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Free Expression

Quinn: White House asks Silicon Valley for terrorism help

Mercury News:

They came to ask, not to force or threaten.

On Friday, top U.S. national security officials met with leaders in Silicon Valley seeking ideas for ways to curtail terrorists’ use of social media and to use technology to “disrupt paths to radicalization to violence.”

“It sounds like there is a strong focus on counter-messaging, and that’s a good thing,” said Emma Llanso, director of the Center for Democracy & Technology’s Free Expression Project. “What’s not clear is whether the government is also talking about content censorship. That would raise big concerns. All the companies have rules for content moderation. But when you start involving government activity — whether government is pushing for changes or pursuing content removal but not through the courts or in a way that ensures due process — the potential consequences for users gets more severe.”

Full article here.