Overview

• At a hearing titled “Shut Your App,” Republicans leaned on a new committee report alleging CISA pressured platforms during the Biden presidency, as witnesses Alex Berenson and Sean Davis described deplatforming, throttling, and advertiser pressure.
• Sean Davis testified that the State Department’s Global Engagement Center funded tools and efforts that reduced The Federalist’s reach and revenue by steering platforms and advertisers away from its content.
• Committee Republicans cited Alphabet’s acknowledgment that the Biden administration repeatedly pressed Google and YouTube to remove some COVID-19 content that did not violate company policies.
• Democrats challenged the report’s focus, pointing to what they described as coercive signals from the current administration and highlighting FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s comments preceding ABC’s temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show; senators said Carr has been invited to testify.
• Sen. Ted Cruz said he will introduce legislation to bar government jawboning and ease suits against officials, while Sen. Eric Schmitt promoted his COLLUDE Act and Censorship Accountability Act; members also noted the Supreme Court’s 2024 Murthy v. Missouri ruling limited earlier claims on standing grounds.