Trump admin slams European censorship, stifled tech innovation

The Trump administration has been on a monthslong campaign railing against what it says are draconian censorship regulations in Europe that have not only stifled free speech, but have also served as another roadblock amid the artificial intelligence evolution. 

“In Europe, thousands are being convicted for the crime of criticizing their own governments,” the State Department recently posted to X, accompanied by a graphic slamming Europe’s Digital Services Act (DSA). “This Orwellian message won’t fool the United States. Censorship is not freedom.” 

The EU adopted the DSA in 2022 to regulate online platforms such as social networks, content-sharing platforms and app stores, and is intended to “prevent illegal and harmful activities online and the spread of disinformation.” The law has since faced opposition from the Trump administration amid its free speech promotion on the global stage. 

The State Department’s X post follows a monthslong campaign of Trump officials lambasting Europe for its strict rules that limit free speech – most notably online and in the world of AI and evolving tech.  

Fox News Digital spoke with Darren Beattie, acting under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, who explained that as the Trump administration takes a hatchet to restrictions and censorship – most notably online and left over from the Biden era – Europe has moved to intensify its censorship with laws such as DSA. 

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“As we are rolling back the censorship industry in the United States by actions like what the State Department did, what we did at the State Department killing the (Global Engagement Center), but it’s happening all across the administration,” he said. “What’s happening is Europe, the European Union and the UK are moving to pick up the slack. That is to say, as we’re pushing back the censorship regime domestically, it’s intensifying in Europe.” 

The Global Engagement Center was an office established within the State Department during the Obama era that was plagued by accusations of censorship while positioning itself as focused on countering foreign propaganda and disinformation. The Trump administration State Department shuttered the office earlier…