Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) are pushing for clarity about comments made by Meta (formerly Facebook) CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
In the comments, Zuckerberg indicated that before the presidential election in 2020, FBI officials approached the company with warnings about Russian disinformation, falsely implying or stating that the Hunter Biden laptop story was part of such a campaign. At the time, the FBI knew it was misleading the social media company because it had already examined the contents of Hunter’s laptop. Those contents include salacious photos and material related to Biden’s drug use and purchase of sex services. They also include references that some say show Hunter’s father, President Joe Biden, had knowledge about or was involved in Hunter’s controversial business dealings. At a time when Hunter was said to be deeply involved in illicit drugs and other questionable behavior, he was offered millions dollars business opportunities with government entities in Ukraine, China and elsewhere. Joe Biden has claimed no knowledge. However, Joe Biden also bragged that, as Vice President, he pressured Ukraine’s leader to fire a prosecutor that was investigating the corrupt gas company paying Hunter hundreds of thousands of dollars. Joe Biden says he did so because the prosecutor was corrupt. However, critics say he did so to protect his son and the Ukrainian corporation paying Hunter so much money.
Zuckerberg says that on the FBI’s advice, Facebook took “meaningful” steps to decrease distribution of news reports about Hunter’s laptop.
Zuckerberg’s statements came during his recent appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
The FBI basically came to us… [saying], ‘Hey, you should be on high alert. We thought that there was a lot of Russian propaganda in the 2016 election. We have it on a notice that there is about to be some kind of a dump that is similar to that, so be just vigilant.’ For the five or seven days when it was basically being determined whether it was false, the distribution on Facebook was decreased, but people were still allowed to share it,” Zuckerberg added. You could still share it, you could still consume it.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta/Facebook
Twitter went even further than Facebook, entirely censoring what turned out to be accurate stories and even deplatforming or cancelling violators.
Johnson and Grassley are now seeking records relating to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) and FBI’s contact with Facebook, Twitter and other social media companies relating to the Biden family, Hunter Biden’s laptop and supposed Russian disinformation around the time of the election.
They have also asked for the names of government and Facebook officials involved in these conversations.
The senators wrote the following in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray:
The FBI’s consistent efforts to falsely paint information relating to Biden Family misconduct as Russian disinformation continues to draw serious concerns, and those concerns are magnified by the FBI’s consistent failure to answer congressional inquiries. The FBI’s ill-conceived actions not only interfered in our congressional investigation by frustrating and obstructing our ability to advance the matters under review, it also interfered in the 2020 election.
Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)
The senators wrote separately to Zuckerberg seeking relevant records and the names of officials involved in the communications with the Justice Department and FBI.
They also ask for clarification surrounding the dates when Facebook decreased the distribution of articles relating to Hunter Biden’s laptop.
“The American people deserve to know whether the FBI used Facebook as part of their alleged plan to discredit information about Hunter Biden,” the senators wrote to Zuckerberg.
Read more about the letter here in an article in the New York Post.
The full text of the senators’ letter to Zuckerberg can be found here and below.
August 29, 2022
VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION
Mr. Mark Zuckerberg
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Meta Platforms, Inc.
Dear Mr. Zuckerberg:
In October 2020, when the New York Post published articles based on evidence from Hunter Biden’s laptop, many news and social media organizations inappropriately rushed to censor and discredit the initial reporting and falsely labeled it as “disinformation.”1 You recently appeared to indicate that the reason why Facebook made the unwise decision to censor articles about Hunter Biden’s laptop was based off an alert from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).2
On the August 25, 2022, episode of the podcast, the Joe Rogan Experience, you noted that at some point leading up to the 2020 election the FBI came to Facebook with a warning:
Basically the background here is the FBI, I think basically came to us – some folks on our team – and was like, ‘Hey, just so you know, you should be on high alert. We thought that there was a lot of Russian propaganda in the 2016 election. We have it on notice that basically there’s about to be some kind of dump that’s similar to that. So just be vigilant.’3
You appeared to indicate that as a result of the FBI’s warning, Facebook eventually took steps to censor news articles about Hunter Biden’s laptop.4 Specifically, you said that “distribution” of those articles on Facebook was decreased and explained that “the ranking and
1 Emma-Jo Morris and Gabrielle Fonrouge, Smoking-gun email reveals how Hunter Biden introduced Ukrainian businessman to VP dad, N.Y. POST (Oct. 14, 2020), https://nypost.com/2020/10/14/email-reveals-how-hunter-biden- introduced-ukrainian-biz-man-to-dad/; Alec Schemmel, Journalists lose face after NYT confirms Hunter Biden emails not Russian disinformation, THE NATIONAL DESK (Mar. 17, 2022), https://mynbc15.com/news/nation- world/journalists-lose-face-after-nyt-confirms-hunter-biden-emails-not-russian-disinformation.
2 #1863 – Mark Zuckerberg, The Joe Rogan Experience, SPOTIFY (Aug. 25, 2022), at 1:47:38 – 1:51:02; https://open.spotify.com/episode/51gxrAActH18RGhKNza598#login.
3 Id. at 1:47:58 – 1:48:23.
4 When asked whether the FBI specifically told Facebook to be “on guard” about articles on Hunter Biden’s laptop, you responded, “I don’t remember if it was that specifically but it basically fit the pattern.” Id. at 1:49:50 – 1:49:55; 1:47:38 – 1:51:02.
Mr. Mark Zuckerberg August 29, 2022 Page 2
newsfeed was a little bit less. So fewer people saw it than would have otherwise.”5 Although you noted that users could still share the articles, you clarified that the number of users who could see it decreased by a “meaningful” amount.6
Your revelation that Facebook took steps to censor information about Hunter Biden on its platform based on the FBI’s guidance raises even more questions about the FBI’s actions regarding Hunter Biden’s laptop. As you may know, whistleblowers have recently alleged to Senator Grassley that in August 2020, FBI officials initiated a scheme to downplay derogatory information on Hunter Biden for the purpose of shutting down investigative activity relating to his potential criminal exposure by labeling it “disinformation.”7 Whistleblowers have also alleged to Senator Johnson that local FBI leadership instructed its employees not to look at the Hunter Biden laptop immediately after the FBI had obtained it.8
The American people deserve to know whether the FBI used Facebook as part of their alleged plan to discredit information about Hunter Biden. If so, Congress and the American people require clarity with respect to the extent the FBI communicated with Facebook during the 2020 election about Hunter Biden-related information. With this in mind, please provide the following information no later than September 12, 2022:
1. All records9 between and among Facebook, FBI, Department of Justice, and other government agency employees referring or relating to Hunter Biden including, but not limited to, Russian disinformation, Hunter Biden’s laptop, and Senator Johnson’s and Senator Grassley’s investigation into Hunter Biden’s business dealings, from July 1, 2020 to July 1, 2021.
2. The names of the Justice Department and FBI officials who communicated with Facebook regarding Russian disinformation during the 2020 election.
3. The names of the Facebook officials who the Justice Department and FBI made contact with during the 2020 election.
4. The dates of when Facebook decreased the distribution of articles relating to Hunter Biden’s laptop.
5 Id. at 1:49:08 – 1:49:11; 1:48:47 – 1:48:58.
6 Id. at 1:49:17.
7 Press Release, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, Whistleblowers’ Reports Reveal Double Standard In Pursuit of Politically Charged Investigations By Senior FBI, DOJ Officials (July 25, 2022), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/whistleblowers-reports-reveal-double-standard-in-pursuit- ofpolitically-charged-investigations-by-senior-fbi-doj-officials.
8 Letter from Sen. Ron Johnson to Inspector Gen. Michael Horowitz, Dep’t. of Justice, (Aug. 23, 2022), https://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/services/files/7CD44E16-BF0B-495E-8B87-900467F69E50.
9 “Records” include any written, recorded, or graphic material of any kind, including letters, memoranda, reports, notes, electronic data (emails, email attachments, and any other electronically-created or stored information), calendar entries, inter-office communications, meeting minutes, phone/voice mail or recordings/records of verbal communications, and drafts (whether or not they resulted in final documents).
Mr. Mark Zuckerberg August 29, 2022 Page 3
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely,
Charles E. Grassley Ranking Member Committee on the Judiciary
cc: The Honorable Richard Durbin Chairman
Committee on the Judiciary
The Honorable Jon Ossoff
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
Ron Johnson
Ranking Member Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
The full text of the senators’ letter to the FBI and Justice Department can be found here and below.
August 29, 2022
VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION
The Honorable Merrick Garland Attorney General
Department of Justice
The Honorable Christopher Wray Director
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Dear Attorney General Garland and Director Wray:
Last week, Mark Zuckerberg provided additional details about the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) efforts to proactively reach out to Facebook during the 2020 presidential election to warn the company that there was “about to be” a “Russian propaganda” effort, and that the eventual Hunter Biden laptop reporting “basically fit the pattern” described by the FBI’s warning.1 According to Mr. Zuckerberg, apparently as a result of the FBI’s warning, for “5-7 days” after the reporting relating to Hunter Biden and his laptop, Facebook intentionally decreased the distribution of the reporting and limited the amount of people who could review the reports by a “meaningful” volume.2 Facebook wasn’t the only social media company that wrongfully suppressed Hunter Biden reporting; Twitter suspended the New York Post’s account because of its Hunter Biden reporting and blocked users from sharing the link to the Post’s articles relating to the laptop.3 Then-Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, stated in4 October 2020 that the Hunter Biden laptop was not part of a Russian disinformation campaign. As you are aware, even liberal news5outlets have now confirmed the authenticity of thousands of records on the Hunter Biden laptop.
1Thomas Barrabi, Mark Zuckerberg tells Joe Rogan Facebook was wrong to ban The Post’s Hunter Biden laptop story, N. Y. POST (Aug. 25, 2022), https://nypost.com/2022/08/25/mark-zuckerberg-criticizes-twitters-handling-of- the-posts-hunter-biden-laptop-story/; see also Alexander Hall & Alexa Moutevelis, FBI blasted after Zuckerberg revealed their waring ahead of the Hunter Biden laptop story: ‘Collusion’, FOX NEWS (Aug. 26, 2022), https://www.foxnews.com/media/fbi-blasted-after-zuckerberg-revealed-warning-ahead-hunter-biden-laptop-story- collusion.
2 #1863 – Mark Zuckerberg, THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE (Aug. 25, 2022) (accessed online), https://open.spotify.com/episode/51gxrAActH18RGhKNza598; When asked whether the FBI specifically told Facebook to be “on guard” about articles on Hunter Biden’s laptop, Mr. Zuckerberg responded, “I don’t remember if it was that specifically.” Id. at 1:49:50 – 1:49:55; 1:47:38 – 1:51:02.
3 Noah Manskar, Twitter, Facebook censor Post over Hunter Biden exposé, N. Y. POST (Oct. 14, 2020), https://nypost.com/2020/10/14/facebook-twitter-block-the-post-from-posting/.
4 Mark Moore, DNI John Ratcliffe says info on Hunter Biden laptop isn’t Russian disinformation, N. Y. POST (Oct. 19, 2020), https://nypost.com/2020/10/19/john-ratcliffe-info-on-hunter-biden-laptop-not-russian-disinformation/.
5 Katie Benner, Kenneth P. Vogel & Michael S. Schmidt, Hunter Biden Paid Tax Bill, but Broad Federal Investigation Continues, N. Y. TIMES (Mar. 16, 2022), https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/16/us/politics/hunter-
The FBI’s consistent efforts to falsely paint information relating to Biden family misconduct as Russian disinformation continues to draw serious concerns, and those concerns are magnified by the FBI’s consistent failure to answer congressional inquiries. As our August 25, 2022, letter made clear, in August 2020 the FBI provided an unnecessary and unsolicited briefing that was used by our Democratic colleagues to falsely paint our Biden investigation as advancing Russian disinformation.6 Our investigation was based on Obama/Biden administration records and included transcribed interviews of witnesses who were once employees of that administration. The FBI’s ill-conceived actions not only interfered in our congressional investigation by frustrating and obstructing our ability to advance the matters under review, it also interfered in the 2020 election.
In addition, whistleblowers have recently alleged to Senator Grassley that in August 2020, FBI officials initiated a scheme to downplay derogatory information on Hunter Biden for the purpose of shutting down investigative activity relating to his potential criminal exposure by labeling it “disinformation.”7 Whistleblowers have also alleged to Senator Johnson that local FBI leadership instructed employees not to look at the Hunter Biden laptop immediately after the FBI had obtained it.8 The American people deserve to know whether the FBI used Facebook or other social media companies as part of their alleged plan to discredit information about Hunter Biden.
Accordingly, please provide the following no later than September 12, 2022:
- All records relating to the Justice Department’s and FBI’s contact with Facebook, Twitter, and other social media companies relating to the Biden family, Senator Grassley’s and Senator Johnson’s Biden investigation, Hunter Biden’s laptop, and Russian disinformation from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2021.
- The names of the Justice Department and FBI officials who communicated with Facebook, Twitter, and other social media companies regarding Russian disinformation during the 2020 election.
- The names of the Facebook officials who the Justice Department and FBI made contact with during the 2020 election.
biden-tax-bill-investigation.html; see also Craig Timberg, Matt Viser & Tom Hamburger, Here’s how The Post analyzed Hunter Biden’s laptop, WASH. POST (Mar. 30, 2022), https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/03/30/hunter-biden-laptop-data-examined/.
6 Press Release, Grassley, Johnson Call on FBI to Explain Interference in Hunter Biden Investigation (Aug. 26, 2022), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-johnson-call-on-fbi-to-explain-interference-in- hunter-biden-investigation.
7 Press Release, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, Whistleblowers’ Reports Reveal Double Standard In Pursuit of Politically Charged Investigations By Senior FBI, DOJ Officials (July 25, 2022), https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/whistleblowers-reports-reveal-double-standard-in-pursuit- ofpolitically-charged-investigations-by-senior-fbi-doj-officials.
8 Letter from Sen. Ron Johnson, U.S. Senate, to Inspector Gen. Michael Horowitz, Dep’t. of Justice, (Aug. 23, 2022), https://www ronjohnson.senate.gov/services/files/7CD44E16-BF0B-495E-8B87-900467F69E50.
Page 2 of 3
Sincerely,
Page 3 of 3
Charles E. Grassley Ranking Member Committee on the Judiciary
Ron Johnson
Ranking Member Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
cc: The Honorable Richard Durbin Chairman
Committee on the Judiciary
The Honorable Jon Ossoff
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
The Honorable Michael Horowitz Inspector General
Department of Justice

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This article and Facebook, Twitter ? I was thinking of checking with Gloria Allred to see if she could take my case about these social media people violating third party anti-trust and browser privacy settings rights, when I did not have platform user agreements accounts with those people and did not have there App’s installed then or now ?, the Indiana attorney general in the past cyber crime activities file case # 14-cp-53387 advised me to seek attorney from then I was never able to find a attorney in Indiana to this day ? Anybody else in America would look into doing it ? Why should a whistle blower years later get the money when i have the log proof all along and tried to get something done about it ? I’m not sure if Gloria Allred is license to practice Law in Indiana. I know if this happened to a politician family member they would seek damages ? These social media people need to find something else in life to do ? Too intrusive ? ( Hidden Browser invasive penetration file logs ) ” Hmm ? what would Sharyl Attkission do Here ?