Google will restore blocked YouTube accounts censored for political speech

Google announced a sweeping change to its YouTube policy on Tuesday, offering the option to reinstate accounts permanently banned for political speech or COVID-19-related content.

The internal company document, first obtained by Fox News Digital and submitted to the House Judiciary Committee by a Google lawyer, also reveals that the company once faced pressure from the Biden administration to remove content about the pandemic.

According to the document, Google and YouTube's new policy will affect not only ordinary users, but also public figures like Dan Bongino, Sebastian Gorka, and Steve Bannon, who were permanently banned for content about COVID-19 or the election.

“Reflecting the Company’s commitment to freedom of expression, YouTube will offer all creators an opportunity to rejoin the platform if the Company has terminated their channels for repeated violations of COVID-19 and election integrity policies that are no longer in effect.”

The document also acknowledges the importance of conservative voices on the platform and notes that creators “have broad reach and play an important role in civic discourse.”

It reveals that White House officials have pressured Google to remove content related to COVID-19 that did not violate the platform's policy.

This change comes after a year-long investigation by Republicans into big tech companies and censorship of content on social platforms related to COVID-19, the 2020 election, and Hunter Biden.

YouTube's decision follows similar moves by Meta last year, which abandoned the use of external fact-checkers after political pressure.

In parallel, Google announced that it would remain vigilant against foreign laws, including the Digital Services Act and the European Union's Digital Markets Act, which, according to it, impose "a disproportionate regulatory burden on American companies."

This policy shift and the presence of political pressure from the Biden administration sheds new light on how tech companies manage content and freedom of expression on their platforms.

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