Last Week in Censorship: Holiday & New Year Edition

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The holiday season brought no respite from the Trump administration's assault on free expression. As Americans prepared to celebrate, the government sanctioned international judges so thoroughly that one can't even use Alexa anymore. The president demanded $10 billion from the BBC for a documentary that never aired in America—using VPN statistics as "evidence" that someone, somewhere, might have watched it. Meanwhile, the Defense Department launched proceedings to strip a sitting senator of his military rank for posting a video about constitutional rights. Welcome to 2026, where reaching out for comment is "stalking," informing people of their rights is "sedition," and the word "women" is too dangerous for government documents.

Trump files $10 billion lawsuit against BBC for documentary that never aired in U.S. President Trump sued the BBC in Florida for $10 billion over a January 6th documentary shown only in the UK, claiming the network defamed him byediting together two sentences from his speech that were 55 minutes apart. The lawsuit’s “evidence” of Florida viewership relies on VPN usage statistics, arguing that a 1,000% increase in VPN use means Floridians must be circumventing geo-blocks to watch BBC content. Despite the BBC apologizing, holding leadership responsible, promising never to show the documentary again, and softening its portrayal of Trump since, he sued anyway. Florida defamation law limits damages to actual harm when a correction is issued—which the BBC did—making the astronomical demand particularly absurd given Trump won the election and suffered seemingly no damage.

Trump says broadcast licenses should be terminated for “100% negative” coverage. The president declared on Truth Social that TV networks should lose their licenses if their coverage is “almost 100% Negative” about him, specifically targeting CBS after criticizing Stephen Colbert as a “pathetic trainwreck” and demanding CBS “put him to sleep, NOW.” Trump asked FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to revoke licenses for networks covering him negatively, despite the FCC’s own rules stating “Broadcasters – not the FCC or any other government agency – are responsible for selecting the material they air” and that “The First Amendment and the Communications Act expressly prohibit the Commission from censoring broadcast matter.”

ProPublica reporters accused of “stalking” and “intimidation” for seeking comment. Government officials are attacking journalists for basic reporting practices, with the Department of Education calling it “borderline intimidation” when reporters sent letters to officials’ homes after months of unanswered inquiries. VA Secretary Doug Collins publicly accused a ProPublica reporter of “stalking” an employee after the journalist knocked on their door to request an interview—a standard practice protected by the First Amendment. The North Carolina GOP threatened ProPublica over a story about the state’s Supreme Court Chief Justice, warning they would contact the Trump administration and “strongly suggest dropping this story.” Education spokesperson Madison Biedermann declared: “You are not entitled to a response from us, or anyone, ever.”

Trump Administration revokes the visas of European disinformation researchers. Disinformation researchers and tech regulators from the U.K., Germany, and Belgium had their visas revoked by the State Department just before Christmas based on false claims that they have “censored” Americans online. The so-called “censorship industrial complex” conspiracy theory falsely claims that academic institutions, NGOs, tech platforms, and members of the Biden Administration teamed up to remove disfavorable conservative-leaning viewpoints from social media. In coverage of these revocations, The New York Times noted a “federal lawsuit based on that [censorship] claim, brought by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, reached the Supreme Court last year, but the court dismissed it on the grounds that the plaintiffs could not demonstrate any government actions that caused them harm,” with Trump-appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett authoring the opinion.

U.S. sanctions lock ICC judges out of daily life. Canadian judge Kimberly Prost, sanctioned for authorizing an investigation into U.S. war crimes in Afghanistan, can no longer use credit cards orAmazon’s Alexa, order Ubers, book hotels, or send money to family. The Trump administration has sanctioned six ICC judges plus prosecutors this year for either the Afghanistan investigation or issuing arrest warrants for Israeli leaders. As a U.S. company, Amazon canceled Prost’s account entirely; banks won’t process her transfers; online shopping is “excruciatingly difficult, if not impossible.” The sanctions effectively punish judges’ staff and their families too—one colleague’s daughter had her U.S. visa revoked. Prost calls it “an attack on the independence of the judiciary,” noting the psychological impact of being on the same sanctions list as terrorists and organized crime figures.

Pentagon threatens to court-martial Senator Mark Kelly over “seditious” video. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth initiated proceedings to reduce Sen. Mark Kelly’s military rank and retirement pay after Kelly participated in a video reminding service members they can refuse illegal orders. Hegseth issued a formal censure calling Kelly’s conduct “seditious” and warning of potential criminal prosecution for “further violations.” Kelly, a retired Navy captain and astronaut who flew 39 combat missions and four space missions, responded: “Pete Hegseth wants to send the message to every single retired servicemember that if they say something he or Donald Trump doesn’t like, they will come after them the same way. It’s outrageous and it is wrong.” The video was made after U.S. airstrikes killed scores of purported drug smugglers.

CISA acting director fails polygraph test; career staff who administered it suspended. At least six career cybersecurity officials were placed on administrative leave after acting CISA Director Madhu Gottumukkala failed a polygraph test required to access highly classified intelligence. DHS called the test “unsanctioned” and opened an investigation into whether staff “misled” Gottumukkala about needing the test, though officials note principals typically approve their own polygraph requests. One official called DHS’s claim “comical,” while another described Gottumukkala’s tenure as “a nightmare,” saying “Instead of taking ownership and saying, ‘Hey, I screwed up,’ he gets other people blamed and potentially ruins their careers.” Nearly a third of CISA’s workforce has departed in 2025 amid the turmoil.

National security lawyer Mark Zaid recently won a legal battle against the Trump administration after a federal judge ordered the reinstatement of his security clearance, revoking the administration’s prior attempt to strip it as unconstitutional political retaliation for representing whistleblowers, including the one central to Trump’s first impeachment. A judge ruled that the government’s summary revocation violated Zaid’s rights and blocked the Trump administration’s broader campaign against lawyers representing clients adverse to it.

Similarly, Imran Ahmed, the CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate and one of the five counter-disinformation advocates targeted by the Trump administration’s Christmas visa ban, was granted a restraining order until March, preventing the Trump administration from deporting him. He is a green card holder and his wife and child are American.

Happy New Year from an administration that celebrates the season by making sure international judges can’t order Christmas presents online and Senators can’t quote the Constitution without risking court-martial. Here’s to 2026!

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