VIDEO: Blackburn Calls Out Big Tech Companies for Exposing Children to Unwanted Explicit Images and Censoring Conservatives

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) delivered remarks on the Senate floor slamming Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for his deceptive testimony during the landmark social media trial in Los Angeles. She also discussed reports that Apple News systematically suppressed right-leaning news publications while amplifying left-leaning publications.

Click here to download Senator Blackburn's remarks on the Senate floor.

EXCERPTS OF REMARKS AS PREPARED

On New Court Documents Showing 1 in 5 Teens Encountered Unwanted Nudity on Instagram

"New court documents made public last week revealed that nearly 1 in 5 young teenagers report seeing "nudity or sexual images on Instagram" that they didn't want to see. 1 in 5."

"That's just one shocking fact that we have learned through a landmark trial in California that is focused on how social media platforms harm American children."

"It is appalling what these companies have done. Yet when he testified last week, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg doubled down on his record of denial-while sitting just feet away from parents who have tragically lost their children to social media harms."

"Once again, Zuckerberg asserted that there is no link between youth social media use and worse mental health outcomes. But Meta's own research has shown the exact opposite."

On Apple News Censoring Right-Leaning Publications

"According to shocking new reports, Apple has suppressed right-leaning publications while boosting left-leaning outlets, turning the app into a tool of political propaganda for the left."

"The Media Research Center, a watchdog group, analyzed every story featured by the app during the mornings of January 1 to January 31."

"Of the 620 top stories featured, 440 were published by left-leaning outlets. The remainder came from centrist or unaffiliated sources. Zero stories were published by right-leaning outlets. Zero."

"A separate study analyzed stories featured on Apple News over a two-week span in October and once again found zero articles from right-leaning publications. Fifty-four percent came from left-leaning sources."

"We've seen this playbook before. For more than a decade, social media platforms suppressed conservative speech."

"If you objected to the far-left BLM movement, you were banned."

"If you reported on Hunter Biden's laptop and his foreign entanglements-like the New York Post did just days before the 2020 election-your posts were suppressed."

"This censorship undermined the free and open debate that has sustained our nation for 250 years."

"Apple has another thing coming if they think Big Tech can pull this off again."

RELATED

• Blackburn Statement on Zuckerberg Testimony in Landmark Social Media Trial

• Blackburn Presses Apple on Suppression of News Articles from Conservative Publications