022.

Additionally, MRC also found that Big Techs censorship of New York Post stories covering the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop helped sway the 2020 presidential election for the president.

Biden could also be concerned that the extent of the administrations reported collusion with Big Tech social media platforms could soon become public.

NewsBusters reported that a federal court ordered the depositions of key officials in the Biden administration in a lawsuit that alleges Facebook and Twitter censored certain content about COVID-19 to prevent the spread of misinformation.

In a press release last month, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said the depositions of Biden officials will force these officials to come clean to the American people.

After finding documentation of a collusive relationship between the Biden Administration and social media companies to censor free speech, we immediately filed a motion to get these officials under oath, he said. It is high time we shine a light on this censorship enterprise and force these officials to come clean to the American people, and this ruling will allow us to do just that. Well keep pressing for the truth.

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci and former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki are among the officials to be deposed.

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 using CensorTracks contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.

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Biden Upset Twitter Censorship Rules Will No Longer Benefit Him?

Liam Neeson, the actor, is among those to have been considered too offensive to speak on a university campus

ANDER GILLENEA/GETTY IMAGES

It is difficult to pinpoint when the corrosive practice of banning speakers from campuses ceased to be reserved for genuinely inflammatory figures. In recent years, however, would-be censors have dramatically expanded the list of non-desirables. Amongst those recently considered to be too offensive were the comedian Harry Enfield and the actor Liam Neeson.

Concerns about free speech at British universities are not novel, but a new report suggests the problem is burgeoning. The Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) argues that a culture of fear has set in at British universities whereby students are so concerned by the potential backlash from a controversial debate or contentious speaker that they are simply giving up on these events entirely. They call it quiet no-platforming.

While the report notes

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The Times view on free speech in universities: Tacit Censorship

Former President Donald Trump declared on Truth Social that The silent majority is back. The question of a silent majority was raised in both the 2016 and 2020 elections as being essential to a potential Trump victory, under the allegation that censorship and social pressure are keeping his supporters silent.

Meanwhile, theres a large-scale movement underway of propaganda disguised as local news, big tech censorship tools that fine people for misinformation, and programs that allow for communal fact-checking. Yet many of these are facing a troubled launch, amid controversy and social pushback.

In this live Q&A with Crossroads host Joshua Philipp, well discuss these stories and others, and answer questions from the audience.

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Trump Declares Return of the Silent Majority; New Censorship Attempt ...

Amid mounting questions over an FBI warning that prompted Facebook to suppress a story about Hunter Bidens laptop, the federal agency now faces a lawsuit seeking to compel it to publicize conversations it had with the social media giant.

The lawsuit was filed Tuesday by America First Legal (AFL) at a Washington D.C. District Court. The non-profit group, founded by longtime Donald Trump adviser Stephen Miller, said Americans deserve to know what the FBI and the social media giant were up to as the November elections approached.

According to the complaint (pdf), the AFL requested in August that the FBI make public all of its communications with Facebook between Oct. 1, 2020, and Nov. 15, 2020. However, the FBI turned down that request, claiming that it was so overly broad that it couldnt be done with a reasonable amount of effort.

AFLs complaint said: Barely a month before the 2022 midterm election, FBI officials continue to suppress information of great interest to American voters and stonewall AFLs request for records relating to the FBIs collusive scheme with Facebook to censor news and information about the contents of Hunter Bidens laptop.

Facebook has drawn much scrutiny after Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, told popular podcast host Joe Rogan that the platform did algorithmically suppress a New York Post story on emails allegedly recovered from a laptop owned by then-presidential candidate Joe Bidens son. Those emails, according to the Post, showed a direct link Biden had with his sons dubious business dealings in China and Ukraine.

Zuckerberg said this apparent censorship only happened after the FBI approached Meta with warnings about Russian disinformation.

The background here is that the FBI came to ussome folks on our teamand was like, Hey, just so you know, you should be on high alert. We thought there was a lot of Russian propaganda in the 2016 election, we have it on notice that basically theres about to be some kind of dump thats similar to that,' he told Rogan in the Aug. 25 interview.

The FBI didnt specifically mention the laptop story, Zuckerberg said, but Facebook thought it fit that pattern the FBI described and decided to limit its reach.

Despite Zuckerbergs claims, the AFL insists that there was a comprehensive collusion between the FBI and Big Tech to censor and control critical information in an effort to put Joe Biden into the White House.

The evidence is that during the 2020 Presidential election campaign, the FBI conspired and combined with large corporations, including Facebook, to censor and suppress the damning evidence of Biden family corruption and influence peddling found on Hunter Bidens laptop, said AFL Senior Counselor Reed Rubinstein. This was done to help Joe Biden and the Democrats win the 2020 election.

Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley (Iowa) and Ron Johnson (Wis.) agreed. In their letters to Zuckerberg and FBI Director Chris Wray, the senators asked for names of the government and Facebook employees involved in those conversations about Russian disinformation.

The American people deserve to know whether the FBI used Facebook as part of their alleged plan to discredit information about Hunter Biden, the senators wrote.

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Bill Pan is a reporter for The Epoch Times.

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FBI Sued for Withholding Records of Facebook Censorship of Hunter Biden ...

A Republican congressman is urging Elon Musk, Twitters new owner, to hand over all records related to the social media companys suppression of a story about Hunter Bidens laptop in the weeks leading to the 2020 presidential election.

Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the top Republican on the House Oversight Committee, said in a letter that he expects Twitters new leadership to cooperate with the investigation into the Biden familys pattern of influence peddling to enrich themselves and President Bidens involvement in these schemes.

As part of this investigation, Committee Republicans are reviewing the role Big Techincluding Twitterplayed in supporting the Biden campaign in 2020 by suppressing certain stories implicating the Bidens, Comer wrote in an Oct. 28 letter (pdf) to Musk.

A previous attempt to obtain relevant information from Twitter was unsuccessful, according to Comer, as former Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal never responded to the congressional request that the company preserve all documents and communications regarding the decision to limit the reach of a New York Post article about emails retrieved from Hunter Bidens laptop.

Those emails, according to the Post, showed a direct link then-presidential candidate Joe Biden had with his sons dubious business dealings in China and Ukraine. Shortly after the storys publication, Twitter not only prohibited users from sharing it, but also suspended the Posts account for two weeks.

Users who tried to share the storys link were greeted with a message saying, We cant complete this request because this link has been identified by Twitter or our partners as being potentially harmful. Those who tried to open the link in existing posts were also warned that it was potentially spammy and unsafe.

Meanwhile, Facebook also algorithmically censored the laptop story after getting a general warning against Russian disinformation from the FBI.

Musk has expressed sympathy with the Post, saying in April that suspending the Twitter account of a major news organization for publishing a truthful story was obviously incredibly inappropriate.

In a more recent post, the billionaire said the reason he acquired Twitter is that it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence.

Musk can honor his pledge to freedom of speech and information by correcting the error made by the companys former leadership, Comer wrote.

Specifically, the congressman asked Musk to hand over all documents and communications to, from, between and among Twitter and Twitter employees related to the October 2020 New York Post articles on Hunter Bidens laptop by Nov. 11. He also asked for all of the records between Twitter and the FBI or any other U.S. law enforcement or intelligence agency regarding that matter.

Comer also asked Musk to provide all documents and communications regarding the decision to censor or suppress the Hunter Biden laptop story on Twitters platform.

We believe open communication and access to information is a fundamental principle for any free people, and the American people deserve to know the reason Twitter suppressed or censored the Biden laptop story shortly before the 2020 election.

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Bill Pan is a reporter for The Epoch Times.

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House Republican Asks Elon Musk for Records on Twitter Censorship of ...