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DHS pauses its “Disinformation Governance Board”

Its future is now uncertain.

After being threatened with legal action, accused of being a violation of the First Amendment, and facing mass condemnation, the US Department of Homeland Securityā€™s (DHSā€™s) ā€œDisinformation Governance Boardā€ has been paused and its head, Nina Jankowicz, has resigned.

Jankowicz told Wall Street Journal reporter Dustin Volz that the future of the Disinformation Governance Board is uncertain and that sheā€™ll be returning to her work in the public sphere.

The Disinformation Governance Board wasĀ announced on April 27Ā and its goal was to ā€œfight disinformation.ā€ After the announcement, critics quickly highlighted Jankowiczā€™s many past comments on free speech, censorship, and misinformation.

In an interview posted just two days before she was named as head of the Disinformation Governance Board, Jankowicz commented on Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Muskā€™s proposed Twitter acquisition by tweeting: ā€œI shudder to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms, what that would look like for the marginalized communities, which are already shouldering disproportionate amounts of this abuse.ā€

Some of Jankowiczā€™s other past comments include her claiming that ā€œā€˜free speech vs censorshipā€™ framing is a false dichotomy,ā€Ā sayingĀ verified users like her should be able to edit tweets to provide ā€œcontext,ā€ andĀ supportingĀ the UK government setting standards for acceptable speech.

Days after the Disinformation Governance Board was announced,Ā a bill was introduced to dissolve it. 20 states alsoĀ threatened legal actionĀ and described the Board as an ā€œunacceptable and downright alarming encroachment on every citizenā€™s right to express his or her opinions, engage in political debate, and disagree with the government.ā€

Amid mounting pressure and criticism, DHS Secretary Alejandro MayorkasĀ claimed that the Disinformation Governance Board would somehow protect free speech.

While criticism of the Board was focused on Jankowiczā€™s past comments and the potential of the board to chill online speech, Jankowicz framed this criticism as ā€œmischaracterizations of the Boardā€ which ā€œbecame a distraction from the Departmentā€™s vital workā€ after announcing her resignation.

Some mainstream media outlets have gone even further with The Washington PostĀ claimingĀ that Jankowicz was ā€œthe victim of coordinated online attacksā€ and that ā€œthe Biden administration let right-wing attacks derail its disinformation effort.ā€

Although the Disinformation Governance Boardā€™s future is uncertain, this Board followed several online censorship and surveillance efforts backed by the DHS. Before the Board was even announced, the DHSĀ increased its efforts to identify ā€œmisinformationā€ and ā€œconspiracy theoriesā€ on social media, wasĀ accused of mass surveilling money transfers, andĀ branded online ā€œmisinformationā€ a terrorism threat to the U.S. homeland.ā€

And according to a DHS staffer cited by The Washington Post, the DHS is ā€œgoing to need another Nina down the road.ā€

 

Source: DHS pauses its “Disinformation Governance Board”

 

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