Elon Musk supports congressional investigation after Twitter Files revelations
Journalists have released several installments of the 'Twitter Files' in recent weeks
Twitter Files show 'a lot to be concerned about': Peter Suderman
Reason Magazine's Peter Suderman discusses the seventh installment of the Twitter Files and how the FBI attempted to discredit Hunter Biden's business dealings on 'Kennedy.'
Elon Musk signaled support on Tuesday for a congressional investigation into alleged censorship efforts by the FBI and larger intelligence community after the latest batch of the "Twitter Files" was released.
Independent writer Michael Shellenberger used internal Twitter communications and public documents to argue that there was an "organized effort by representatives of the intelligence community" targeting news and social media companies to "discredit leaked information about Hunter Biden before and after" the New York Post published a story in October 2020 about his laptop.
"October 14, 2020, The New York Post runs its explosive story revealing the business dealings of President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. Every single fact in it was accurate," Shellenberger tweeted on Monday. "And yet, within hours, Twitter and other social media companies censor the NY Post article, preventing it from spreading and, more importantly, undermining its credibility in the minds of many Americans."
Shellenberger wrote that throughout 2020, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies "repeatedly primed" Twitter's former head of trust and safety Yoel Roth to "dismiss reports of Hunter Biden’s laptop as a Russian ‘hack and leak’ operation."
TWITTER REMOVES POLICY BANNING PROMOTION OF OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS FOLLOWING BACKLASH
Members of the intelligence community were routinely in contact with Roth and other Twitter executives about other news stories and alleged foreign election interference as well, according to Shellenberger.
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
Elon Musk gestures as he speaks during a press conference at SpaceX's Starbase facility near Boca Chica Village in South Texas on February 10, 2022. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Musk has enlisted Shellenberger and other journalists to publish the "Twitter Files." After part seven, former PayPal executive David Sacks tweeted that the U.S. needs a new Church Commission to investigate the intelligence community's alleged involvement in social media censorship, referencing a congressional panel that exposed abuses by the intelligence community in the 1970s.
"Hear, hear!!" Musk tweeted in response to Sacks.
Other installments of the "Twitter Files" have covered Twitter's standards on free speech during the 2020 election, shadowbanning on the platform, the permanent suspension of former President's Trump's account, and other issues.
Twitter Headquarters is seen in San Francisco, California, United States on November 22, 2022. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Republican lawmakers are preparing to potentially launch investigations ahead of retaking the House of Representatives next year.
"Everything’s on the table when it comes to the Twitter files," House Judiciary Committee spokesman said last week. "Stay tuned."
Fox News' Brian Flood and Haris Alic contributed to this report.