Watchdog sues FBI for 'Twitter Files' records

Watchdog group Protect the Public's Trust (PPT) on Thursday sued the FBI for denying its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests connected the bureau's alleged involvement in censoring Americans.

"The FBI has gone to great lengths to keep these documents out of view," PPT Director Michael Chamberlain said. "Just one portion of the Twitter files garnered 56 million views. Undoubtedly, there is tremendous public interest in the disclosure of these records."

"The public knows there are responsive communications, and it even knows who was communicating in some cases," he continued. "Stonewalling PPT’s FOIA requests only furthers the public’s suspicions that the FBI’s law enforcement authorities were in fact being used for not only nefarious but partisan purposes."

The group has repeatedly sought records from the bureau related to the allegations as outlined in the Twitter Files, a string of reports outlining government collusion with Big Tech to censor disfavored viewpoints. After purchasing Twitter, Elon Musk made company records available to a group of journalists who published their findings.

The FBI, PPT stated, repeatedly denied their requests for information concerning communications between the agency and Twitter personnel by claiming that "[c]onfirming or denying the existence of such records, including law enforcement records, concerning a third-party individual would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, and could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy."

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.