Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s recently launched social media platform, Threads, aimed at rivaling Twitter, faced a rocky start as allegations of censorship surfaced early on.
Adding to the challenges, the platform received a legal cease and desist notice from Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter, alleging the misappropriation of trade secrets. Musk claimed that Threads had allegedly utilized proprietary information from Twitter without permission.
The House Judiciary Committee has expanded its investigation into allegations of censorship on the Threads platform. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, demanding answers regarding the censorship concerns.
The committee had previously been examining censorship issues related to Meta’s other properties, including Facebook. Additionally, recent reports indicated that the FBI, under the direction of the Ukrainian spy agency SBU, allegedly requested social media companies like Meta to censor certain posts, adding further concern to the ongoing investigation.
Despite the requests made by Jordan, Mark Zuckerberg and Meta have not provided the requested information and documents concerning censorship on their other platforms. The House Judiciary Committee had previously issued a subpoena to Meta and Zuckerberg in February, and in May, Jordan sent a follow-up letter expressing dissatisfaction with their level of compliance with the subpoena.
The committee’s efforts to obtain internal communications and address concerns of censorship have faced obstacles, prompting a heightened level of scrutiny and demand for cooperation.
Jordan’s letter stated, “Meta’s rolling productions to date have not included material the Committee knows is, or has reason to believe may be, in the company’s possession and that is responsive to the subpoena. If Meta fails to comply in full with the subpoena’s demands, the Committee may be forced to consider the use of one or more enforcement mechanisms.”
Is Mark Zuckerberg’s “Threads” already working with the federal government to censor Americans? pic.twitter.com/OdQeq1mCHQ
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) July 17, 2023
Jordan is now considering the possibility of holding Zuckerberg in contempt as one of the potential other “mechanisms” to enforce compliance.
During an interview with Fox’s Laura Ingraham, Jordan reiterated his stance on holding Zuckerberg in contempt if Meta fails to comply with the demands. He emphasized that if Zuckerberg does not fulfill the requirements, he intends to follow through on his threat. There are reports suggesting that this action could take place as early as next week.
In response to the allegations, Meta maintains that they have already provided a substantial amount of information in response to the requests.
