Even after Microsoft revealed to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz that it would “disavow” its membership with the virtual censorship group, Microsoft is also supporting the organization.
Following comments from Cruz, Microsoft “disavow]ed ] its affiliation with NewsGuard,” according to a statement from the president’s office on February 6. However, according to Microsoft’s site, the business is also advertising the censorship software.  ,
An online application called NewsGuard that enables the censorship and suppression of illegal talk deemed “disinformation” The State Department’s now-defunct International Engagement Center supported both NewsGuard and the comparable party Global Disinformation Index, as The Federalist originally reported. The groups aimed to defund conventional publications like The Federalist and redirect advertising dollars to popular publications. Thus, The Federalist, The Daily Wire, and the State of Texas sued the State Department through these individuals for First Amendment transgressions.  ,
Microsoft has continued to support NewsGuard’s repression solutions despite Cruz’s accusations. NewsGuard was recommended by Microsoft’s “Educator Center” as late as February 12.  ,
Microsoft advises using Search Coach, a processed search engine for students, in conjunction with NewsGuard in an article on “COVID and intellectual health.” ” Observe any NewsGuard assessments that come up when you search for any benefits”
” Take note that some of the best links don’t include 100/100 results. Choose the NewsGuard score. What did they lose the most items for? What effect does this have on the credibility of the website? the title of the website. Why are the various elements of a NewsGuard score significant?
Conservative websites receive low ratings from NewsGuard, who previously gave The Federalist a scant 12.5 percent report. Microsoft’s website details to another content under” Teacher Resources” that is entitled” Learn to utilize NewsGuard in Search Coach.” As of March 4, the website was no more accessible online.
A related page under the title of Search Coach was removed by The Federalist after The Federalist reached out to Microsoft for opinion. The device” NewsGuard” displays trust ratings for more than 7,500 news and information sites. It is included in Search Coach to provide ratings right on the individuals ‘ results page. NewsGuard, a instrument created by reporters, is used to evaluate site credibility and transparency, according to the website. Students using Search Coach were instructed to” [s ] elect the NewsGuard rating to open a checklist that demonstrates how NewsGuard chose that website’s rating.”
Microsoft did not respond to The Federalist before the release deadline.
Filtering Student Speech
Cruz expressed concern about Microsoft’s money and development of NewsGuard’s “media education device” in schools in a letter to Satya Nadella in December. According to NewsGuard, “media education assets” like its website improvement “guide learners of all ages through the enormous panorama of virtual news and information.”
I ask for accountability regarding Microsoft’s role in and funding of this Orwellian censorship project in light of growing concerns about NewsGuard’s intellectual bias and its attempts to manipulate young heads, Cruz wrote. NewsGuard, which claims to be an “apolitical” media rating agency, has been receiving more and more attention for its partiality against conservative viewpoints.
Cruz attacked NewsGuard for disparaging The Federalist, The Daily Wire, and Newsmax, calling them “unreliable” on the basis of a personal, transparent, and contradictory ranking system, while denouncing their accurate monitoring as misinformation. He claimed that the “media education” system is “actively marketed to schools” and that it has received criticism for censoring liberal viewpoints and news outlets while promoting a left-wing agenda.
Cruz gave Microsoft a list of queries, asking Microsoft to record agreements made between itself and NewsGuard, aspect “media literacy” funding, and indicate whether Microsoft is aware of NewsGuard’s partiality.
Cruz’s office responded that Microsoft had agreed to “disavow” its associations with NewsGuard in the transfer of February 6th. Microsoft requested to remove the state that” NewsGuard’s Media Literacy Programs are made possible thanks to generous support from Microsoft, and that their support of NewsGuard was limited to a one-time contribution in 2018.” ‘”  ,
However, it appears that Microsoft has continued to support the NewsGuard repression tactic. Additionally, its connection with NewsGuard is more extensive than it appears to have been to Cruz’s business.
Collusion With Online Censors
Microsoft and NewsGuard have a long history of working together. Microsoft announced in 2018 that it would work with NewsGuard to” Defend against deception.” Of course, the word “disinformation” is used by members of the censorship-industrial challenging to describe awkward or illegal speech. Microsoft promoted the” Nutrition Label” and accompanying Red/Green Reliability Ratings for advertising in NewsGuard.
Propaganda may impair democracy, according to Tom Burt, the then-corporate VP of Customer Security and Trust. In our Defending Democracy Program, we are confronted by” the critical issue that we are facing.”
Burt claimed that Microsoft “applauded ] the approach NewsGuard is taking” and was “proud to sponsor NewsGuard’s new browser extension” but that it “did not have any oversight or editorial control over the NewsGuard ratings”. NewsGuard is now accessible as a free” Included” add-on for Microsoft Edge. The organization stated that the Defending Democracy Program do collaborate with “leading companies around the world to combat disinformation efforts.”
Microsoft’s” Defending Democracy Program” was launched earlier in 2018 with the intention of pursuing four main objectives, including” [d]fend against disinformation campaigns.” To combat” state-sponsored mathematical propaganda and bad news,” it would collaborate with “leading academic institutions and think vehicles.” In the 2018 midterm elections and the 2020 presidential election, the company said it would “pilot fresh cross-industry privileges.”
Microsoft’s CEO, Brad Smith, claimed in a statement released in September 2019 that NewsGuard’s work was” but enthusiastic.” In an interview with Reuters, he made the remarks.  ,
” Let folks know whether they are getting something when they see their research findings from a trustworthy news source like Reuters, for example, or, you know, what is actually the company of a foreign state,” Smith said at the moment. Let’s make reaching a large number of people our priority. And let’s acknowledge that right now,” Hey, we’re just getting started.”
NewsGuard promotes its free speech arbitration extension on Microsoft Edge. ” NewsGuard requires a monthly subscription for access to most internet browsers— but it’s free for all users of the Edge browser.” It displays “wARNINGS ON FROM]Sic ] hoaxes, conspiracy theories, advertising posing as news, and other unreliable websites.” The group’s website states that” [t]he extension is free to use on Microsoft’s Edge browser through a license agreement with Microsoft.”
Officials from the administrations of former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama are members of NewsGuard’s advisory board, which it previously claimed “plays ] no role in the determinations of ratings or the Nutrition Label write-ups of websites unless otherwise noted and have no role in the governance or management of the organization.” Michael Hayden, a former CIA director, is one of those who signed a letter trying to refute the Hunter Biden laptop story.
Notably, Richard Stengel, Obama’s former State Department undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs from 2014 to 2016, is also on the board. The same government organization that supported the online censorship organizations Global Disinformation Index and NewsGuard was led by Tengel.  ,
Logan Washburn is a staff writer who writes about the integrity of elections. He is a The College Fix spring 2025 fellow. He has positions with The Wall Street Journal, The Tennessean, and The Daily Caller and previously worked as Christopher Rufo’s editorial assistant. Logan grew up in rural Michigan but is originally from Central Oregon.
