Last Updated on September 3, 2019
A lawyer for Google told the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that they stood by the decision by YouTube to place PragerU’s videos in restricted mode.
PragerU first sued Google in October 2017 after they discovered that over 100 of their videos were placed into “restricted mode”. This mode is meant for lewd and violent content, not for normal conservative content. This decision meant that users with restricted mode turned on, such as schools, would not be able to access those videos.
Eric George, the Managing Partner at Browne George Ross LLC, the law firm representing PragerU, explained the merits of their case in a video posted to PragerU’s YouTube channel, describing it as “the most important lawsuit in America right now”:
The case was originally dismissed in March by Obama-appointee Lucy Koh, who said that Google does not have to treat those who use its services equally. However, PragerU appealed, and the case was heard by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal last week. They raised $50,000 in 18 hours from online donations in order to fight the battle, as previously reported in the National File.
Peter Obstler, the lead council for PragerU, said that any suggestion their content was “obscene” or “violent”, was “an absolute insult to the intelligence of the American public”, but highlighted that PragerU was not “an existential threat to YouTube.”
You can watch the full appeal on, ironically, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal’s own YouTube channel, below:
Defenders of YouTube have argued that the case is irrelevant, as the First Amendment does not apply to them, and that only 2% of videos on their site are restricted. However, these users would at least number into the millions, including young children, who are then not exposed to conservative ideas.
Obstler said in a press conference that they would be back in court and fight on:
I am optimistic that we got a very fair hearing with three very able judges today. I believe they will do the right thing, and I believe that we will survive in federal court… Civil dialogue and civil discourse in an open way is the only thing that can keep our democracy going
In July, Dennis Prager, founder of PragerU, told the Senate Judiciary subcommittee that they “have repeatedly asked Google” why their videos were restricted, but that “no explanation is ever given.” Senator Ted Cruz, chair of the subcommittee, appeared on Fox News the day of the hearing to explain his position:
Google may well be the most powerful company on the face of the planet because they have a monopoly on information, on what you know and what I know. And not only that, but Google owns YouTube, which is the second-most popular website on the face of the planet. And the problem is, they use monopoly powers to silence voices they don’t like.
The National File has written extensively on YouTube’s censorious ways. After YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki said that all creators were welcome on their platform, they once again banned InfoWars. Conservative commentator James Allsup was also removed last week, and just today, we reported on the demonetisation of the “Warriors for Christ” channel. It is absolutely clear that Big Tech will continue to clamp down on the liberties of all Americans, and all people across the globe, if they are not stopped in court.
