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The Republican-led House Judiciary Committee informed Meta Platforms on Monday the panel has expanded its investigation into Facebook and Instagram for potential free speech violations to include the social media giant's new app and Twitter rival, Threads.
The move is part of the committee's ongoing investigation into whether – and to what extent – the executive branch pressured or worked with private companies to stifle or tamp down certain kinds of speech at the request of the government, which could potentially be a violation of the First Amendment.
Mark Zuckerberg testifies before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Capitol Hill, April 11, 2018. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R, Ohio, said in a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg that since the committee's Feb. 15, 2023 subpoena to the company requesting materials related to its communications with the executive branch regarding content moderation, the committee has "obtained additional evidence that the federal government has coerced or colluded with technology, social media, and other companies to moderate content online."
Jordan pointed to a July 4 ruling by a federal judge that found the Biden administration likely violated the First Amendment during the COVID-19 pandemic by meeting with social media companies, including Meta, to discuss censorship.
"Given that Meta has censored First Amendment-protected speech as a result of government agencies’ requests and demands in the past, the Committee is concerned about potential First Amendment violations that have occurred or will occur on the Threads platform," Jordan wrote.
Rep. Jim Jordan informed Meta on Monday that its new Threads platform will now be included in the committee's investigation into potential free speech violations. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
"Indeed, Threads raises serious, specific concerns because it has been marketed as rival of Elon Musk’s Twitter, which has faced political persecution from the Biden Administration following Musk’s commitment to free speech," he added.
According to sources with direct knowledge of the situation, Jordan is considering holding Zuckerberg in contempt of Congress this month, because the documentation Meta has provided so far under the committee's original subpoena has been insufficient.
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Specifically, Jordan has requested Meta turn over any documents that include "internal meeting notes or discussions of government statements, requests, referrals, or recommendations related to content moderation, including certain documents commemorating findings and/or recommendations regarding whether to apply enforcement actions to purported disinformation."
Meta's new Threads platform, seen as a direct rival to Twitter, is now being investigated for potential censorship by House Republicans.
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A Meta spokesperson, when reached for comment by FOX Business, stated in response, "We have shared over 50,000 pages of documents in response to the committee’s request and have made nearly a dozen current and former employees available to discuss external and internal issues. We look forward to continuing to work with the committee moving forward."
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A source with direct knowledge told FOX Business that while Meta thus far has provided documents and responses to the committee, none of them include the specified internal communications Jordan is asking for.
FOX Business' Hillary Vaughn and Chase Williams contributed to this report.