Trump’s Federal Agencies Appointments Disregard Internet Freedoms Fundamentals 

President Trump’s focus on immigration, abortion rights, and democracy, and the fearful alarms raised with the list of experts appointed in his second administration to key agencies such as FCC and FTC, are signaling tighter regulation of internet freedoms.  

As President Trump’s prepares to take office, the selections for his administration’s policies could have a detrimental effect on the US’ internet freedom of speech. 

Trump’s FCC Freedom of Speech and Internet 

Brendan Carr, a current Federal Communication Commission (FCC) commissioner, and vocal Big Tech critic, has been selected by Trump to lead the media agency. Known as “a warrior for free speech,” Carr already portrays himself as a challenger of Big Tech policies. 

Many fear Carr because his target has always been speech on the internet, and that’s why experts fear that he might limit speech freedom in internet expression. 

“He’s going to try to turn the FCC into the online speech police,” director of the digital rights advocacy group Fight for the Future, Evan Greer told Al Jazeera. 

Project 2025, a right-wing governance guide for the incoming administration, includes a segment written by Brendan Carr advocating for the FCC to scrap Section 230’s current approach, this gives extended exemption for liability of user-generated content for platforms and allows companies to moderate content on their sites.  

Carr argues that reforms should cut back the ability of companies to moderate posts reflecting certain political viewpoints to achieve greater internet freedom. He earlier expressed anger at fact-checking services, which he called part of the “censorship cartel”. 

FTC Nominee and Censorship 

Andrew Ferguson, Trump’s nominee to head the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), is also a vocal critic of Silicon Valley’s Big Tech, accusing companies of censoring conservative speech, pledging to limit such practices by using antitrust laws to sue tech companies amplifying topics like LGBTQ+ rights and abortion to suppress opposing viewpoints. 

Matt Wood, vice president of policy at the nonprofit Free Press, said that would give a megaphone to right-wing voices and squash others. Like Carr, experts say Ferguson would use his agency to ensure restoring internet freedom order on their way by making conservative viewpoints get loud, while limiting the opposition. 

Civil Rights Division for Internet Freedoms 

Harmeet Dhillon, Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, has been quite vocal against any “woke policies.” 

Already, Dhillon had been an outspoken critic of technology companies and their freedom on the internet. As head of the Civil Rights Division, Dhillon might use the courts to go after tech platforms and push them to permit more damaging speech, especially toward minority and left-wing communities. 

Judging by her past actions, her leadership could change the landscape of internet freedoms of speech. 

Trump’s Declaration of Internet Freedom 

Trump’s advisors, including Elon Musk and David Sacks, also had their fair share of attacks on the censorship of conservative voices online.  

Meanwhile, Kash Patel, appointed to head the FBI, suggested targeting dissenting journalists with surveillance to tamp down disagreement, adding another layer of how Trump’s upcoming administration’s view on self-censorship and internet freedoms limitations. 

A déjà vu echoing the first Trump administration’s monitoring of Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists limiting free expression with long-term consequences for digital rights and free speech. 

Final Thoughts 

After a wave of optimism considering a new era under Trump’s leadership, especially in terms of technological innovation and internet freedoms, the landscape is shifting.  

The potential limitations of freedom of speech are casting a shadow over that optimism.  

The approach of Trump to regulate internet freedom of speech could change the fundamentals of the tech industry in the US. By limiting freedom of expression, the Powerhouse of the world is losing its grip its top leader reigns compared to other countries with internet freedom and innovation. 

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