From social media to employee online platforms, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking the public’s input on censorship across tech platforms based on posted content.
The FTC Request for Information (RFI) said it specifically wants to hear from individuals – including current and former employees of technology platforms – who believe they have been harmed by a tech platform that chose to “limit their ability to share ideas or affiliations freely and openly.”
Victims of tech censorship can be targeted because of the content they’ve posted, listed affiliations, and/or even the activities engaged in outside of that platform, the FTC said.
The move comes following an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump last month promising to restore freedom of speech and end censorship.
Trump, who also found himself banned from Meta’s social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, as well as X (when it was Twitter) in the final days of his first presidency, has repeatedly accused big tech of trying to censor conservative speech.
“Big tech censorship is not just un-American, it is potentially illegal,” FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson posted about the inquiry on X, along with a link to a series of questions about tech platform censorship policies.
Often described as degrading, demonetization, banning, or shadow banning, Ferguson says the consumer watchdog agency is looking for “anyone who can shed light on these practices and the ways in which they may violate the law.”
Big Tech censorship is not just un-American, it is potentially illegal. The FTC wants your help to investigate these potential violations of the law. We are asking for public submissions from anyone who has been a victim of tech censorship (banning, demonetization, shadow…
undefined Andrew Ferguson (@AFergusonFTC) February 20, 2025
Ferguson, who was hand-picked by Trump to lead the FTC for his second term in the Oval Office, has further said the agency should look into whether advertisers joined in a boycott of X under Elon Musk’s ownership because of his right-leaning political ramblings and content moderation policies.
The FTC further cites that tech censorship may fall under deceptive business practices and anticompetitive behavior.
“Today’s announcement marks an important step forward in restoring free speech and making sure Americans no longer suffer under the tyranny of big tech – PERMANENTLY. I look forward to hearing from you,” the FTC chair said.
Submission questionnaire
As part of the complaint submission process, the individual will be presented with a series of nearly three dozen questions. The user can attach pictures and documents to support their submission and also submit comments anonymously.
Sample questions provided by the FTC include:
- What specific adverse actions did the platform take?
- How and when, if at all, did the platform notify its users about such adverse actions or explain its decisions?
- Did the platform adhere to its policies or other public-facing representations?
- Did the platform represent, implicitly or explicitly, whether users had the ability to challenge or appeal adverse actions that deny or degrade the affected users’ access to services?
- How did the platforms’ adverse actions affect users (including creators of content)?
Already, users have taken to social media to post about their own experiences as alleged victims of shadowbanning or other tech censorship.
“I am censored on Meta (Facebook) and have been for several years," said X user @JoeTalkShow barely an hour after the announcement was posted by Ferguson.
“I interviewed Rudy Guiliani and Mike Lindell and that was it for my reach and my growth. Haven't added any followers in many years, and even though I have 380k followers, very few see my posts. How does one fix this when there's no way to contact an actual person there?” @JoeTalkShow commented.
clicked the link -- it's pretty confusing. I am censored on Meta (Facebook) and have been for several years. I interviewed Rudy Guiliani and Mike Lindell and that was it for my reach and my growth. Haven't added any followers in many years and even though I have 380k…
undefined Joe Pags Pagliarulo (@JoeTalkShow) February 20, 2025
The FTC says it wants the public’s help to investigate potential violations of the law when it comes to anyone who thinks they have been a victim of tech censorship.
Technology platforms have various ways they can ban or limit the reach of a "user-non-grata" deemed in violation of its policies.
The FTC says the platforms may use “unpredictable internal procedures to restrict users’ access to services, often without any advance notice.”
As in the case of the X user above, affected users often have no recourse and are provided very little information about the actions taken that led to their downgrade. The censored victim also rarely has a way to challenge or appeal the platforms’ decisions, the FTC explained.
The FTC notes that all comments will be made public, even anonymous submissions, so users should not provide any personally identifiable information (PII) in their submissions. Those wishing to file a private report may also do so on the FTC website.
Consumers have until May 21st, 2025 to submit their comments by visiting the FTC’s Request for Public Comments Regarding Technology Platform Censorship page.
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