Email Trove Reveals Amazon 'Censored' Vaccine Books After Pressure from White House, Jim Jordan Says
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan has released a trove of internal documents that he claims show Amazon engaging in censorship of COVID-19 content under pressure from President Biden's administration.
Internal Documents Reveal White House Pressure on Amazon
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, a Republican from Ohio, has released a collection of internal emails and messages between Amazon employees that he claims demonstrate that the Biden administration's White House pressured the company to censor books that expressed viewpoints not approved by the administration. The documents, known as 'The Amazon Files,' were obtained through a series of subpoenas.
Jordan detailed the contents of these documents in a thread on X and highlighted emails and messages that showcased the communication between Amazon and the White House on this issue.
White House Officials Alarmed by Search Results
According to the obtained documents, White House officials raised concerns about search results on Amazon that they deemed inappropriate. Andrew Slavitt, a former White House senior advisor for COVID-19 response, sent an email on March 2, 2021, asking who they could talk to about the 'high levels of propaganda and misinformation and disinformation of Amazon.'
Slavitt also expressed concerns about search results related to vaccines and noted the absence of a 'CDC warning' on content deemed problematic by the administration.
Amazon Initially Resisted, but Later Agreed to Meet White House Officials
Initially, Amazon executives resisted the pressure from the White House and declined to intervene manually in search results. However, on March 9, 2021, Amazon agreed to a meeting with administration officials after feeling 'pressure from the White House,' according to Jordan. On the same day, Amazon implemented a 'Do Not Promote' policy for books skeptical of vaccines.
Amazon has not yet provided a comment on these allegations, while the White House defended its actions, stating that tech companies like Amazon make independent choices about the information they promote. Jordan has launched a congressional investigation to further examine the extent of censorship at Amazon.
