Judge limits how Biden officials can communicate with social media companies
In response to a lawsuit filed by the Republican attorneys general of Louisiana and Missouri, a federal judge on Tuesday severely limited how U.S. government officials can meet and communicate with social media companies, The Washington Post reported.
The attorneys general claimed that officials from Biden administration agencies encouraged social media companies to crack down on misinformation related to Covid-19 and elections, which amounted to "the most egregious violations of the First Amendment in the history of the United States of America."
Judge Terry A. Doughty, a Trump appointee, wrote in the injunction that the attorneys general "have produced evidence of a massive effort by defendants, from the White House to federal agencies, to suppress speech based on its content." Doughty has not made a final ruling in the case, and his order allows for communications regarding national security threats and criminal activity.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
The UK’s best Christmas pantosThe Week Recommends Dive into the festive cheer, even into the new year, with some traditional favourites and modern twists
-
The longevity economy is booming as people live longerThe Explainer The sector is projected to reach $27 trillion by 2030
-
Codeword: December 11, 2025The daily codeword puzzle from The Week
-
Australia’s teen social media ban takes effectSpeed Read Kids under age 16 are now barred from platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Reddit
-
Google avoids the worst in antitrust rulingSpeed Read A federal judge rejected the government's request to break up Google
-
Supreme Court allows social media age check lawSpeed Read The court refused to intervene in a decision that affirmed a Mississippi law requiring social media users to verify their ages
-
Nvidia hits $4 trillion milestoneSpeed Read The success of the chipmaker has been buoyed by demand for artificial intelligence
-
X CEO Yaccarino quits after two yearsSpeed Read Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino to run X in 2023
-
Musk chatbot Grok praises Hitler on XSpeed Read Grok made antisemitic comments and referred to itself as 'MechaHitler'
-
Disney, Universal sue AI firm over 'plagiarism'Speed Read The studios say that Midjourney copied characters from their most famous franchises
-
Amazon launches 1st Kuiper internet satellitesSpeed Read The battle of billionaires continues in space
