Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., has demanded Facebook and Google provide information regarding their policies on censoring free speech, citing "increasing attacks on free speech facilitated" by the major tech companies.
"In the past, social media companies have been employed to suppress American citizens’ speech, particularly conservative speech," Schmitt wrote in a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
"This is alarming because the freedom to speak your mind in the public square — or in the virtual public square — is vital to the health of our republic. Far too many Americans are being told what they can say because of censorship facilitated by your companies. While the powerful have often censored the weak for centuries, in America, we recognize and protect the natural right of all people to speak freely, especially when that speech is unpopular," he added.
"The protection of inalienable rights, such as the freedom of speech, is the cornerstone of our Constitution and vital for this great experiment to flourish. The First Amendment must never be abrogated."
Schmitt asked for Facebook and Google’s current policies and practices regarding content moderation, specifically in relation to political speech, the companies’ response to claims that their platforms were used to suppress free speech during the 2020 election, specific examples of how the companies have handled cases of alleged censorship, and the measures in place to prevent undue influence from government entities on the companies' content moderation policies, among other items.
"As an elected official of Missouri, I will fight for Missourians’ and Americans’ individual freedoms against the threats to free speech from both the Biden administration and your companies," Schmitt said.