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The Censorship Bureau
Confirmed

Executive Order 14149: 'Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship'

On his first day back in office, President Trump signed an executive order barring federal employees from facilitating unconstitutional restrictions on speech and directing the Attorney General to investigate the previous four years of federal activity. Several related actions followed in 2025-2026, along with criticism that the administration pressured media itself.

Jan 20, 2025
Whose side it served: Republicans

Executive order signed by President Trump.

What the record shows

Section 3(a) bars federal agencies from using federal resources contrary to the order's free-speech policy; Section 3(b) directs the Attorney General to investigate prior federal activities and report recommended remedial actions. The order was published in the Federal Register on Jan. 28, 2025. A public release of the Attorney General's report could not be located. Related actions that followed include CISA placing election misinformation staff on leave (Feb. 2025), the Attorney General disbanding the FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force (Feb. 2025), the closure of the State Department's R/FIMI office (Apr. 2025), and consent decrees in Missouri v. Biden and Daily Wire v. State Department (2026).

In their words

“intolerable in a free society”— Executive Order 14149, Sec. 1 · source
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”— FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, Sept. 2025 · source
The other side

Critics argue the administration has applied its own pressure on media: on Jan. 22, 2025 the FCC reopened a complaint against CBS, and in September 2025 FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said 'We can do this the easy way or the hard way' shortly before ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel's show. Reason has also criticized FTC and FCC actions against content moderation and NewsGuard as government meddling in speech.

Sources

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