By Didi Rankovic

Does Google’s bold rejection of EU mandates signal a shifting balance of power between tech giants and censors?

It’s as good a time as any to effectively pull out of the EU’s “voluntary anti-disinformation” deal, which social media companies were previously strong-armed into accepting. And Google has now done just that.

The “strengthened” Code of Practice on Disinformation was introduced during the heyday of online censorship and government pressure on social platforms on both sides of the Atlantic – in June 2022, and at one point included 44 signatories.

One of those who in the meanwhile dropped out is X, and this happened shortly after Twitter was acquired by Elon Musk.

Now, as the “voluntary” code is formally becoming part of EU’s censorship law, the Digital Services Act (DSA), Google took the opportunity to notify Brussels it will not comply with the law’s requirement to include fact-checkers’ opinions in the search results, or rely on those to delete or algorithmically rank YouTube content.

Accepting these DSA requirements “simply isn’t appropriate or effective for our services,” Google’s Global Affairs President Kent Walker stated in a letter sent to European Commission’s Deputy Director-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology, Renate Nikolay, reports said.

At the same time, Google is withdrawing from “all fact-checking commitments in the Code” – this refers to the signatories working with “fact-checkers” across EU member-countries. The code also requires tech companies to flag content, label political ads, demonetizing users found to be “spreading disinformation,” etc.

Even though Google’s censorship apparatus does not use third-party “fact-checkers” as it is, the news that the company has decided to defy the EU on this issue is interpreted as yet more proof that social media giants are breaking free from some of the constraints imposed on them by the authorities over the past years.

Meta recently announced that its fact-checking scheme in the US was ending in order to make room for more free speech on Facebook and Instagram, but it remains a signatory of the Code in the EU.

It remains to be seen what decision Meta will make once that agreement becomes part of the DSA – the deadline for which is currently unknown.

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From the Daily Caller News Foundation

By Jason Hopkins

The Trump administration has cancelled all flights on refugees who were slated to enter the United States in the coming days, according to an internal memo obtained by CNN.

Refugees already approved to travel into the U.S. before a White House-imposed deadline suspending resettlement had their flight plans canceled anyway, according to a State Department memo given to resettlement partners and obtained by CNN. The flight cancellations are among the many actions the Trump administration has implemented to tighten immigration and shore up border security.

“All previously scheduled travel of refugees to the United States is being cancelled, and no new travel bookings will be made. RSCs [Resettlement Support Centers] should not request travel for any additional refugee cases at this time,” the memo announced.

The directive follows a day one executive order by President Donald Trump that temporarily suspends all refugee resettlement into the country.

In his executive order announcement, Trump highlighted the plight of small towns like Springfield, Ohio, and Charleroi, Pennsylvania, that have dealt with incredible logistical and infrastructure challenges due to the large influx of refugees. The president also noted that other major jurisdictions, like New York City and Massachusetts, have declared emergencies due to the weight of their migrant populations.

“The United States lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees, into its communities in a manner that does not compromise the availability of resources for Americans, that protects their safety and security, and that ensures the appropriate assimilation of refugees,” Trump said in his directive. “This order suspends the [U.S. Refugee Admissions Program] until such time as the further entry into the United States of refugees aligns with the interests of the United States.

While the executive order stated that it would go into effect at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on Jan. 27, it appears that flights are already being cancelled. An internal email reviewed by The Associated Press also indicated that “refugee arrivals to the United States have been suspended until further notice.”

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The decision to pause resettlement comes in sharp contrast to the previous administration, which had allowed incredibly high levels of refugees into the country — to the dismay of some local communities. The Biden administration allowed more than 100,000 refugees to settle in the U.S. throughout fiscal year 2024, the highest resettlement number in roughly three decades.

Local residents in Springfield, Ohio, and Charleroi, Pennsylvania — both towns which had received high numbers of refugees during the Biden administration — told the DCNF that the migrant influx had sparked an array of infrastructure challenges, such as a housing crisis, classroom shortages and more dangerous roadways.