YouTube Deletes Jan. 6 Committee Post for Spreading Election Disinformation

YouTube spokesperson Ivy Choi stated that “our election integrity policy prohibits content that makes false claims about widespread fraud, errors, or glitches changing the outcome of 2020 U.S. Presidential Election.” We enforce our policies equally for all.

YouTube has been used for years to spread false information about vaccines and election results. 

The company started to crack down on disinformation regarding the coronavirus, and the effectiveness of vaccines. Trump’s campaign to overturn the results of the 2020 election, as well as the campaign by his supporters, forced the company into further examination of its role in broadcasting false claims that could undermine voters’ faith in elections.

YouTube’s policies were changed to ban claims the election was stolen or fraudulent in the wake of the 2020 election. YouTube removed Trump’s channel from the platform in the days following Jan. 6. This was also done by Twitter and Facebook on their respective sites.

Company leaders repeatedly stated that they do not want to be political gatekeepers or censors. They have instead tried to create policies that can be enforced in a neutral manner. This appears to have been the motivation behind the Jan. 6 clip being taken down by the Jan.6 committee.