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Marco Rubio Tells Ben Shapiro Why He Nuked State Department’s Censorship Agency
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Ben Shapiro that the closure of the Global Engagement Center put an end to a State Department agency that “was labeling American speech by Americans as foreign interference.”
“It metastasized and metamorphosed into a government-run entity that was targeting political speech in America, labeling it disinformation and silencing it, all paid for by the American taxpayers directly and indirectly,” Rubio said.
President Donald Trump closed the agency, which was created to counter terrorists, but eventually shifted its focus to combating domestic “misinformation,” via executive order.
“What we are announcing today is that we are taking the whole thing down,” Rubio said. “We’re going to be in the business of promoting free speech in America and around the world.”
Fewer Americans Want Government, Tech Companies Restricting False Content Online: Poll
Support for the U.S. government or technology companies’ attempts to restrict false information online dropped slightly among Americans over the past two years, according to a new poll.
According to a survey released by Pew Research Center on Monday, about 51% of surveyed Americans believe the U.S. should take steps to restrict false information online, regardless of whether it limits freedom of information. This is a slight dip from 2023, when about 55% of surveyed Americans said the same.
The percentage of Americans who believe tech companies should restrict false information online also dropped from 65% in 2023 to 60% now. Meanwhile, the share of Americans who believe the government or tech companies should protect the freedom of information regardless of whether false information is published increased over the past two years, the poll found.
Florida Wants an Encryption Backdoor — in the Name of Children’s Safety
Florida is considering a bill that could force all social media platforms that allow accounts for minors to provide an encryption backdoor for law enforcement.
The bill will also prevent minors from using or accessing ephemeral messaging features, meaning messages that disappear after viewing, including WhatsApp’s view once.
Social media providers will also be required to give the minors’ parents or guardians access to all messages posted by their children. Known as the “Social Media Use By Minors” bill (SB 868/HB 743), the proposal is the latest legal effort to protect children’s safety online. Yet, privacy experts warn that such requirements will make young people less safe instead.
As digital rights experts at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) wrote, “The bill is not only privacy-invasive, it’s also asking for the impossible.” Encryption is used by the best VPN and encrypted messaging apps to keep users’ online activities private. WhatsApp and Signal employ end-to-end encryption to scramble data into an unreadable form to ensure only your intended recipients can read your messages.
Former Student Takes Ontario Tech to Tribunal After Being Denied Religious Vaccine Exemption
The Western Standard reported:
Ontario Tech University will defend its decision to deregister a student who refused the COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds in a two-day hearing before the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal beginning Tuesday. Philip Anisimov, a former student at the university, argues that his removal from courses in 2021 violated his right to freedom from religious discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Represented by the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, Anisimov is challenging the university’s refusal to grant him a religious exemption to its COVID-19 vaccination mandate. The case centers around a directive issued by Ontario’s Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. Kieran Moore, on Aug. 30, 2021.
It required post-secondary institutions to give students three options: provide proof of double COVID-19 vaccination, submit a valid medical exemption, or complete an educational session on vaccine safety and undergo regular testing.
Lawmakers Launch Investigation Into 23andMe After Bankruptcy
A group of House lawmakers launched a probe Thursday into 23andMe’s handling of customers’ sensitive data following the company’s filing for bankruptcy last month.
In a letter to 23andMe, House Commerce and Energy Committee Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) and Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) and Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) asked the company to state its data privacy and security protections for former customers if the business chooses to sell the personal information in either a standalone sale or as part of a sale of the company.
23andMe, which filed for bankruptcy in Missouri federal court last month, is a human genetics and biotechnology company that became popular in recent years for its at-home DNA tests.
The testing required customers to submit a saliva sample by mail to then receive personalized genetic reports, which has resulted in the company holding the genetic data of more than 15 million customers. “The company is in possession of highly sensitive personal information, including biological samples, medical information and personal information for more than 15 million customers,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter to Joe Selsavage, the company’s interim CEO.
Google’s Illegal Internet Ad Monopoly Blunts America’s Competitive Edge in Tech
On Thursday, a federal judge ruled that Google maintains an illegal online advertising monopoly. The internet search megacompany faces another court date soon to determine remedies after another federal judge ruled last fall that it broke the law by maintaining an illegal monopoly over online searches.
Demand Progress Education Fund previously joined a letter asking the government to probe Google’s online video monopoly and recently asked the government to review Google’s $32 billion dollar deal to acquire Wiz, a leading cloud cybersecurity company.
The following is a statement from Emily Peterson-Cassin, corporate power director at Demand Progress Education Fund:
“Our nation has grown prosperous and powerful because of competition and Google’s illegal monopolies are blunting our competitive edge in the tech industry. The company’s near-total dominance of the online advertising market hurts media companies, rival search engines, social media companies and anyone who consumes media on the internet.
As one of the richest, most powerful companies in the history of humanity, a mere fine or slap on the wrist won’t cut it. For the good of our nation and the health of our tech and media industries the government must force Google to sell its advertising technology division.”
