Why are some congressional Repubs pushing for lower standards governing misinformation?

[Papageorgio]

You do not have a right to spread damaging misinformation unchecked
Your lies should be labeled as lies

It wasn’t a lie. It is a very possible theory that the Covid-19 that came from Wuhan, could have come from the Wuhan Virus Lab located in Wuhan.

What is dangerous about a theory that is still a working theory down to this day. Even Mahar and Stewart believe it is a possibility.

 

[22lcidw]

Lab theory is just that…theory
Still unproven

With an unknown deadly airborne virus. Masks and social distancing are the best defense.

No, the fact that the shot doesn’t keep you from getting the virus isn’t a lie.
But spreading rumors that the vaccine is more dangerous than COVID led to hundreds of thousands of deaths…..that is what the wanted to stop

Covid was a lie from its inception. Evil forces have taken over much of our nation. From media/entertainers to elites/politicians to the power-hungry financing it. Trump's first term had many moles and shills in his administration. And a man in Fauci whose chosen profession dealt with this his whole life, sure changed his mind a lot on a virus and what to do about it. The self-important were many and rose to the top. The Progs acting out crazy we saw all over the nation and in public ways of doing business even. No one ever forgets anyone screwing with them when it adds up. And you Progs activate people to assault and kill others like no one else can. Imagine when something really serious happens. We are done.

 

[berg80]

I agree but they should allow the disgusting, to shine a light on it. Just my opinion and I am all for free speech.

The circumstances surrounding the pandemic created a unique situation that called for blatant misinformation about the vaccine to be removed from the site.

 

[berg80]

It wasn’t a lie. It is a very possible theory that the Covid-19 that came from Wuhan, could have come from the Wuhan Virus Lab located in Wuhan.

Speculation on the origin of the virus was largely political in nature with respect to posts about it on social media. I'd be surprised if any of that content was removed. The concern was for lies about the vaccine.

 

[Papageorgio]

The circumstances surrounding the pandemic created a unique situation that called for blatant misinformation about the vaccine to be removed from the site.

Sorry it did not require the suppression of free speech, when the government uses unquie situations and deciding they can control the speech, we are in trouble. The vaccine did not stop people from getting Covid, the vaccine did not stop the spreading of Covid, those were lies told by our government, they also had social media take down any posts that hinted the outbreak of Covid, could not have possibly come from Wuhan and then admitted later, it could have.

That is not governments roles, they can urge and suggest, but they cannot limit our right to free speech, no matter how stupid, resentful or hateful it could be.

Republicans and Democrats do not have our best interests in mind.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Misinformation is progspeak for "opinions I don't like but even we don't have the ability to call it lying"

So, exactly like magaturds, then..

 

[martybegan]

So, exactly like magaturds, then..

Nope. Another attempt at equivalency.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Nope. Another attempt at equivalency.

Yep. And another attempt to avoid accountability.

 

[martybegan]

Yep. And another attempt to avoid accountability.

Says the "I take no position but snipe at people on the right" moron of the board.

 

[Papageorgio]

Speculation on the origin of the virus was largely political in nature with respect to posts about it on social media. I'd be surprised if any of that content was removed. The concern was for lies about the vaccine.

And that is not the government to decide! As far as social media post taken down? It is known that the Biden Administration put pressure on social media to remove posts. As far as them actually removing them? They admitted it,

Lab Leaks and COVID-19 Politics

The latest report on the origin of the virus behind the pandemic is still inconclusive, but there are lessons to be learned from it.

www.newyorker.com

FTA: Some social-media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, flagged or removed posts that suggested that the virus was man-made or engineered, driving conservatives to claim censorship. (Facebook stopped taking down those posts in May, 2021; Twitter announced it would stop enforcing its virus-misinformation policy last November.)

 

[LordBrownTrout]

YouTube to allow creators banned for Covid-19, election misinformation to apply for reinstatement​

Google-owned YouTube on Tuesday said it will soon allow previously banned accounts to apply for reinstatement, rolling back a policy that had treated violations as permanent.

The change applies to channels removed for posting Covid-19 or election-related misinformation, according to a letter from Alphabet lawyer Daniel Donovan to House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. Previously, those types of offenses carried lifetime bans.

“Today, YouTube’s Community Guidelines allow for a wider range of content regarding Covid and elections integrity,” Donovan wrote.

YouTube wrote on X that it will be a limited pilot project open to a subset of creators as well as channels that were terminated under policies the company has since retired. YouTube also said its new reinstatement program will launch soon.

Among channels previously banned under those rules were some associated with Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino, former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It’s not yet clear whether those channels will be reinstated.

This move follows mounting Republican pressure on tech companies to reverse Biden-era speech policies on vaccine and political misinformation. In March, Rep. Jordan subpoenaed Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, alleging YouTube was a “direct participant in the federal government’s censorship regime.”

In 2021, YouTube said it would remove content that spread misinformation about all approved vaccines.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/23/youtube-creators-banned-covid-election-misinformation-apply-reinstatement.html

Back in 2021 YouTube said.........

YouTube bans high-profile anti-vaccine accounts, says it will block all vaccine misinformation​

Google-owned YouTube banned prominent anti-vaccine accounts in an effort to strengthen its policies on misinformation around vaccines, the company said in a blog post Wednesday. It will also ban misinformation on all vaccines that are confirmed to be safe by the World Health Organization and local health authorities.

Social media companies have said since the beginning of the pandemic that they’re trying to stop the spread of coronavirus misinformation. But falsehoods have continued to run rampant as companies struggle to police the constant flood of posts and uploads to their platforms.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/29/youtube-bans-high-profile-anti-vaccine-accounts.html

It's more than a little paradoxical how trump's FCC chairman attacks the rights of comedians to ridicule Don on national TV while Repub congressmen spend their time cajoling social media platforms to allow more lies and misinformation to be posted without regulation. Then again, maybe it isn't since misinformation is their stock and trade.

THe CDC acted criminally when they worked with big pharma and the NHS to shut down all studies that showed how injurious and deadly the mRNA vaccine was. More continues to come out on how this virus was created and how the injection damages the endothelial cells, causing strokes, heart attacks, and death.

 

[rightwinger]

Covid was a lie from its inception.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Says the "I take no position but snipe at people on the right" moron of the board.

I snipe precisely because magaturds avoid accountability. Very little 'far left' here to counter.

 

[Papageorgio]

So, exactly like magaturds, then..

Dems, Republicans, left, right, the government wants to control your speech, both sides have proved that.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Dems, Republicans, left, right, the government wants to control your speech, both sides have proved that.

And it erodes more and more every single day in our society's race to the bottom.

 

[Papageorgio]

And it erodes more and more every single day in our society's race to the bottom.

I know, they have used divide and conquer to extract our freedoms.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

I know, they have used divide and conquer to extract our freedoms.

We saw this coming, and we did nothing to prevent it. We allowed hate to supersede our decisions.

 

[marvin martian]

YouTube to allow creators banned for Covid-19, election misinformation to apply for reinstatement​

Google-owned YouTube on Tuesday said it will soon allow previously banned accounts to apply for reinstatement, rolling back a policy that had treated violations as permanent.

The change applies to channels removed for posting Covid-19 or election-related misinformation, according to a letter from Alphabet lawyer Daniel Donovan to House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. Previously, those types of offenses carried lifetime bans.

“Today, YouTube’s Community Guidelines allow for a wider range of content regarding Covid and elections integrity,” Donovan wrote.

YouTube wrote on X that it will be a limited pilot project open to a subset of creators as well as channels that were terminated under policies the company has since retired. YouTube also said its new reinstatement program will launch soon.

Among channels previously banned under those rules were some associated with Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino, former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It’s not yet clear whether those channels will be reinstated.

This move follows mounting Republican pressure on tech companies to reverse Biden-era speech policies on vaccine and political misinformation. In March, Rep. Jordan subpoenaed Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, alleging YouTube was a “direct participant in the federal government’s censorship regime.”

In 2021, YouTube said it would remove content that spread misinformation about all approved vaccines.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/23/youtube-creators-banned-covid-election-misinformation-apply-reinstatement.html

Back in 2021 YouTube said.........

YouTube bans high-profile anti-vaccine accounts, says it will block all vaccine misinformation​

Google-owned YouTube banned prominent anti-vaccine accounts in an effort to strengthen its policies on misinformation around vaccines, the company said in a blog post Wednesday. It will also ban misinformation on all vaccines that are confirmed to be safe by the World Health Organization and local health authorities.

Social media companies have said since the beginning of the pandemic that they’re trying to stop the spread of coronavirus misinformation. But falsehoods have continued to run rampant as companies struggle to police the constant flood of posts and uploads to their platforms.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/29/youtube-bans-high-profile-anti-vaccine-accounts.html

It's more than a little paradoxical how trump's FCC chairman attacks the rights of comedians to ridicule Don on national TV while Repub congressmen spend their time cajoling social media platforms to allow more lies and misinformation to be posted without regulation. Then again, maybe it isn't since misinformation is their stock and trade.

According to the left, Covid "misinformation" includes:

1. Vaccinated people can still get and spread covid.
2. Cloth masks do not stop viral infections.
3. The efficacy rate of the vaccine is not 95%, as was advertised to the American public.
4. The lab leak theory is not a "conspiracy", but the most likely source of the virus.
etc...

 

[Papageorgio]

We saw this coming, and we did nothing to prevent it. We allowed hate to supersede our decisions.

Was it hate or party loyalty that blinded us? I have a tough time hating people, I don’t care for some but hate is very reserved on my part.

 

[Tumblin Tumbleweed]

Was it hate or party loyalty that blinded us? I have a tough time hating people, I don’t care for some but hate is very reserved on my part.

That's great, but that is anecdotal. I feel similarly. However the current society allows social media to elevate extremist discourse (hate), permeating the political division (loyalty).