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--:-- Georgia Howe: The NFL is back, and FanDuel's got everything you need to play your game. From same-game parlays to live betting. Right now, new customers bet $5 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win. 21-plus in president select states. 18-plus in Kentucky and Wyoming. Must be first online real money waging. $5 deposit required. Bonus issued is non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire seven days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See full terms at FanDuel.com slash sportsbook. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: A group of doctors are suing big tech companies, Twitter, Google, and Facebook, alleging they worked with the government to censor criticism of federal and state COVID policies. We discussed the politically charged First Amendment case. I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's Saturday, August 20th, and this is Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: Is your child headed to college this fall? If so, he or she will almost certainly encounter diversity, equity, and inclusion training. A new report looks at trends in orientation materials at hundreds of public universities. And dating trends are shifting among singles in the U.S. as the pandemic and the economy impact social habits. Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. Stay tuned.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: One of the best things you can do to prepare for the unknown is to have a will in place if you're a parent. A will gives you the power to decide who will raise your kids should something happen to you and your spouse. Do yourself a favor, go to epicwill.com and use promo code wire to save 10 on epic will's complete will package. It's incredibly easy and well worth $119 to secure your family's future. Go to epicwill.com and use promo code wire today.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: A group of doctors has filed a lawsuit against several big tech companies. They claim that Twitter, Google, and Facebook worked with the government to censor criticism of federal and state COVID policies in violation of the First Amendment. Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham joins us now to give us more information on the lawsuit, who's involved, and what the outcomes might be.
--:-- Megan Basham: So, the case is the state of Missouri v. Joseph R. Biden, and it involves a group of prominent physicians and epidemiologists who are critical of the government's restrictive COVID policies. Think about things like lockdowns, mask mandates, vaccine mandates.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, so the case is the state of Missouri v. Joseph R. Biden, and it involves a group of prominent physicians and epidemiologists who are critical of the government's restrictive COVID policies. Think about things like lockdowns, mask mandates, vaccine mandates.
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, we talked to Kara Frederick, who is director of the Tech Policy Center at the Heritage Foundation, and we asked her just how credentialed the members of this group bringing the suit are, and they're, by the way, known as the New Civil Liberties Alliance, just how credentialed they are. These aren't just your quacks who are operating on the internet, you know, trying to make a buck or anything like that. These are legitimate doctors with legitimate degrees.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, this is not just legitimate doctors we need to note, but in several instances, we're actually talking about Ivy League-trained experts in their fields.
--:-- Megan Basham: And they made Freedom of Information Act requests related to the White House's public 2021 statements about working with big tech to suppress COVID misinformation. You may remember White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki talking about that.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, as a result of those FOIA requests, they claim they have emails and documentation that can prove that the CDC and the Department of Homeland Security asked Google, Twitter, and Facebook to take down certain social media posts and to also suspend certain accounts for questioning those COVID policies.
--:-- Megan Basham: So the lawsuit is arguing that at that point, these companies were no longer acting just as private entities. They were effectively acting as arms of the government. If that's true, that would be unconstitutional.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And I'll quote from just a bit of New Civil Liberties Alliance's press release on that. Here's what they said. This insidious censorship was the direct result of the federal government's ongoing campaign to silence those who voice perspectives that deviate from those of the Biden administration. Government officials' public threats to punish social media companies that did not do their bidding demonstrate this linkage.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, what if these tech companies, though, were acting of their own volition and not because of government pressure?
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, that's a good question, Megan.
--:-- Megan Basham: And part of the Communications Decency Act, known as Section 230, does give big tech a lot of special protection from civil liability in that case.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So here's what Frederick told us about that. If they're only making that one decision from the bottom of their hearts and not with government pressure, then that's what they're going to argue. But the fact that the government is actually flagging and pressuring them to remove the speech and sort of being the prime mover in this regard, I think it's a little bit different.
--:-- Megan Basham: Now, has that argument been tested in court before?
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, I remember Big Tech was taking down a lot of posts and videos at the height of COVID. Are we seeing any similar lawsuits that we can look at?
--:-- Megan Basham: Yeah. So Frederick cited another case that's currently working its way through the courts that could have some bearing on this one. It involves conservative commentator Rogan O'Hanley.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, O'Hanley alleges that California officials pressured Twitter to flag his tweets and suspend his account.
--:-- Megan Basham: So again, something that would clearly violate the First Amendment if his claim is accurate.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Here's Frederick. The office of the Secretary of State in California was flagging specific tweets containing specific forms of information they consider disinformation to Twitter, and Twitter eventually started to scrutinize this particular user.
--:-- Megan Basham: So we don't know where that's going to end up, but I think people are starting to recognize that this is a pattern of government pressure on big tech companies that appeared to pick up during the pandemic and really hasn't abated.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Megan, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Megan Basham: That was Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Coming up, diversity, equity, and inclusion training sweeps through college campuses. Hey there, producer Colton here. Do you like to be the first to know about trendy news and current events? If so, you got to get the Daily Wire Plus app. Not only will you receive mobile notifications whenever something's happening, but you'll also have access to the best commentary to break it all down. Download the Daily Wire Plus app and keep up with the facts no matter where your day takes you.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: A new report shows that the vast majority of incoming freshmen will undergo diversity, equity, and inclusion training upon arrival on campus. DEI training is controversial with parents and professors who say it's politically oriented and stifles free speech on campus. Daily Wire investigative reporter Maraid Alordi is here with the details for us.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Hey Georgia, the report comes from Speech First, a free speech group. They obtained freshman orientation materials from 51 public universities through Freedom of Information Act requests. The group noted that the information was difficult to obtain and it took a year and many requests to gain cooperation from the schools. So some of this data is from 2021.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The report shows that as soon as freshman students set foot on campus, the vast majority will encounter diversity, equity, and inclusion, otherwise known as DEI training.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: According to the report, out of the 51 public universities, 91% of the freshman orientation materials discuss DEI in one form or another.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Meanwhile, less than a third of the materials mentioned free speech or viewpoint diversity.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Of the 91% of orientation materials that reference DEI, 27% mentioned bias, 22% mentioned actual DEI training, 20% mentioned discrimination, 11% mentioned racial equity, 9% mentioned anti-racism, another 9% mentioned microaggressions, and 2% mentioned trigger warnings.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Meanwhile, the actual quantity of content referencing DEI themes overwhelmingly outpaced the amount of content referencing free speech and viewpoint diversity.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: For example, the report found that schools had seven times more DEI-themed video material than on free speech or viewpoint diversity.
--:-- Georgia Howe: When you say orientation materials that referenced DEI themes, what does that actually look like in practice?
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Yeah, one example is Northern Kentucky University, which encouraged students to attend a drag show and went into detail about microaggressions.
--:-- Georgia Howe: One orientation video said, quote, if you have not been to a drag show yet, we are going to make sure you have that opportunity.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: The same orientation video said that asking someone, where are you from, is a microaggression, as is the phrase, I don't see race.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The video also said that having black friends or gay friends does not exempt a person from having to, quote, work on your microaggressions.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: At the State University of New York at New Paltz, students are required to take an implicit bias test to discover their own internal racism or bias.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The implicit association test makes students match faces of different skin colors with negative and positive words, objects, and weapons.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Another test makes students match negative and positive words with different gender identities.
--:-- Georgia Howe: It should be noted that implicit bias tests have not been shown to accurately predict biased actions or attitudes, but they have remained popular as a training technique in many settings regardless.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: The report also flagged that the implicit bias tests are hosted on a Harvard University website, and the organization behind the tests has a presence at many other universities.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Some universities, like the University of California at Irvine, encourage their freshman students to take the same implicit bias test, but it's not required.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Now, part of the concern with these trainings is that they may make kids feel like they're walking on eggshells.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I know we've reported in the past that self-censorship is a major issue with professors.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: How pervasive is it among students?
--:-- Georgia Howe: It's a big problem.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Last year, one study found that more than 80% of college students in the U.S. self-censor their own opinions at their schools.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Another alarming statistic, about two-thirds of college students say it's acceptable to shout down a speaker on campus.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Nearly a quarter of college students say it's acceptable to use violence to halt certain speech.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's according to one study from FIRE.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Well, that's concerning.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Maraid, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Maraid Alordi: Thanks, Georgia. That was Daily Wire investigative reporter Maraid Elordi.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Dating trends are shifting in the U.S. as singles opt for cheaper and choosier dates. The pandemic, the economy, and a changing cultural landscape are having a prolonged effect on how people are looking for love. Here to tell us more is Daily Wire Charlotte Pence Bond.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Well, one of the biggest changes is alcohol, or more precisely, the absence of alcohol. A recent survey found that over a third of the people using the dating app Hinge are more willing to go on a sober date now than a year before.
--:-- Georgia Howe: This is especially obvious among young people using the app.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: 31% of 18 to 24-year-olds using Hinge say they don't drink on their dates.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Same for the app Tinder.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: From 2020 to 2021, references to sober went up 26% in members' dating profiles.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And this year, it's up another 22%.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Beach and picnic mentions also went up from the start of this year, which might mean that people are more interested in outdoor dates rather than meeting at bars.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The non-drinking aspect of dating might be stemming from the pandemic and alcohol recovery programs that a lot of people got into after lockdowns shifted their habits.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: When people returned to normal life, a lot of them noticed a potential problem with their drinking habits and took action to fix it.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, and going to the beach or going on a picnic is also a lot cheaper than buying drinks.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: How much of this has to do with the economy?
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's definitely a consideration.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Dating can be expensive, and there's evidence single people are trying to be more economical with their dating habits.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Out of 3,000 people on Hinge, nearly 41% said they were more worried about how much dating costs now versus last year.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: OkCupid, another dating site, found that 34% of 70,000 users said inflation was affecting their dating life.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Money is also impacting who people are attracted to.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: OkCupid users who say they stick to a budget got 16% more matches and 7% more likes over three months than those who said they didn't.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And according to Match's most recent Singles in America survey, which includes 5,000 Americans ages 18 to 75, 86% of singles want a partner with the same or higher income.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: That's up from 70% in 2019.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So it sounds like people are looking for financial security.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Right. It also seems that people are interested in a more serious form of dating. They're looking for the one.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The same report also found that more people are prioritizing someone who is emotionally mature over a person who is attractive physically.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: People are being more open about what they want early in a relationship.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A Mashable report suggests that since the pandemic, dates have also included more intense discussions, which has continued into this year.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: So maybe this is the beginning of the end for hookup culture?
--:-- Georgia Howe: I think a lot of young people hope it is.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: All right. Well, thanks for bringing us the story.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for having me on.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Other stories we're tracking this week. A school board in Wisconsin voted to support a policy that would ban employees for exhibiting messages deemed political, like gay pride flags and we back the badge signs. Rudy Giuliani testified in front of a Georgia grand jury for six hours on Wednesday. Details of his testimony are protected, but Giuliani's lawyers say it had gone smoothly. Former Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren has filed a lawsuit against Ron DeSantis, claiming his removal by the governor in early August was political retaliation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thanks for listening to Morning Wire. We created this show to bring more balance to the national conversation. If you love our show and you stand with our mission, please consider subscribing, leaving us a five-star rating, and most importantly, sharing our podcast with a friend.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, that's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us. We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
