House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) engineered some post-Independence Day fireworks by securing appearances from two executives whose companies are allegedly colluding to silence conservative voices in violation of antitrust laws.
Herrish Patel
Christian Juhl
Herrish Patel, President of Unilever USA, and Christian Juhl, Global Chief Executive Officer of GroupM, have agreed to testify Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. EST in a hearing titled “Collusion in the Global Alliance for Responsible Media.”
As previously reported exclusively, Breitbart News obtained letters from Jordan to Unilever and GroupM saying his committee has obtained documents showing both companies, as members of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media’s (GARM) Steer Team, are “closely involved in GARM’s efforts to boycott, demonetize, and censor disfavored viewpoints.”
Also testifying is Ben Shapiro of the Daily Wire, which along with Breitbart News and Fox News is a victim of GARM’s alleged censorship.
As Breitbart News previously reported:
GARM is an initiative of the powerful World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), which, according to its website, “represents over 150 of the world’s biggest brands and more than 60 national advertiser associations worldwide.” GARM was established in 2019 in Cannes, France – home of the film festival frequented by ultra-liberal Hollywood jet set elites – “to address the challenge of harmful content on digital media platforms and its monetization via advertising.”
The executives are unlikely to receive a warm welcome from committee Republicans, who have obtained receipts in the form of a plethora of documents and communications detailing GARM’s coordinated actions.
Breitbart has learned Republicans are expected to press the executives on GARM’s collaboration to silence, demonetize, and deplatform conservative voices and media outlets, potentially in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and seeming to exceed far beyond the organization’s stated aim to promote “brand safety.”
Specifically, Republicans will zero in on GARM’s organized boycott to stop paid advertisement on Twitter, now X, after Elon Musk acquired the company, the organization’s threats to Spotify after popular podcaster Joe Rogan opined that young, healthy people may not need a COVID-19 vaccine, and its schemes to expand its methods into the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence.
Additionally, Republicans are expected to press GARM on its efforts to weaponize its influence by suppressing political advertisements, including from Donald Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign. (Read more: Breitbart, 7/)*/2024) (Archive)