Shut Your App: How Uncle Sam Jawboned Big Tech Into Silencing Americans - October 8, 2025

The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, chaired by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), convenes this full committee hearing to scrutinize the practice of "jawboning"—where government agencies covertly pressure major technology platforms to suppress protected speech under the First Amendment. Drawing from a recent Senate report exposing the Biden administration's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) for orchestrating secret censorship campaigns against dissenting voices, the session delves into historical and contemporary examples of federal overreach in digital spaces. Witnesses will testify on the chilling effects on free expression, the risks of extending such tactics to emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, and potential bipartisan legislative reforms to prevent future encroachments on American liberties. Scheduled for 10:30 AM ET in Washington, D.C., the hearing underscores the urgent need to protect an open internet as a cornerstone of democracy.
Witnesses:
Mr. Alex Berenson, Independent Journalist and Author
Mr. Sean Davis, Chief Executive Officer, The Federalist