A new US government site could help users worldwide access blocked content

[DragonSlayer101]

The big picture: The US State Department is reportedly developing a website to give users in Europe and other regions access to content blocked by their governments. The site, to be hosted at freedom.gov, will operate under the direct supervision of Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers.

According to unnamed sources cited by Reuters, officials developing the portal plan to route all incoming traffic through US-based VPN servers, ensuring that visitors cannot be personally identified. The sources added that user activity will not be tracked on the site.

The report notes that some State Department officials have expressed concerns, arguing the project could further strain relations with European allies. Supporters, however, say the initiative is not intended to undermine foreign governments, but to promote free speech worldwide.

The Trump administration reportedly intended to announce the project at last week's Munich Security Conference, but the rollout was delayed for unspecified reasons. Sources say the launch was postponed after some State Department officials, including lawyers, raised concerns about the project's legality.

Speaking to Reuters, a State Department spokesperson said the program is designed to expand digital freedom worldwide, rather than specifically helping Europeans circumvent local censorship laws. The spokesperson also denied the reports of a delay and dismissed claims that State Department lawyers had raised legal concerns.

Donald Trump has been a vocal critic of recent EU regulations, such as the Digital Services Act, which restricts the posting, sharing, and even mentioning of content labeled as hate speech or misinformation. Trump administration officials have similarly criticized internet regulations in the EU, the UK, and elsewhere as infringements on free speech.

Britain's Online Safety Act has drawn criticism from both right-wing commentators and free speech advocates. Supporters argue the law protects vulnerable children and adults from online abuse, while critics contend that its age-verification requirements could inadvertently jeopardize the safety and careers of users.

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A new US government site could help users worldwide access blocked content

 

[pnntmp]

Fantastic!

Hurry up, because Europe is rapidly devolving into a 1984 -ish censorship dystopia

 

[Phylop]

How is this going to work? What's to stop other governments from simply blocking the site?

 

[NumberNine]

China is probably adding it to their firewall right now while Europe is probably cutting a deal to monitor access. You won't work around firewalls with a fixed domain. They will just block everything, including the VPN servers. Also, state sponsored VPN? Pass.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

This is straight out of a parody level stuff.

US government that tracks everyone (citizens and visitors) and suppresses speech (which speech depends on which party happens to be in power) is going to run a government website that funnels all free speech traffic through it.

I mean there are so many things wrong with this I don't even know where to begin.

 

[opckieran]

This will be blamed on Trump too.

 

[yRaz]

We're just gonna need your ID to make sure any kids aren't trying to access it

 

[human7]

We're just gonna need your ID to make sure any kids aren't trying to access it

Yeah, if it survives it's going to become quite the political football. If Dems win the election and repurpose the site to host "banned" books or LGBTQ materials Republicans love to complain about, I think it'd be hilarious.

 

[toooooot]

Fantastic!

Hurry up, because Europe is rapidly devolving into a 1984 -ish censorship dystopia

They are already there. I am not even talking about freedom of speech. The contempt
that is quite visible to certain groups like Christians, for example, is a huge warning for EU's future.
And in case any of you doubted my statement, I did not mean Christians as in the Pope or female priests
preaching about the wonders of abortion from the place that was supposed to be called church. I meant the other Christians, the one that do not bend their faith to agree with progressive values.

Truth hurts evil more than anything. And that is why many of EU countries are racing to limit as much of it as possible.

 

[opckieran]

They are already there. I am not even talking about freedom of speech. The contempt
that is quite visible to certain groups like Christians, for example, is a huge warning for EU's future.
And in case any of you doubted my statement, I did not mean Christians as in the Pope or female priests
preaching about the wonders of abortion from the place that was supposed to be called church. I meant the other Christians, the one that do not bend their faith to agree with progressive values.

Truth hurts evil more than anything. And that is why many of EU countries are racing to limit as much of it as possible.

Truly, we Americans (meaning the descendents of the settlers and founders of America) have less and less in common with our ancestors in Europe (who themselves aren't even the same peoples who created the free world anymore) by a long shot. All because we insisted on following the progressive mantra of celebrating depravity and babysitting/coddling the 3rd world. We threw away our beliefs and principles which brought us to success in the first place and got a Bad Bunny grind-fest in return. Lousy trade.

 

[VitalyT]

How is this going to work? What's to stop other governments from simply blocking the site?

Precisely my first thought. Nothing is gonna stop governments from blocking that website. In fact this is exactly what they are going to do as the first thing, making this whole idea utterly pointless.

 

[VaRmeNsI]

Won't this act like a honeypot for European governments to jail anyone visiting it?

 

[Theinsanegamer]

How is this going to work? What's to stop other governments from simply blocking the site?

If they ACTUALLY wanted to protect freedom of speech online, there are many things they could do. Passing laws and changing section 230A to make it illegal for platforms and webhosts to deny service for users over speech for one thing, or forcing payment processors to accept all legal transactions regardless of political stance is another.

It's about making it possible for political dissidents to voice their opinions without fear of arrest or being shutdown by payment processors, simply making a website to centralize stuff without fixing the underlying infrastructure is like painting a basement wall to cover up fracture lines.

Precisely my first thought. Nothing is gonna stop govenrments from blocking that website. In fact this is exactly what they are going to do as the first thing, making this whole idea utterly pointless.

I agree, with reservations. Kiwifarms is the devil incarnate to these kinds of people yet they have been unable to block it across Europe thanks to the insane games it's owner conducts to keep the site up, like having to make his own webhost and DDOS service because Cloudflare decided to capitulate to Twitter users.

If they still cant keep the New Zealand Food Production forums out of their countries, how much success will they have with the US government?

 

[FrancB]

You can't go to the US if you have criticised Donald before in your private social account, and this country is supposed to be the paragon of free speech?
Seriously this is hilarious.

 

[pnntmp]

You can't go to the US if you have criticised Donald before in your private social account, and this country is supposed to be the paragon of free speech?
Seriously this is hilarious.

This is 100% bull$hit

 

[pnntmp]

How is this going to work? What's to stop other governments from simply blocking the site?

Nothing will stop them. The 2nd main purpose of this site is to be a litmus test. If you can't access the website from your country - you're living in an authoritarian dictatorship. This will not surprise anyone with China, but many Europeans still believe they live in free societies. Clearly demonstrating that's not the case anymore will open their eyes. Europe can be saved, it's not too late, and it's great that the current US administration is willing to extend a hand.

 

[FrancB]

This is 100% bull$hit

This is the administration plan. Free speech is only what is politically correct for Republicans.
No wonder US tourism is "not so great" nowadays.

 

[urielejh]

Truly, we Americans (meaning the descendents of the settlers and founders of America) have less and less in common with our ancestors in Europe (who themselves aren't even the same peoples who created the free world anymore) by a long shot. All because we insisted on following the progressive mantra of celebrating depravity and babysitting/coddling the 3rd world. We threw away our beliefs and principles which brought us to success in the first place and got a Bad Bunny grind-fest in return. Lousy trade.

If you call that success...

 

[urielejh]

This is straight out of a parody level stuff.

US government that tracks everyone (citizens and visitors) and suppresses speech (which speech depends on which party happens to be in power) is going to run a government website that funnels all free speech traffic through it.

I mean there are so many things wrong with this I don't even know where to begin.

Yeah, aaaaand they are NOT going to track anyone... Lol

 

[R00sT3R]

..meanwhile in the US, masked men with guns roam the streets kidnapping people.

 

[pnntmp]

..meanwhile in the US, masked men with guns roam the streets kidnapping people.

kidnapping people, seriously? You may want to check what kidnapping means, but essentially if you kidnap someone your intention is to keep them. Here the idea is exactly the opposite - not to keep the illegal criminals, but to get rid of them as fast as possible.

As for the people with guns, each country has them. Better have them remove criminals from the streets, rather than arresting people for social media posts as it happens in many places in Europe.

 

[mikaelad]

Europe & USA relationship has really deteriorated to a new low. Something like this would have been about Russia or China just a year or two ago, now instead Europe is the enemy? Depressing and sad.

 

[pnntmp]

Europe & USA relationship has really deteriorated to a new low. Something like this would have been about Russia or China just a year or two ago, now instead Europe is the enemy? Depressing and sad.

Russia or China are dictatorships - they are already lost as far as freedom is concerned, a website won't help them. But Europe is a part of the civilized world (a founder, in fact) and it would be a real tragedy if it devolves into something even remotely resembling Russia or China. Authoritarianism has not metastasized everywhere in Europe yet, it's still salvageable, and definitely worth saving.
Europe is not an enemy, that's nonsense, it's the EU bureaucracy that's becoming an enemy of the populace.

 

[umeng2002]

Yeah, if it survives it's going to become quite the political football. If Dems win the election and repurpose the site to host "banned" books or LGBTQ materials Republicans love to complain about, I think it'd be hilarious.

No books are banned from public libraries. School libraries are different.

 

[Phylop]

Nothing will stop them. The 2nd main purpose of this site is to be a litmus test. If you can't access the website from your country - you're living in an authoritarian dictatorship. This will not surprise anyone with China, but many Europeans still believe they live in free societies. Clearly demonstrating that's not the case anymore will open their eyes. Europe can be saved, it's not too late, and it's great that the current US administration is willing to extend a hand.

Thank you. This is a very good point which I had not realized.