Texas AG Probing Tech Giants Over Parler Ban
Jack Queen, 11 January 2021
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Wednesday demanded tech giants including Google, Amazon and Apple hand over details about their content moderation policies after conservative social media site Parler was effectively booted from the web following last week’s deadly Capitol riot.
Paxton, a Republican who is leading a separate antitrust blitz against tech titans, also demanded information from Facebook and Twitter, saying the “seemingly coordinated deplatforming” of President Donald Trump and others raises First Amendment and competition concerns.
“The public deserves the truth about how these companies moderate and possibly eliminate speech they disagree with,” Paxton said in a statement, claiming content moderation “silences those whose speech and political beliefs do not align with leaders of Big Tech companies.”
Paxton’s office did not offer further details about the civil investigative demands in its news release Wednesday, and a spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The tech companies did not immediately respond to inquiries either.
