Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

US Media Watchdog Grades Big Tech Average 'F' Over Suppression of Free Speech

US Media Watchdog Grades Big Tech Average 'F' Over Suppression of Free Speech

In recent years, US watchdogs have noted an increase in the incidence of censorship by the tech giants of Silicon Valley against their users in the field of free speech regarding political issues and, in particular, information about the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the third quarter of 2021, Big Tech censorship became even more significant, the US Media Research Center's NewsBusters reported on Tuesday, giving the companies controlling major social media a median "F" grade for their policies.

According to the report, the censorship was particularly concerning because the platforms "didn’t have much farther to fall from their pathetic second quarter grades." On Google, Twitter, and Facebook, online freedom has continued to dwindle. And this quarter saw massive censorship of conservative information once again.

This comes amid numerous reports and accusations toward the Big Tech companies of altering their algorithms and containing the spread of the information which contradicted the mainstream media narrative.

Silicon Valley's Failing Grades


The watchdog organization examines in detail the main events and measures taken on the basis of which the companies were assessed in their research.

US Media Research Center's Big Tech Report Card of Quarter 3, 2021


The watchdog recalled that in his new book, Zach Vorhies, a former Google senior software engineer, claimed that Google changed its news algorithm to target former President Donald Trump.

Also during this quarter, The Wall Street Journal began its "Facebook Files" research, which produced stories based on Facebook's internal documents that were damaging to the site. The initiative began with the revelation that Facebook has a "VIP list" of people whose content is not monitored as rigorously as that of other users.

In addition, according to Twitter's most recent transparency report, released in July, the company erased roughly 4 million tweets in just six months last year.

Between September 2020 and August 2021, Twitter took action against over 11 million accounts for COVID-19-related content, according to the company. It also attempted to keep a Project Veritas, blocked on the platform, video of Johnson & Johnson employees making negative remarks about the company's COVID-19 vaccine from being shared, according to CensorTrack.org.

Moreover, this quarter, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted that his business had purged more than 20 million COVID-19-related posts. YouTube has banned at least 1 million videos for so-called "dangerous information" related to COVID-19, reportedly including one of Sen. Rand Paul talking about masks.

"Since February of 2020 we’ve removed over 1M videos related to dangerous coronavirus information, like false cures or claims of a hoax," the company said in a blog post in August.


According to the report, remarkably, Amazon's grades slightly increased. The platform was the only one that improved its grades this quarter, in particular, because it has reportedly refused to budge in the face of pressure from both its employees and left-leaning politicians to delete books that addressed transgender problems. According to reports, the platform also reversed a decision to reject ads for a critical book about Black Lives Matter.

TikTok made its first appearance on the list this quarter, earning a D in Online Freedom. In this quarter's report card, TikTok took the place of Apple. TikTok has topped 1 billion monthly active users and is censoring an increasing amount of content.

The watchdog noted that in general, the intensified censorship garnered favorable coverage on the primetime news broadcasts. On network evening news, pro-censorship stories and mentions outnumbered those advocating free speech 12-to-0. Much of the focus was on network support for President Joe Biden's campaign to limit COVID-19 material.

According to the study, about 20% of network evening news broadcast stories about Big Tech censorship researched for the report were neutral. None of the pieces allegedly advocated for free speech, based on analysis of news coverage on ABC, CBS, and NBC evening news.

Alternative Media Still Too Insignificant to Evaluate


Conservatives across the US criticized Big Tech platforms for "censorship and suppression" of free expression online, which prompted their exodus to create their own platforms.

Parler, Rumble, Gab, GETTR, FreeTalk, and CloutHub are among the alternative platforms that have risen to the challenge, with some professing to uphold free speech values. Big Tech has blocked and attempted to shut down at least one of the new alternative platforms, even after some of the more well-known firms, such as Parler and Gab, began to thrive.

Notably, in January, following the January 6 Capitol mayhem, Amazon Web Services, a server and hosting provider, stopped procuring its services to the Parler app, which was accused of being the primary platform used by Trump supporters who broke into the Capitol to coordinate their actions. The app was pulled from Google Play and Apple's App Store, two of the most popular online marketplaces.

However, later in the year, the app was reinstated in its rights on all platforms and is still available to download.

The watchdog noted that because these alternative platforms are so new, there is not much data about how they manage content. On July 1, Trump adviser Jason Miller announced the start of GETTR.

Moreover, both Telegram and Rumble are becoming more and more popular places to post controversial content in order to avoid being blocked, as well as to report about censorship on other platforms.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
×