EXCLUSIVE: Rumble, a popular video sharing and cloud services platform, has revealed a number of censorship requests it has received from country governments that may surprise many.
THE big tech company shared details of these requests with Fox News Digital, as well as prepared remarks by CEO Chris Pavlovski for his testimony on Capitol Hill this week, which will take place during a House hearing focused on growing censorship and issues of freedom of expression in Brazil.
“Free speech and freedom of expression are the cornerstones of a democratic society,” Pavlovsky is expected to tell members of the subcommittee on global health, global human rights and International organisations.
Chris Pavlovski, CEO of Rumble (Rumble/Fox News)
“Freedom of speech is so important that it constitutes not only the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, but also Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” he should say. “It is extremely disturbing for me to have to testify before the United States Congress in 2024 that these fundamental rights are under threat.”
Among these threats Pavlovsky should mention – most of which would be considered the norm by countries like ChinaRussia or North Korea – the perpetrators of these acts are in reality liberal democracies where individual freedoms are generally held in high esteem.
According to Rumble, it has become common for these countries to try to control what can and cannot be said online, especially if the content proves politically unpopular or embarrassing to their respective governments.
One of these requests came from the French government, which wanted Rumble to take steps reminiscent of those of the Chinese Communist Party by removing content published on its site by Russia Today – a media outlet funded by the Chinese Communist Party. Russian government – although none of its posting policies were violated.
Rumble is in the middle of a legal battle with the French government over the request, although it has attempted to engage with them over the content, and has temporarily suspended its service to the country.
A similar situation occurred in Brazil following President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva election victory in 2022 and subsequent protests by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro that some have compared to the January 6, 2021 protests at the United States Capitol.
According to Rumble, whose services are also suspended in the country due to ongoing legal challenges, the Brazilian government has attempted to censor political opponents and journalists on the site.
Additionally, Rumble has faced pressure from the Australian and New Zealand governments to remove content from its site, including the viral video of a Sydney bishop being attacked while leading a church service, and data released by a government whistleblower regarding the effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccine. 19 vaccine.
The company is also challenging these governments.
In his congressional testimony, Pavlovsky is expected to brief the committee on efforts by France, Australia, New Zealand and Brazil to block the availability of certain content from their respective citizens, and will highlight the “overt” nature of the attempts government censorship.
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Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva greets his supporters after being sworn in as president at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, January 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
“Governments are acting in ways we only imagined 50 or 60 years ago, by openly asking platforms to censor and remove disfavored content. They are once again thinking they know what is best, dictating and control conversations and suppress human rights to speak and share freely,” Pavloski is expected to testify.
“These are not theoretical fears. These things happen, and I know this personally as the CEO of a platform that receives requests from governments around the world,” he will say. “Countries in every hemisphere, all members of the United Nations, are no longer respecting the human right to freedom of expression. This is spiraling out of control and should alarm everyone in this room.”
Pavlovsky is expected to call on the US government to no longer remain “silent” on the issue of defending free speech, and he will issue a stark warning that although Rumble faces these demands today, it could be other media in the future.
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“Today it’s Rumble, yesterday it was heart of Western democracy – is at stake. America needs to mobilize and play a leading role,” he added.
