The House Judiciary Committee issued subpoenas to eight major technology companies on Wednesday, demanding information about their interactions with foreign governments regarding content moderation and potential censorship of American speech.
Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) directed the subpoenas to industry leaders including Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, TikTok, X, and Rumble. The action stems from growing concerns that foreign regulations may be influencing how these platforms moderate content for U.S. users.
Jordan specifically highlighted content restrictions in the European Union's Digital Services Act, the United Kingdom's Online Services Act, and similar regulations in Brazil and Australia. The committee wants to examine whether these international laws have restricted Americans' access to legal speech within the United States.
The subpoenas request details about the companies' compliance with foreign government orders and regulations, along with internal communications discussing these matters. The committee also aims to investigate any potential involvement of the Biden administration in these content moderation practices.
Two companies have already responded to the subpoenas. Microsoft indicated it would cooperate, stating its commitment to working with the committee "in good faith." Rumble expressed willingness to share information about global government efforts affecting free expression.
This latest round of subpoenas follows previous actions by the Republican-led committee, which had demanded similar records about communications between tech companies and the U.S. government regarding censorship in 2023.
The move also comes shortly after the Federal Trade Commission launched its own investigation into "tech censorship," seeking public input on how technology platforms may have violated laws by restricting user speech.
The remaining companies, including Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, Apple, TikTok, and X, have not yet publicly responded to the subpoenas.