Year: 2024

Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s pro-censorship and anti-privacy “eSafety Commissioner,” has been criticized and accused of abandoning neutrality after she openly criticized former US President Donald Trump, labeling him a prolific source of “misinformation.”

Speaking at the Royal Society of NSW at Sydney’s Government House, Inman Grant, in her official capacity, described Trump’s online behavior as contributing significantly to the spread of false and misleading information.

“During his presidency, Donald Trump not only savagely abused foes online with impunity, but was identified as a major superspreader of mis- and disinformation,” she declared.

However, legal experts and free speech advocates have voiced concerns about the appropriateness of such pointed remarks by a government official tasked with neutral oversight of online safety.

As reported by Sky News, John Storey, Director of Law and Policy at the Institute of Public Affairs, emphasized that neutrality is paramount for public servants, especially for those like Inman Grant, who has significant influence over internet content regulation. “It’s inappropriate for any public servant to be as vocal as she has in being a partisan, in making partisan political comments.”

Inman Grant’s remarks extended to the broader landscape of online censorship. Despite online censorship ramping up to its peak during this period, Grant criticized major social media platforms for not censoring enough during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The unhinged fringe and conspiracy theorists spun mistruths more quickly than the government and journalists could uncover and report the facts and this came from both the right and the left,” she alleged.

Inman Grant has been at the forefront of efforts to regulate online speech. However, her approach has sparked significant controversy and debates over online censorship and free speech. Recently, her focus has been on forcing platforms like X to take down content.

Despite these efforts, she has faced challenges in court, with some legal actions being dropped due to their implications for global free speech and the complex nature of such enforcement​.

The post Australia’s Chief Censor Abandons Neutrality, Accuses Trump of Spreading Online “Misinformation” appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

Long-distance cables were severed across France in a move that disrupted internet connectivity.

Google is facing criticism after users reported that the search engine is refusing to fill in autocomplete results about the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.

The search engine giant’s autocomplete system ignored any references to the July 13 event, which has sparked outrage and allegations that Google is manipulating search outcomes favoring the upcoming presidential election.

Curiously, the screenshots taken from Google exhibited search suggestions linked to historic events, such as ex-President Ford’s and Ronald Reagan’s unsuccessful assassinations, along with the triggering assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, which initiated World War I, and more. The attempted assassination of Donald Trump was conspicuously missing.

The term “assassination attempt trump” turned up void on Google, according to multiple users’ accounts.

Google Search, July 29th 2024. The autosuggest omits references to President Trump.
DuckDuckGo Search, July 29th 2024. The autosuggest references President Trump.
Brave Search, July 29th 2024. The autosuggest references President Trump.

Donald Trump Jr. responded fervently via X, exclaiming, “Big Tech is trying to interfere in the election AGAIN to help Kamala Harris. We all know this is intentional election interference from Google. Truly despicable.”

The search engine giant denied any targeted action on their predictive results. A spokesperson stated, “No manual action was exercised on these predictions.” They further elaborated that Google’s systems are designed to filter autocomplete predictions connected to politically violent incidents, which had been functioning exactly as expected before the horrifying act took place. “We are striving to update our systems in order to accommodate such incidents more effectively,” they added.

It’s not just Google that is being questioned on its handling of important news. Meta’s AI said that it doesn’t always have up-to-date information and so couldn’t answer the question about President Donald Trump’s assassination attempt but could answer questions related to Vice President Kamala Harris’ Presidential campaign which was more recent than the attack on President Trump.

As the US presidential election approaches, it’s becoming clear that AI chatbots are steering clear of political discussions and breaking news, showing a hesitance to engage with such topics outside of the basics.

Big Tech companies are at the forefront of pushing for an AI revolution, aiming to integrate their AI systems deeply into everyday digital experiences. However, as these AI tools become more embedded in platforms like search engines and social media, their inability to handle politically sensitive content raises important questions about information accessibility and bias.

Such omissions could potentially influence public awareness and opinion, particularly in the politically charged environment of an upcoming presidential election. This incident has sparked a broader debate about the role of AI in filtering and shaping political information.

The post Tech Giants Face Scrutiny As Trump Assassination Attempt is Omitted From Autosuggest and AI appeared first on Reclaim The Net.