Trump’s War on “Censorship” is a War on Civil Society

The Trump administration recently quietly directed U.S. consular officers to deny H-1B visas to highly skilled workers accused of involvement in “censorship.” In practice, the memo instructed consular officers to target anyone whose work touches online safety, including content moderators, disinformation researchers, trust and safety professionals, fact-checkers, and civil society experts who track foreign interference, extremism, and coordinated online manipulation. When asked to comment, a State Department spokesperson said “We do not support aliens coming to the United States to work as censors muzzling Americans.”

It’s a revealing moment: An administration that claims to fight “censorship” continues to muzzle and punish the very people and institutions that protect Americans from online abuse, digital exploitation, and foreign propaganda.

In response, on Thursday, our team filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request against the Department of State to obtain documents related to this policy, including internal communications, enforcement guidance, and the criteria used to determine whether an individual will face additional scrutiny because of their work on information integrity.

We are clear-eyed: FOIA is slow, procedural, and often painstaking. But democracy cannot survive in apathy. This FOIA request forces transparency, signals to the administration that the community is watching, and creates a permanent public record. In filing, we are also standing up on behalf of dozens of partners — most importantly our Council for Responsible Social Media members — who safeguard democracy, protect the online ecosystem, and counter digital threats.

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The Trump administration, fueled by key Republicans like Representative Jim Jordan and Senator Ted Cruz, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have repeatedly claimed that researchers and civil society organizations working on information integrity are “censoring Americans” and undermining democracy. At the same time, this administration has actively targeted these experts, dragging them before congressional hearings, dismantling critical infrastructure, and pressuring tech companies. The facts simply don’t support these claims. Investigations, court rulings, and public disclosures have repeatedly shown that the so-called “censorship industrial complex” does not exist. Yet dozens of civil society organizations and academic researchers continue to face retaliatory tactics designed to intimidate, drain resources, and silence dissent.

The administration has wielded a blatant carrot-and-stick approach with tech platforms, promising favorable policy outcomes for companies that weaken their content moderation and safety practices or threatening regulatory action for those who resist. Meanwhile, tech executives are happy to bend the knee and roll back key protections to curry favor. Ultimately, while publicly condemning researchers and civil society and halting visas for “censoring Americans,” the administration is simultaneously using its power to suppress independent analysis and intimidate the very people shining the light on the worst harms these companies wreak on society.

The civil society experts under attack and who are now being denied visas conduct peer-reviewed, public-facing research to understand foreign and domestic influence operations, the spread of false information and other digital ecosystem threats that undermine democracy. They do not enforce takedowns or censor content. Mischaracterizing their work as “censorship” is false, undermines public-interest research, abridges academic freedom, and chills the very inquiry necessary to protect democracy.

To be clear, the targets of this visa crackdown are not political actors with nefarious goals. They are partners who identify and mitigate some of the most serious online harms — from child sexual abuse material and human trafficking to coordinated foreign influence campaigns by our adversaries, like China and Russia. By threatening their ability to work in the U.S., the administration is weakening the very defenses that protect citizens, democratic institutions, and public trust in information.

The administration has wielded “censorship” to publicly justify policies under the guise of defending national security or the First Amendment. Yet, behind the scenes, these policies are being used to dismantle the systems, organizations, partnerships, and coalitions capable of holding the government and tech companies accountable. Civil society groups, researchers, and platforms that monitor online harms or promote information integrity are treated as targets rather than partners. In doing so, the administration is creating an environment where falsehoods persist, organizations are silenced, and civil society groups and researchers are neutralized.

Democracy erodes when those in power intimidate and dismantle civil society — but it is strengthened every time Americans push back. The Trump administration must answer to the American public and release records explaining how and why it crafted a policy to restrict H-1B applications for experts who work to shine the light on the worst online harms and improve American democracy. No administration is above the law, and transparency is how we hold power to account. By demanding answers, we send an unmistakable message: In this country, the people — not any administration — set the limits of power.

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