The recent hearing involving Congresswoman Lauren Boebert and Joel Roth, the head of trust and safety at Twitter, has raised some serious questions about the role of social media companies in censorship and election interference.
At the hearing, Boebert grilled Roth on the number of meetings he had with the FBI and the number of FBI agents who worked at Twitter. While Roth could not provide a specific number, he stated that it was more than 10. Boebert then pressed him on the subject of shadow banning, asking if he had approved the suppression of her account for a tweet about Hillary Clinton. Roth stated that to the best of his recollection, he did not approve such actions.
However, Boebert revealed that she had found out from Twitter staff that her account was suppressed for 90 days over the tweet, which was considered an aggressive visibility filter. This suppression prevented her from communicating with her constituents and the American people. Boebert called this act of censorship an attack on the very foundation of our nation’s governance and questioned if it was done in coordination with the government.
This hearing raises important questions about the power and responsibility of social media companies and the potential for election interference. With the rise of social media as a primary means of communication and information dissemination, it is crucial that these companies maintain transparency and accountability in their actions.