Attor­ney Gen­er­al Ken Pax­ton Secures Major Win Along­side the FTC to Stop Adver­tis­ing Agen­cies that Con­spired to Cen­sor Con­ser­v­a­tive Com­men­ta­tors, News[...]

Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a landmark multistate antitrust lawsuit against several major advertising agencies to combat unlawful media censorship and protect Americans' First Amendment rights. Simultaneously, he secured a historic settlement that will prevent three major advertising agencies from engaging in this type of unlawful action. Attorney General Paxton secured this settlement alongside the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") and several other state attorneys general.

As individuals' speech and journalism increasingly moved online over the last decade, many organizations and large corporations began conspiring ways to suppress certain viewpoints. Online censorship in recent years has involved suppressing disfavored opinions as "misinformation" and has included lobbying digital advertisers to refrain from funding sites that host or share such content. These coordinated efforts have limited the reach of conservative voices and resulted in reduced ad revenue for many publishers. Individuals and companies targeted throughout the years include prominent figures such as Charlie Kirk, Glenn Beck, and Steve Bannon, as well as companies like Fox News and the social media platform X.

In addition to the lawsuit, Attorney General Paxton secured a monumental settlement with three of these advertising agencies to stop this anticompetitive conduct and protect First Amendment rights. Among other things, the three defendants-Dentsu US, Inc., GroupM Worldwide LLC (d/b/a WPP Media), and Publicis, Inc.-have now agreed not to enter into or enforce any agreement restricting advertising agencies' ability to do business with any media publisher based on its news and political or social commentary content. They also agreed not to enter into or enforce any agreement to direct or limit their advertising spend based on, among other things, political or ideological viewpoints or DEI commitments. The defendants also agreed not to rely on exclusion or exclusion lists based on these same criteria. In addition, defendants will be subject to a court-ordered monitor to conduct regular oversight and ensure they comply with these commitments.

"Freedom of speech is foundational to American liberty. A coordinated group of woke, powerful individuals attempted to suppress that Constitutional right by manipulating ad agencies into sabotaging the reach, revenue, and credibility of conservative voices," said Attorney General Paxton. "This is a deeply disturbing violation of antitrust laws and our Constitution. This was an egregious attempt to control public opinion and silence those who speak out against the liberal elites and powerful corporations. I will continue to lead the fight against viewpoint suppression and protect the speech of Americans from corrupt manipulation."

To read the lawsuit, click here. The settlements with the defendants are subject to court approval and have been filed as proposed orders.