US Congress seeks testimony from Australia's internet regulator

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In a letter dated November 18, House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, a Republican, accused Australian eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant of colluding with pro-censorship bodies by participating in a Stanford University panel of "foreign officials who have directly targeted American speech and represent a serious threat to the First Amendment."

A number of large internet companies, mostly based in the U.S., have lately protested against a host of Australian online rules, including a social media ban for children under the age of 16.

X owner Elon Musk, a former adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, has called Grant a "censorship commissar" over her efforts to restrict some social media posts in Australia. He has called the youth social media ban - which will be enforced by Grant's office starting on December 10 - a surveillance tool.

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The letter said Grant gave a speech at Stanford in September where attendees and panelists included "officials from some of the entities with the worst track records of extraterritorial censorship, including the European Union and Brazil."

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https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/us-congress-seeks-testimony-australias-internet-regulator-2025-11-20/