Political commentator Clay Travis said this week that YouTube blocked a video of his interview with Republican Sen. Rand Paul (KY), who is an eye doctor.
“YouTube has refused to post our @clayandbuck interview with @RandPaul,” Travis wrote in a tweet on Sunday. “This is madness.”
YouTube has refused to post our @clayandbuck interview with @RandPaul. Think about this for a moment: YouTube is disallowing a doctor and sitting US senator’s interview to be shared. This is madness.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 24, 2022
“Regardless of what you think of @RandPaul’s opinions, he is one of 100 democratically elected senators. It’s the very antithesis of democracy to not allow American voters to hear the opinions of their elected officials. YouTube should be ashamed,” he added in a separate tweet.
Regardless of what you think of @RandPaul’s opinions, he is one of 100 democratically elected senators. It’s the very antithesis of democracy to not allow American voters to hear the opinions of their elected officials. YouTube should be ashamed.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 24, 2022
In the interview, which was posted to video-sharing platform Rumble, Paul discussed Wuhan coronavirus mandates, the Omicron variant, and President Biden’s Chief Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci.
In a statement to The Hill on Monday, Paul’s office said that YouTube’s decision to censor his interview with Travis is “exactly why I decided to leave YouTube.”
"The truth comes from disputation and those who believe the marketplace of ideas is a prerequisite for innovation should shun the close-minded censors and take our ideas elsewhere," the Republican senator said.
Colorado GOP Rep. Ken Buck chimed in on Twitter, saying that it’s time to break up Big Tech companies.
#BigTech just blocked a video of Sen. @RandPaul from being uploaded to YouTube.
— Rep. Ken Buck (@RepKenBuck) January 24, 2022
There is only one way to handle Big Tech's targeted censorship--it's time to break them up. https://t.co/2RBuSNaUPy
In my interview with Buck last June, he told Townhall that he’s working on legislation aimed at holding unregulated Big Tech companies accountable for anti-competitive, monopolistic behavior. Additionally, he is pushing legislation that would require interoperability between social media platforms so users can easily transfer content to a competitor.