A U.S. House committee has formally requested that the CEOs of several prominent online platforms appear before Congress. This urgent summons follows the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk and aims to address concerns regarding the radicalization of users within online communities.
James Comer, Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has called on the leaders of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit to testify at a hearing scheduled for October 8. The focus of this hearing will be the “radicalization of online forum users.”
Charlie Kirk, a notable ally of President Trump, was tragically shot and killed at a Utah university on Wednesday, September 10th. The alleged perpetrator, Tyler Robinson, 22, reportedly took responsibility for the shooting in a Discord chat shortly before his arrest. A company spokesperson confirmed this detail, noting that Robinson messaged friends on Discord hours before being apprehended. He has since been charged with aggravated murder.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee announced that the hearing will delve into “the radicalization of online forum users, including instances of open incitement to commit politically motivated acts.”
Chairman Comer stated, “The politically motivated assassination of Charlie Kirk claimed the life of a husband, father, and American patriot. In the wake of this tragedy, and amid other acts of politically motivated violence, Congress has a duty to oversee the online platforms that radicals have used to advance political violence. To prevent future radicalization and violence, the CEOs of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit must appear before the Oversight Committee and explain what actions they will take to ensure their platforms are not exploited for nefarious purposes.”
Formal letters were dispatched to Humam Sakhnini, CEO of Discord; Gabe Newell, President of Valve (owner of Steam); Dan Clancy, CEO of Amazon-owned Twitch; and Steve Huffman, CEO of Reddit.
The summoned executives are expected to submit their written testimony at least two business days before the hearing. Each CEO will also have an opportunity to deliver a five-minute opening statement before responding to questions from committee members.
Discord has indicated its willingness to cooperate, stating, “We continuously engage with policymakers on these critical issues and look forward to continuing this important dialogue next month.” Reddit, meanwhile, asserted that it has not yet found any evidence of Robinson’s activity on its platform, emphasizing its “strong policies against hateful content and content that incites, encourages, glorifies or calls for violence.”
This isn’t the first time Valve has faced scrutiny over content moderation. Last November, U.S. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia publicly urged Valve President Gabe Newell to address what he described as “hateful accounts and rhetoric proliferating on Steam.” Warner alleged that Steam hosted thousands of groups that “share and amplify antisemitic, Nazi, sexuality or gender-based hate, and white supremacist content,” calling for Valve to align its content moderation with industry standards and actively combat the spread of hate-based content.