(OPINION) CP – The Jan. 6 storming of the United States Capitol Building by activists and rioters is being used as a justification by Big Tech companies to declare themselves the sole arbiters of truth and to constrain the ability of other voices – particularly conservative voices – to make their case. This is wrong and is a dangerous overreach by the leading Big-Tech companies.
Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have claimed for years to be neutral and open platforms — not “publishers,” not “editors,” not “arbiters of the truth. Until now.
Although President Donald Trump released a video condemning the attack in the halls of Congress, it wasn’t enough for Silicon Valley. The Big Tech leaders have issued their own overreaching verdict. They banned the president of the United States from publishing his views and statements on Facebook and Twitter.
Let’s be clear, the breaking into of the Capitol Building by an angry and violent mob was a very serious crime, and all those who were directly involved in breaching the Capitol should be arrested and prosecuted. But let’s also keep in mind that the attack involved a relatively small number of Americans. Thus, the punishment should fit the crime.
Instead, Big Tech is exhibiting “excessive force.” It is overreaching in its response to Trump. The mainstream media often uses the phrase “excessive force” when describing the Israeli army’s response to missile fire from Gaza on Israeli cities. I haven’t heard yet “excessive force” in the mainstream media’s reporting on this week’s events. READ MORE
