YouTube will reinstate creators previously banned from the platform for spreading so-called ‘misinformation.’
In particular, creators who received bans for violations related to COVID-19 and election misinformation.
“Due to our oversight efforts, GOOGLE commits to offer ALL creators previously kicked off YouTube due to political speech violations to return to the platform,” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) said.
Jordan shared a letter from Alphabet, YouTube’s parent company.
“YouTube values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes that these creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic discourse. The Company recognizes these creators are among those shaping today’s online consumption, landing ‘must-watch’ interviews, giving viewers the chance to hear directly from politicians, celebrities, business leaders, and more,” the letter read.
“The Company terminated channels for repeatedly violating its Community Guidelines on elections integrity content through 2023 and COVID-19 content through 2024. Today, YouTube’s Community Guidelines allow for a wider range of content regarding COVID-19 and elections integrity. Reflecting the Company’s commitment to free expression, YouTube will provide an opportunity for all creators to rejoin the platform if the Company terminated their channels for repeated violations of COVID-19 and elections integrity policies that are no longer in effect,” it continued.
“During the Biden-Harris years, under White House pressure, YouTube changed its policies to censor political debate on COVID and elections. TODAY, YouTube admits that the censorship pressure from Biden Admin was ‘unacceptable and wrong,'” Jordan said.
“Now, to make amends to the American people, and because of our work, YouTube is rolling back its censorship policies on political speech, including topics such as COVID and elections,” he added.
Steve Bannon, FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino and White House counterterrorism chief Sebastian Gorka were among those previously banned from the platform for content choices. Each has managed to draw followers to other media sites where they’ve maintained a large audience.
Alphabet blamed the Biden administration for limiting political speech on the platform.
“Senior Biden Administration officials, including White House officials, conducted repeated and sustained outreach to Alphabet and pressed the Company regarding certain user-generated content related to the COVID-19 pandemic that did not violate its policies,” the letter read.
“While the Company continued to develop and enforce its policies independently, Biden Administration officials continued to press the Company to remove non-violative user-generated content,” it continued.
“Even as Meta admitted the Biden-Harris censorship was wrong, others in Big Tech were reluctant to go on the record. Now Google is acknowledging, for the first time, that it too faced censorship pressure from the Biden White House and that pressure was ‘unacceptable and wrong,'” Jordan said.
“But that’s not all. YouTube is making changes to its platform to prevent future censorship. YouTube is committing to the American people that it will NEVER use outside so-called ‘fact-checkers’ to censor speech. No more telling Americans what to believe and not believe,” he continued.
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