Courts Won’t Stop The Feds From Deputizing Big Tech—The People Must

Publication of internal communications as part of the ongoing series “Twitter Files” reveals a government bent on propaganda and censorship—and a Big Tech industry willing to play along. Every new thread reveals the inner workings of Twitter and the close relationship between our government and it. This is a sign that the political right is more vocal about First Amendment violations.

However, the First Amendment is not the only solution to the problem. In fact, it may not even have been violated. Americans are right to be outraged, but the solution doesn’t rest in constitutional claims. The best solution lies in a revival of the values and freedoms of speech and press.

“Twitter, The FBI Subsidiary” The spot-on title that independent journalist Matt Taibbi created for the thread He published two weeks back a detailed account of the hand-in–glove relationship between Twitter and the FBI. But as Taibbi’s Christmas Eve sequel, “Twitter And ‘Other Government Agencies,’” revealed, it wasn’t just the FBI using Twitter as a corporate underling, nor is it just Twitter the government appropriates for this purpose.

Taibbi reports that rather, “Twitter Files” “show the FBI acting as doorman to a vast program of social media surveillance and censorship, encompassing agencies across the federal government – from the State Department to the Pentagon to the CIA.” Beyond Twitter “Facebook, Microsoft, Verizon, Reddit, even Pinterest, and many others,” As well as “industry players also held regular meetings” Taibbi spoke out in support of the government.

The internal documents released by Twitter’s new owner, Elon Musk, also exposed the U.S. government’s use of Twitter, and by extension other social media giants, “to carry out a covert online propaganda and influence campaign” To shape the future. “public opinion in countries including Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and Kuwait.”

Earlier “Twitter Files” Also confirmed was “covert online propaganda and influence campaign” They reached closer to home. They were they showed the FBI falsely framing the Hunter Biden laptop story as Russian disinformation to prompt Twitter and Facebook to censor the damning evidence of then-presidential candidate Joe Biden’s pay-to-play scandal, thereby influencing the 2020 presidential campaign. The “Twitter Files” connected to Covid likewise revealed our government’s willingness to use propaganda on her own citizens when bureaucrats believe it’s warranted.

This may not be considered a 1A violation by courts

These details—and more—revealed over the last month paint a disturbing picture of a cozy relationship between the federal government and private platforms. They do not prove that the government violated First Amendment law according to current jurisprudence. Even more, if you examine the communications in the context of First Amendment jurisprudence, it is clear that the federal government took care to not cross the judicial line.

Here, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s recent exposition A necessary constitutional background is provided by the First Amendment when it comes to Twitter and other private entities.

“Although a ‘private entity is not ordinarily constrained by the First Amendment,’” Thomas explained, “it is if the government coerces or induces it to take action the government itself would not be permitted to do, such as censor expression of a

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