Senator Marsha Blackburn has called on Apple CEO Tim Cook to respond to allegations that Apple News has systematically marginalized conservative media outlets on its platform. Her concerns arise from a study by the Media Research Center, which revealed an absence of articles from right-leaning sources in the app’s “top stories” section.
In a letter made public on Friday, Blackburn emphasized the importance of diverse political perspectives in media consumption. “The American public increasingly relies on services like Apple News to provide them with information,” she stated, asserting that exclusion of viewpoints through algorithmic bias is detrimental to consumers.
According to the study, of 620 articles featured during high-traffic morning hours in January, 440 were from left-leaning outlets, while only 180 came from centrist sources. Conservative outlets, including The Post and Fox News, were notably absent. Blackburn set a deadline of March 4 for Cook to address several key questions, including whether Apple News has engaged in any anti-conservative bias and the methods used by the editorial team to select promoted articles.
The senator also demanded information on any audits conducted regarding the platform’s algorithms. In a parallel development, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson warned Cook in a February 11 letter that deliberate suppression of conservative content could violate federal consumer protection laws.
Blackburn’s concerns reflect a broader issue of perceived political bias in media platforms. While Apple News remained without conservative content for over 99 days, it featured a Fox News article only last Friday. A study by AllSides also corroborated these claims, indicating that conservative sources comprised a mere 2% of articles reviewed over a two-week period last October.
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