Independent journalist Megyn Kelly ripped social media platforms Facebook and Twitter along with the press on Friday, accusing them of effectively rigging the election in favor of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden by “actively suppress[ing]” major stories about Biden’s son. “We can argue [regarding] voting procedures, but let’s be clear: this was nothing close to a ‘fair’ election,” she charged.
Kelly took to Twitter to point out the inconsistency between the tech companies and media’s treatment of stories on Hunter Biden’s foreign business ties before and after Nov. 3. Prior to the election, the tech giants censored stories on the former vice president’s son’s business deals in Ukraine, China, and elsewhere. Media outlets such as NPR dismissed the stories as “pure distractions,” while others falsely suggested they were part of a Russian misinformation campaign.
“The Hunter Biden story was actively suppressed by @jack, FB & virtually all media — the same ones now lecturing us on how the election was fair. We can argue re voting procedures, but let’s be clear: this was nothing close to a ‘fair’ election,” Kelly said, linking to an article from Politico outlining a federal investigation into Hunter Biden’s business dealings as well as an investigation into a healthcare company with ties to James Biden, Joe Biden’s younger brother.
The Hunter Biden story was actively suppressed by @jack, FB & virtually all media—the same ones now lecturing us on how the election was fair. We can argue re voting procedures, but let’s be clear: this was nothing close to a “fair” election. https://t.co/rD1GgxWuJR
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) December 11, 2020
In a series of articles in October, the New York Post published emails from Hunter Biden’s laptop, dropped off at a Delaware shop for repairs and never retrieved. One email suggested that Biden’s father stood to benefit from one potential Chinese energy executive. Those suspicions were supported in a public statement by Tony Bobulinski, Biden’s former business partner. Bobulinski alleged in part:
What I am outlining is fact. I know it is fact because I lived it. I am the CEO of Sinohawk Holdings which was a partnership between the Chinese operating through CEFC/Chairman Ye and the Biden family. I was brought into the company to be the CEO by James Gilliar and Hunter Biden. The reference to “the Big Guy” in the much publicized May 13, 2017 email is in fact a reference to Joe Biden. The other “JB” referenced in that email is Jim Biden, Joe’s brother.
Hunter Biden called his dad “the Big Guy” or “my Chairman,” and frequently referenced asking him for his sign-off or advice on various potential deals that we were discussing. I’ve seen Vice President Biden saying he never talked to Hunter about his business. I’ve seen firsthand that that’s not true, because it wasn’t just Hunter’s business, they said they were putting the Biden family name and its legacy on the line.
The stories were largely ignored by prominent media outlets and censored by Facebook and Twitter over alleged violations to the platforms’ terms of service.
“While I will intentionally not link to the New York Post, I want be clear that this story is eligible to be fact checked by Facebook’s third-party fact checking partners. In the meantime, we are reducing its distribution on our platform,” Facebook spokesman Andy Stone tweeted on Oct. 14. “This is part of our standard process to reduce the spread of misinformation. We temporarily reduce distribution pending fact-checker review.”
For his part, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey later expressed regret for the way his platform handled the Biden email stories.
“We made a quick interpretation using no other evidence that the materials in the article were obtained through hacking, and according to our policy, we blocked them from being spread. Upon further consideration, we admitted this action was wrong and corrected it within 24 hours,” Dorsey testified during a November Senate hearing.
Related: Major Networks Follow Facebook, Twitter Lead Ignoring Hunter Biden Scandal