US House panel subpoenas tech giants over foreign communications

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. House Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed eight major technology companies, including Alphabet, Meta, Apple and X Corp, seeking details about their communications with other countries over fears of foreign censorship, it said on Thursday.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, a Republican, sent the subpoenas on Wednesday and also included Amazon, Microsoft, Rumble and TikTok, according to the statement.

“The Committee must understand how and to what extent foreign governments have limited Americans’ access to lawful speech in the United States,” Jordan said in a statement announcing the subpoenas.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the company is engaged with the committee and committed to working in good faith.

Tim Murtaugh, a spokesperson for Rumble, said the company had received the subpoena. “We look forward to sharing information related to the ongoing efforts of numerous governments around the globe who seek to suppress the innate human right to self-expression,” he said.

Spokespeople for the other companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.

Jordan pointed to laws in the United Kingdom and other countries in Europe, as well as a proposed law in Australia that could require U.S. tech platforms to remove content deemed harmful by foreign regulators.

The concern is the restrictions could affect what content companies allow in the U.S., Jordan wrote.

The subpoenas seek information on the companies’ compliance with foreign laws, regulations, or judicial orders.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Alexandra Alpert in Washington and Jody Godoy in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Deepa Babington and Daniel Wallis)