President Trump Launches Tool to Fight Online Censorship and Big Tech Bias
White House tool allows people to report when censored online due to political biases
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President Donald Trump's administration has launched a new tool designed to fight online censorship and big tech bias by allowing people to report instances where they have been censored, directly to the White House.
The online tool was launched on Wednesday and allows Americans to report political censorship on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook directly to President Trump.
In a tweet on Wednesday, the administration announced the tool, declaring it is “fighting for free speech.”
“No matter your views, if you suspect political bias has caused you to be censored or silenced online, we want to hear about it!” the White House stated in the tweet with a link to the censorship reporting tool.
The Trump Administration is fighting for free speech online.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 15, 2019
No matter your views, if you suspect political bias has caused you to be censored or silenced online, we want to hear about it! https://t.co/9lc0cqUhuf pic.twitter.com/J8ICbx42dz
The post from the White House triggered a flurry of responses from users, with many revealing their own experiences of censorship by Facebook and Twitter due to their political views.
The majority of the thousands of replies to the White House tweet say they are being banned, suspended, or "shadowbanned" for holding conservative political views.
"My twitter follower number reached just over 6000 followers in 2017.. then the Shadowban, Throttling, and follower purge kicked in," one reply claims.
"Have been permanently banned from FB due to my supporting President Trump," another reveals.
"Thank you for fighting for free speech online," another added.
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According to the New York Post, the tool prompts users to answer a series of questions, including what social media platform they believe censored them because of political bias.
“The White House wants to hear from all Americans – regardless of their political leanings – if they have been impacted by bias on social media platforms,” Deputy Press Secretary Judd Deere said of the program.
The reporting tool was launched as Trump and other Republicans have raised concerns about apparent censorship by social media platforms.
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In early May, Facebook announced it had banned a number of "conspiracy theorists" and prominent conservatives from the platform, prompting a response from Trump on Twitter.
“I am continuing to monitor the censorship of AMERICAN CITIZENS on social media platforms,” Trump wrote after the bans on May 3.
I am continuing to monitor the censorship of AMERICAN CITIZENS on social media platforms. This is the United States of America — and we have what’s known as FREEDOM OF SPEECH! We are monitoring and watching, closely!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 3, 2019
Big attacks on Republicans and Conservatives by Social Media. Not good!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2019
“This is the United States of America — and we have what’s known as FREEDOM OF SPEECH! We are monitoring and watching, closely!!” he added.
If you feel you have been the victim of online censorship, you can report it to the White House using the tool here.
