Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall and Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry on Tuesday announced a joint initiative aimed at addressing censorship on social media platforms.
As part of the initiative, a new website will allow the public to complete a “Social Media Censorship Complaint Form” if citizens believe their free speech protections have been violated by tech companies.
Marshall is encouraging the public to enlist in the fight against what he sees as “Big Tech censorship,” calling on those who have been censored online to file a formal complaint.
The release says that information provided in these complaints will be kept confidential, in accordance with state law, and will be actively reviewed and thoroughly analyzed to determine whether the reported conduct by social media companies constitutes a violation of federal or state law.
Leading tech giants have received intense scrutiny of late due to what many see as their targeting of conservatives’ speech under the guise of combating misinformation.
“Big Tech is not the Ministry of Truth. It should concern us all when platforms that hold such tremendous power and influence over information wield that power in contradiction of—and with undisguised disdain for—the foundational American principles of free speech and freedom of the press,” said Marshall. “The censorship campaign currently being waged by giant corporate oligarchs like Facebook and Twitter is, in a word, un-American.”
He concluded, “I encourage anyone and everyone who has been censored on social media to file a formal complaint with my office. The process is simple and straightforward—and will provide us with important information to fight the growing menace of censorship by the great malefactors of tech.”
Congressional Republicans have ramped up efforts of late to address the issue of social media censorship. Some on the right have indicated their support for officially labeling tech giants as monopolies in an effort to break up the Silicon Valley-based social media companies.
Complaints can be filed with the Alabama Attorney General’s Office using the “Social Media Censorship Complaint Form” on its website at AlabamaAG.gov/Censored.
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
