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German Government Demands Big Tech Crack Down On Telegram, Other Free Speech Apps

Tells Apple and Google that Telegram is “a form of accelerator for right-wing extremism and conspiracy theories”

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Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Following threats to shut down the pro free speech encrypted messaging platform Telegram, the German government has stepped up its efforts by putting pressure on Apple and Google to take a more hands on approach to limiting the content people are sharing on the app.

Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser claimed that the app is contributing to an acceleration of “right-wing extremism” and “conspiracy theories,” in the country.

The minister tweeted “We remind #Apple and #Google of their social responsibility. As long as they offer apps like #Telegram in their stores, they are also a form of accelerator for #right-wing extremism and #conspiracy theories. No place for #hate and #calls for murder!”

In another tweet, Faeser asserted “Everyone has the #right to peaceful assembly. We draw the line when it comes to #hate and #baiting. #Right-wing extremists are increasingly abusing the #Corona demos for their ideology against the #state. We will crack down there with consistent #law enforcement.”

A further statement statement from Germany’s regional interior ministers specifically noted that those organising against the government’s COVID restrictions are using Telegram.

“The social network Telegram and comparable providers serve people in Germany as a networking [platform for Covid protest movements], corona deniers and right-wing radicals,” the statement read.

Last week, Faeser told the German media “We cannot rule this out,” when asked if the platform will be targeted for censorship.

“A shutdown would be grave and clearly a last resort. All other options must be exhausted first,” Faeser clarified.

The minister also told the newspaper that while it is currently unclear what legal action would be needed to shut down the platform, the German government is in consultation with the European Union regarding potential regulation of it.

The Epoch Times notes that in Germany, which has implemented some of the most severe pandemic restrictions, “Telegram has been used as a hub of communication for the protest movement against the measures established to fight the CCP virus, including lockdowns, intermittent mask mandates, and restrictions for the unvaccinated.”

Telegram has been shut down or blocked in other countries including Iran, China, Pakistan, India, Thailand, and Russia.

The platform saw a huge surge in users last year after Facebook owned Watts App introduced a controversial privacy update which led to concerns that the app would hand over user data to its parent company. It also came at the same time as President Trump’s purge from big tech social media platforms.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov warned that people are “being held hostage by tech monopolies.”

In addition to being independent from big tech, Telegram promises robust end-to-end encryption, ensuring messages remain private.

This has made Telegram a target for authoritarians and big tech monopolists.

In the U.S. lobbyist group The Coalition for a Safer Web even filed a lawsuit against Apple in an effort to get Telegram removed from the app store, claiming that it allows ‘extremists’ to spread ‘hate speech’.

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    Democrats Refuse To Address The Contents Of The Twitter Files – Attack The Messengers Instead

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    Zero Hedge

    Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

    There are some that say not much was learned or gained from the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Weaponization of the Federal Government this past week as politicians sparred over the meaning of the release of the Twitter Files.  Democrats in particular seemed adamant that they would not discuss the actual contents of the files or their implications.  Their apparent goal?  To disrupt exploration of the information and to attack the messengers.

    There might not have been many new revelations coming from the subcommittee, but what the public did learn was that the political left is extremely hostile to facts, evidence and the truth.  If you didn’t already know that by now, the hearing with Matt Taibbi made it abundantly clear.  

    Leftist members of the committee proceeded into a tirade when Matt Taibbi and Michael Shellenberger were called to testify on their participation in the publishing of the files, attacking everything from their credentials to their intentions, and even demanding they reveal information on their private sources.  Here is the real information the Dems did not want to talk about:

    It is well known that Matt Taibbi, Michael Shellenberger and Elon Musk have long been liberal leaning in their politics, yet the accusations from Democrats asserted some form of conspiracy between Musk, Taibbi and Republicans, with some members even insinuating an effort to “undermine democracy.”  What right did they have to take this position?

    They claim that Musk and Taibbi are hiding data that shows Trump and Republicans were making requests to censor Twitter users as well.  In other words, they assert there is a “conspiracy” to protect Republicans while denouncing Democrats.

    But what are the facts here?

    Taibbi has said on numerous occasions that there were requests from Republicans as well as Democrat officials for accounts to be censored or blocked.  He never hid this from anyone.  This argument is a cover, a distraction from two separate issues:

    First, the government should NEVER be involved in censorship requests of the public for any reason.  It doesn’t matter which party is making the requests, and a criminal investigation should be pursued for any officials involved in legitimate 1st Amendment violations.  

    Second, who did Twitter actually censor?  Which requests did they actually honor?  The vast majority of accounts censored by the previous Twitter management were conservative accounts, conservative news sources and posts with content that ran contrary to Democrat narratives.  Republicans like Trump might have made requests, but how many people were blocked on Twitter in response?

    Democrats complain about the Twitter Files being weighted in favor of the political right wing, but maybe that is because most of the requests for censorship came from the DNC and Biden controlled agencies, and most of the people censored were conservatives.  It’s weighted against Democrats because they more commonly use censorship as a weapon.

    A stunning 99% of online political contributions made by Twitter employees in 2021 went to Democrats, according to Federal Election Commission data.  Are we really supposed to believe that Twitter has been acting for the benefit of both parties, or just one?  

    The M.O. of the political left for the past several years now has been cancel culture attacks to silence their opponents and shut down dissent.  Major social media companies are by far more progressive in their affiliations than conservative, and have been a key tool for leftists in targeting and removing contrary speech.  No one on the left talks about being shut down by conservatives, it is always the reverse.  

    The social dynamic in the US has been completely out of balance for many years, with corporations and government agencies widely backing the most extreme segments of the far-left.  This is where they get their power.  They certainly don’t get power from being the majority, woke activists are a tiny portion of the overall population and one that is widely despised.  They have been feared in the past only because corporations and the government back them.  The Twitter Files prove this collusion in detail.  

    Even moderate liberals like Musk or Taibbi are being run through the gauntlet of character assassination these days because they dared to oppose certain aspects of the far-left agenda.  But the bottom line is this – Only the political left and some Neo-Cons within the GOP have displayed open disdain for the dissemination of the truth.  We saw this with the Biden Laptop story.  We saw this with covid facts that were inconvenient to the establishment narrative.  And, we saw this recently with Tucker Carlson’s release of suppressed J6 footage.  

    The average conservative and liberty minded independent sees sunlight as the best disinfectant, while establishment elitists and woke activists view open discussion and debate of information as a “dangerous” frivolity.  We believe that the truth is arrived at through discourse.  They believe that the truth is what they say it is.

    The Twitter Files have torn open the veil obscuring big government and big tech collusion and this makes certain people very nervous and very angry.  Take note of who those people are.  Who is enraged?  Who is hostile to the exposure of government censorship?  Those are the real villains that need to face scrutiny, not the messengers passing the information along.  

    This post was originally published at Zero Hedge

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    Video: Twitter Files Journalist Michael Shellenberger Warns Of ‘Censorship-Industrial Complex’

    “The rise of a for-profit censorship industry funded by American taxpayers to censor real-world information”

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    Steve Watson

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    Journalist Michael Shellenberger, who testified Thursday before the House regarding his involvement with the Twitter Files, has warned of a “very disturbing” movement toward a “Censorship-industrial complex” being implemented by the government.

    Speaking about his testimony and attempts by Democrats to get him to reveal his journalistic sources, as well as just having plain insults thrown at him and being called a threat to Democracy, Shellenberger told Tucker Carlson that the hearing “was a very disturbing event.”

    “They then proceeded to demand to know who our sources were, which of course, we were unwilling to share with them,” Shellenberger continued, adding “We were revealing here this is way beyond woke censorship within Twitter,”

    The journalist urged that “we have now discovered a censorship-industrial complex that includes government-funded entities that are doing state-sponsored censorship.”

    “They are now seeking widespread use of artificial intelligence to censor accurate information,” Shellenberger continued, adding “We’ve now seen Facebook and Twitter caught censoring accurate information about coronavirus vaccinations because they were worried that it would lead to vaccine hesitancy.”

    “The story has really evolved, and there is much more to say on it we are still discovering quite a bit of information, but what you’re basically seeing here is the rise of a for-profit censorship industry funded by American taxpayers to censor real-world information,” Shellenberger asserted.

    Watch:

    Here are the clips of the Democrats asking both Shellenberger and Matt Taibbi to expose their sources:

    All of this is happening under the context of the Biden Federal Trade Commission going directly after the journalists and Elon Musk for daring to expose the censorship activities of the deep state.

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    Video: Tucker Carlson Slams McConnell And Schumer For Trying To Kill His J6 Broadcasts

    “They’re all on the same side!”

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    Steve Watson

    Screenshot

    As questions swirl over whether Tucker Carlson’s ongoing investigation into the January 6th footage is being shut down by higher ups, Carlson himself tore into Democrat and Republican leaders who both called for the host to be censored.

    “What you’re seeing is hysteria. The overstatements, the crazed hyperbole, the red-in-the face anger. It’s not outrage, it’s fear,” Carlson told viewers.

    “We’re getting close to what they really care about,” He continued, further noting “Here you have people with shared interests. The open borders people. The people like Mitch McConnell who are living in splendor on Chinese money.”

    Carlson also mocked Chuck Schumer for melting down on the Senate floor and calling Carlson a “threat to Democracy.”

    “They’re all on the same side!” Carlson declared.

    Watch:

    Carlson scored monster ratings on Tuesday night as he aired footage that revealed evidence that had been withheld by the J6 Committee and tells a different narrative of the events to the one presented to the American people.

    President Trump responded to Carlson’s reporting, calling for those who withheld the evidence to be tried for Treason:

    GREAT JOB BY TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT. The Unselect Committee of political Hacks & Thugs has been totally discredited. They knowingly refused to show the Videos that mattered. They should be tried for Fraud and Treason, and those imprisoned and being persecuted should be exonerated and released, NOW!

    Carlson also presented a montage of corporate media mouthpieces panicking and calling for him to be censored:

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