Tag: social media

Canada To Revive Online Censorship Targeting “Harmful” Content, “Hate” Speech, and Deepfakes

A renewed censorship effort is taking shape in Canada as the federal government pushes ahead with a controversial bill targeting what it labels “harmful online content.”

Framed as a safeguard against exploitation and “hate,” the proposed legislation mirrors the widely criticized Bill C-36, which was abandoned after concerns about its vague language and expansive reach.

Bill C-63 would have established a powerful new Digital Safety Commission tasked with pressuring platforms to restrict user content.

If passed, the law would have compelled tech companies to remove flagged material such as intimate images shared without consent or child abuse content within 24 hours.

It also gives both the poster and complainant a chance to respond, but the final decision would ultimately fall to a state-backed regulator.

Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault attempted to justify the new push during a House of Commons committee meeting, stating the bill aims to remove “clearly harmful content” and is “designed to comply with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

He added, “Online safety is certainly about protecting kids, but it’s obviously more than that.”

Beyond images and exploitation, the bill includes a broader mandate to police expression.

It calls for tougher Criminal Code penalties around so-called “hate propaganda,” including a life sentence for promoting genocide. It would create a new offense for “hate crimes” and let judges issue “peace bonds” to restrict someone’s freedom based on a prediction of possible future hate-based offenses.

On top of that, the proposal seeks to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act, allowing individuals to file complaints over online speech that meets a definition of “detestation or vilification,” as outlined by past Supreme Court decisions.

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Telegram’s Durov claims French intelligence tried to blackmail him over Moldovan election

Writing on X on Sunday, Durov said the approach came about a year ago, while he was under judicial supervision in France following his arrest at a Paris airport. He claimed that intelligence services contacted him through an intermediary and asked Telegram to remove a number of Moldovan channels before a presidential vote.

According to St Petersburg native Durov, Telegram did delete some flagged channels that clearly violated its own policies. But he said the intermediary later relayed a more troubling message: French intelligence had offered to “say good things” to the judge in charge of his case in exchange for wider cooperation.

“This was unacceptable on several levels,” Durov wrote, adding that if the agency did contact the judge, it would amount to interference in the judicial process — and if it didn’t, it meant exploiting his legal jeopardy to influence political developments abroad.

Durov said that shortly afterward, Telegram received a second list of “problematic” Moldovan channels. Unlike the first batch, he insisted, nearly all of these accounts were legitimate and fully compliant with Telegram’s rules.

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Netanyahu Meets With ‘Pro-Israel Influencers’ in New York, Describes Social Media as a ‘Weapon’ for Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with “pro-Israel influencers” after his speech at the UN General Assembly in New York on Friday, his office said in a statement on Sunday.

Netanyahu’s office said that he spoke with the influencers “about the challenges in the new era, and the public diplomacy efforts and the influence of the social networks on the discourse for and against Israel.”

During the meeting, Netanyahu was asked what should be done about Israel potentially losing support from Evangelical Christians in the US, and he pointed to social media, which he called a “tool of battle,” and cited a plan for TikTok to be put under the control of US companies.

“What we have to do is secure that part of the base of our support in the United States, that is being challenged systematically … How do we fight back? Our influencers, I think you should also talk to them if you have the chance,” Netanyahu said. “And secondly, we’re going to have to use the tools of battle. The weapons change over time … we have to fight with the weapons that apply to the battlefield on which we’re engaged, and the most important ones are on social media.”

The Israeli leader described the TikTok plan as the “most important purchase that is going on.” Under the plan approved by President Trump, one of the companies that will have a major stake in TikTok and control the algorithm is Oracle, which is owned by Larry Ellison, an extremely pro-Israel billionaire and major private donor to the Israeli military.

“TikTok, TikTok, and I hope it goes through because it could be extremely consequential,” Netanyahu said, adding that the other major social media platform he is concerned about is X, formerly Twitter. The Israeli leader described X CEO Elon Musk as a “friend.”

“We have to talk to Elon. He’s not an enemy, he’s a friend. You should talk to him. Now, if we can get those two things, we can get a lot, and I can go on about other things, but that’s not the point right now. We have to fight the fight. Give direction to the Jewish people, and give direction to our non-Jewish friends, or those who could be our friends,” Netanyahu added.

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Trump Signs Executive Order Rescuing TikTok in the U.S.: $14 Billion Sale to American Investors Like Oracle and Silver Lake

President Donald Trump signed an executive order this Thursday, saving TikTok from an imminent ban. The platform, boasting 170 million users in the U.S., is now transitioning to a consortium of non-Chinese investors who will control 80% of its operations.

ByteDance, its Chinese parent company, retains less than 20%, specifically 19.9%, along with a single seat on the board of directors. The valuation of the new U.S.-based TikTok reaches $14 billion, as confirmed by Vice President J.D. Vance during the White House ceremony.

Though controversial for being lower than previous estimates of up to $40 billion, this price reflects Trump’s commitment to national security without compromising innovation. Trump, who credits part of his 2024 electoral victory to TikTok—where he has amassed 15 million followers—hailed the deal as «the art of the deal.»

«It’s run by Americans, and very sophisticated ones,» the president declared, emphasizing Oracle’s critical role in managing the algorithm and data security.

The crisis traces back to April 2024, when then-President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan law mandating that ByteDance divest 80% of TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a total shutdown due to national security risks.

The legislation, passed with broad congressional support, highlighted concerns over Chinese access to user data and the potential manipulation of the algorithm for propaganda purposes. Biden feared that the Chinese Communist Party might use TikTok to spy on American citizens or influence elections.

The law took effect in January 2025, but upon beginning his second term, Trump extended the deadline multiple times: first by 75 days, then 90, and most recently to December 16. These extensions facilitated intense negotiations with Beijing.

The turning point came in September 2025. Following a productive call between Trump and President Xi Jinping on September 19, both leaders finalized a framework agreement. Trump announced progress on trade, fentanyl, and TikTok approval via Truth Social. Xi, in turn, stressed a «fair environment» for Chinese investments but conceded on the divestiture.

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California’s Ministry of Truth: SB 771 is Gov. Newsom’s and Democrat’s Plan to Ban Speech They Hate

California Governor Gavin Newsom and Democrats in the Legislature claim they want to regulate social media over hate speech. Senate Bill 771 by Sen. Henry Stern (D-Los Angeles) claims this is about “Personal rights: liability: social media platforms.”

SB 771 is an “anti free speech” bill, comes entirely from California Democrats, and is designed to silence opposing opinions. The bill is not about moderating hate speech; it’s about banning speech Democrats hate. 

This isn’t California Democrats’ first rodeo. In 2018, Democrat California lawmakers pushed legislation to create jack-boot agents of government through a “Fake News Advisory Council” – an Orwellian “Ministry of Truth” for the news they don’t like, I reported. “After having my Capitol Press Credential revoked in 2015 and only reissued after an Open Records Act request of 10-years of press credential applications, and viable threats of a First Amendment lawsuit, it appears Democrats in the California Legislature still don’t believe in making no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.”

That obviously stands today, 10 years later.

BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!

In April 2022, the Biden administration announced it had created the Disinformation Governance Board – its own Ministry of Truth – a part of the Department of Homeland Security.

Americans from all walks of life were horrified. Fortunately for the potential enemies of the state, the board’s executive director and disinformation czar Nina Jankowicz had already beclowned herself in videos that went viral, demonstrating her stunning bias and partisanship. Within three weeks the Biden Disinformation Governance Board was shut down, and many Americans heaved a sigh of relief.

But not California Democrats.

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Congress calls Trump’s TikTok plan a good first step, but concerns remain about algorithm control

ongressional leaders see positive first steps in President Donald Trump’s TikTok deal, but are withholding full support until questions about control of the important content algorithm owned by China-based ByteDance are resolved. The Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party says that the promise of divestiture is a good first step on the way to a final deal, but noted once again that an important requirement of the law passed by Congress is severing China’s connections to the app’s algorithm.  

“Transitioning to a majority American-owned entity would mark an important step in that process that could mitigate some of the ByteDance threat depending on the details, but divestment was not the law’s only requirement,” Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., said in a statement on Friday. 

Staying within the guardrails

“The law also set firm guardrails that prohibit cooperation between ByteDance and any prospective TikTok successor on the all-important recommendation algorithm, as well as preclude operational ties between the new entity and ByteDance,” said the chairman. 

The chairman promised that he would use his committee to conduct full oversight over this agreement, starting with an urgent briefing” that he requested from the Trump administration. Moolenaar also said he plans to hold a hearing next year with the leadership of the new American Tiktok entity, according to the press release.

TikTok’s operations in the United States have drawn significant scrutiny from Congress for years. Last year, Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed into law the bill requiring TikTok’s parent company, the China-based ByteDance, to either divest itself of the popular video sharing app or face a ban on operations in the United States. 

The bill aimed to address concerns that the Chinese company exercised the ability to weaponize the app against the American people on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party’s goals by gathering and exploiting citizens’ personal data.  

Of particular concern is ByteDance’s proprietary content suggesting algorithm, which experts say could be exploited to influence users and U.S. public opinion and politics at large. There is some evidence of this claim. Earlier this year, a study found that TikTok suppresses anti-China content and influences user opinion on the communist country’s human rights record and society. The researchers from Rutgers University and the Network Contagion Research Institute assessed this was done by likely manipulation of the content algorithm, though no definitive determination could be made without access to the code.

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Vice President JD Vance calls out ‘left-wing radicals’ for inciting political violence in social media post

Vice President JD Vance fired back on social media on Friday after being tagged in a video that appeared to mock Trump supporters over their response to the 2023 Bud Light controversy.

The clip, which was posted to X, showed a man shooting Bud Light cans seemingly in protest of the brand’s 2023 partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. 

The user then took aim at Vance, telling him not to complain about “violent rhetoric from the left.”

“This is how MAGA responded after Bud Lite had the audacity to feature a trans influencer in their ads,” the X user said. “So spare us your b——- about violent rhetoric from the left, [JD Vance].”

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Māori women’s rights advocate faces jail over social media posts

Rex Landy, an outspoken Māori women’s rights advocate and member of Mana Wāhine Kōrero, is facing court action under the Harmful Digital Communications Act after being reported to police by a trans activist over her social media posts.

Landy was arrested in December 2024 after complaints from Daniel Johnston, a fantasy author who identifies as female and is known online as “Caitlin Spice.” 

Police first contacted Landy in 2022 and later issued a written warning. “They told me I had to stop saying what I was saying… 

The very next day I received a written warning in the post threatening that they had enough to charge me under the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015.” 

In September 2024, Landy was ordered by the court to delete all posts referencing Johnston. She says she deleted everything but claims she missed two posts. 

On 18 December, she said police raided her home, seized devices, and charged her with failing to obey a court order.

She was given another charge after Johnston claimed she had indirectly referenced him in a livestream. Prosecutors have ruled out diversion, telling the court she was “in the grip of an ideology,” meaning they view her stance as rigid and unchangeable rather than a one-off lapse, and therefore undeserving of leniency. Landy reportedly faces up to three months in jail or a $50,000 fine.

“Win, lose, or draw – he’ll never be a woman. I’ve already won. I’m a woman, he isn’t,” Landy said. 

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Trump Signs Order to Allow TikTok to Continue Operating Under American Company

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday approving a deal to allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States, as the Chinese app becomes majority-owned by American interests in a new joint-venture company.

The deal involves TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, selling the social media app’s U.S. operations to a consortium of American investors, Breitbart News reported earlier this week. American technology giant Oracle, co-founded by centibillionaire Larry Ellison, will be entrusted to retrain the formerly Chinese-controlled TikTok algorithm “from the ground up” to create a separate, more secure version for U.S. users, according to Bloomberg. 

Trump continued to delay the impending TikTok ban in order to have enough time for the deal to fall into place, with Vice President JD Vance saying as the order was signed, “There was some resistance on the Chinese side.”

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YouTube Expands AI Age Checks, Users Face ID Verification

Google’s video platform is tightening its controls, and a growing number of YouTube users are suddenly finding themselves locked out of content unless they hand over proof of age through ID verification.

The new direction stems from YouTube’s decision to push its AI-driven age estimation system much more broadly than before.

The technology, which YouTube began experimenting with in Europe before confirming its US debut in July, surveils people’s accounts and examines everything from account details and viewing habits to search activity.

Those surveillance signals are then used to guess whether someone is under 18.

The pace of enforcement has accelerated sharply. Within the 24 hours leading up to September 24, Reddit’s r/youtube subreddit saw a flood of posts from users saying their accounts were suddenly flagged for verification, suggesting a big uptick in restrictions.

Accounts flagged as too young are immediately restricted: targeted advertising is reduced, recommendations deemed unsafe are cut back, and access to adult material is blocked outright.

When YouTube’s system determines that an account likely belongs to someone under 18, the platform automatically enforces a set of limits designed to control how the service is used.

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