Collusion between Big Tech firms and the White House to censor social media posts was struck down through the decision of Judge Terry Doughty in Missouri v. Biden. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) is taking further action by introducing the PRESERVE Online Speech Act.
The Act itself is simple. Its first component would require internet companies to publicly disclose any censorship requests made by the American government or any foreign government within a week of the initial request.
The inclusion of censorship requests made by foreign governments comes on the heels of Representative Kat Cammack's (R-FL) recent discussion on the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to censor social media posts on the ongoing Ukraine-Russia War. Perhaps Sen. Rubio could point to this news as further evidence for the necessity of his bill.
Second, the bill adds that if the companies do not comply, they will be fined $50,000 daily. Finally, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must annually report to Congress on all government censorship requests.
In his press release, Sen. Rubio stated, "If the government is working with Big Tech to censor freedom of speech, the American public deserves to know."
"If the government is working with Big Tech to censor freedom of speech, the American public deserves to know. Transparency is essential to protecting our First Amendment. That's why I'm introducing legislation to require the government to disclose any requests or pressure it makes to tech companies to censor speech," said Rubio.
Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), one of the bill's cosponsors, added, "The Biden administration has a track record of working hand-in-hand with big tech companies to censor conservatives and opinions they disagree with."
"The Biden administration has a track record of working hand-in-hand with big tech companies to censor conservatives and opinions they disagree with. That’s not right, and it goes against the very nature of our constitution. The government should never play a role in censoring Americans’ free speech online, and if it does, Americans deserve to know with full transparency and accountability," said Sen. Scott.
