TYLER, Texas (CN) — Conservative media groups and the state of Texas filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against the Biden administration's Department of State, arguing officials have engaged in a conspiracy to censor media outlets they find “disfavorable.”
The Daily Wire and FDRLST Media, the owner of The Federalist, accused the State Department of using its Global Engagement Center to censor its content online. The media groups filed their 67-page complaint against Secretary of State Antony Blinken and top officials at the Global Engagement Center in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas.
The Global Engagement Center is an agency housed within the Bureau of Global Public Affairs at the State Department, whose directive is to counter foreign propaganda and disinformation efforts in the United States. Despite the agency’s focus on foreign media influence, the conservative news sites say companies such as NewsGaurd Technologies and Global Disinformation Index, which partner with the the Global Engagement Center, have listed them as disseminators of disinformation.
“[The Daily Wire and FDRLST Media] are branded “unreliable” or “risky,” argued the plaintiffs, "by the government-funded and government-promoted censorship enterprises of GDI and NewsGuard, injuring media plaintiffs by starving them of advertising revenue and reducing the circulation of their reporting and speech…”
As recently as last year, Global Disinformation Index had placed both media companies on a list of “riskiest sites,” which also includes other conservative news providers such as Newsmax, One America News Network and The American Conservative.
The plaintiffs claim in their complaint that these actions hurt their bottom line by diminishing their visibility on social media and ranking in search results.
The State Department has not responded to a request for comment.
While Texas is sympathetic to the news outlets’ claims of censorship, a claim unique to the state makes it a party in the lawsuit: that the State Department’s censorship scheme has undercut an anti-social media censorship statute.
Enacted into law in 2021, House Bill 20 labels sites with over 50 million active monthly users as common carriers, restricting them from blocking or removing viewpoint-based content posted to their sites by users in Texas. The plaintiffs are contending that the State Department’s actions have hampered the state’s ability to properly enforce HB 20.
“The State Department’s mission to obliterate the First Amendment is completely un-American,” said Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a statement. “This agency will not get away with their illegal campaign to silence citizens and publications they disagree with.”
HB 20 has, since it was passed, been challenged by internet trade groups who argue it harms the First Amendment rights of social media companies to moderate content posted to their sites.
The law was upheld as constitutional by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, creating a differing opinion from that of the Eleventh Circuit which struck down a similar law in Florida. In September, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take up, after the circuit split, and determine whether the laws are constitutional.
The media companies and the state are asking a federal judge to declare the Global Engagement Center's funding and use of the anti-disinformation technologies as a violation of their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and press as well as the state’s right to properly enforce its laws.
Furthermore, the plaintiffs seek a declaration that the center has defied its congressional mandate of countering foreign propaganda, by taking actions against American news media outlets. A preliminary and permanent injunction, blocking the State Department from continuing its activities against the plaintiffs, has also been requested.
Both of the media companies have faced accusations from fact-checkers and academics of sharing false or misleading stories regarding Covid-19 and the 2020 presidential election. Moreover, both have proliferated conservative philosophies such as opposition to equality for LGBTQ+, abortion and immigration.
Since its founding in 2015, The Daily Wire has grown into an expansive media empire. The company hosts several personalities within the conservative movement including Candace Owens, Matt Walsh and Ben Shapiro — who is also the company’s co-founder. On its website, the company publishes news stories, podcasts and documentary films, all with a “right of center” bias that it acknowledges in its complaint. The company launched a streaming service, DailyWire+, last year.
The Federalist has maintained an online news outlet since 2013. Topics covered on the site include coverage of international and national news, entertainment, religion and culture. Like The Daily Wire, The Federalist identifies itself as rightward leaning but says it adheres to journalistic standards.
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