Our Work

June 17, 2020

CfA Files IRS Complaint Against Daily Caller News Foundation for Abusing Nonprofit Status

CfA filed a complaint with the IRS against the Daily Caller News Foundation alleging the nonprofit abused its tax-exempt status. The Daily Caller, a for-profit news publication founded by Tucker Carlson, and its related 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Daily Caller News Foundation, appear to be violating nonprofit tax laws by, among other things, routing money and expenses through the nonprofit and engaging in political activities.

June 16, 2020

TTP Investigation: Google is Running Scam Ads When Americans Search for Information on Stimulus Checks

TTP released a report revealing that Google is showing exploitative ads to users searching for information about coronavirus stimulus checks. As of mid-May, millions of Americans had not received their stimulus money, and many searched Google for answers using phrases like “where is my stimulus check.” But TTP’s investigation found dozens of examples in which Google served questionable ads on such searches from websites that seek to harvest people’s personal and financial data, charge bogus fees, or plant unwanted software into their browsers.

June 4, 2020

Campaign for Accountability Files House Ethics Complaint Against Montana State Legislator Kerry White for Violating Conflict of Interest Laws

CfA filed an ethics complaint against Montana State Representative Kerry White for violating state ethics laws by simultaneously serving as a state legislator and working as the executive director of the 501(c)(3) anti-public lands lobbying organization, Citizens for Balanced Use (CBU). On May 7, 2020, CfA sent a complaint to Speaker of the Montana House of Representatives, Greg Hertz, urging him to refer the matter to the House ethics committee.

June 1, 2020

TTP Investigation Reveals Google is Profiting from Websites Disseminating Coronavirus Misinformation

TTP released a new report revealing that Google is profiting from Covid-19 misinformation by allowing websites that peddle hoaxes about the virus to use its advertising tools. The TTP investigation identified 97 misinformation websites that use Google’s AdSense or DoubleClick and feature ads for brands and organizations including Geico, Subaru, Salesforce, the AARP, and the Donald Trump re-election campaign.

June 1, 2020

HHS Emails Demonstrate Trump Admin Promotes Little-Used Fertility Awareness Method Over Effective Birth Control

CfA released communications from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) revealing a top healthcare official, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs Dr. Diane Foley, repeatedly communicated with abortion opponents to promote so-called natural family planning methods over hormonal or contraceptive birth control. Ironically, Dr. Foley oversees the Title X family planning program, which is congressionally mandated to provide comprehensive family planning and affordable access to birth control.

May 27, 2020

TTP Investigation Reveals Facebook’s Extensive Effort to Influence State Attorneys General

TTP examined hundreds of emails between Facebook and state officials obtained through public records requests. The emails detail Facebook’s extensive charm offensive, which included inviting AGs to private meetings with company executives, filming public service announcements for them, and providing free advertising credits. Facebook also has contributed a total of nearly $900,000 to individual attorney general campaigns and national AG associations in the past decade.

May 21, 2020

TTP Investigation: Facebook is Helping White Supremacists Organize and Spread Hate Online

TTP released a new report revealing how more than 100 white supremacist groups maintain an active presence on Facebook despite the company’s policy banning hate groups. TTP searched Facebook for 221 white supremacist groups identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), and found that more than half have a presence on Facebook. In some cases, Facebook’s algorithms automatically generated pages for the white supremacist groups.

May 20, 2020

CfA Calls on FDA to Seize Website Domains Promoting Dangerous and Unproven “Abortion Reversal” Medication

CfA submitted a letter to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting that the agency seize the websites of any entity improperly marketing an unapproved procedure known as ‘Abortion Pill Reversal.’ The unsound therapy involves administering high doses of progesterone to those who have taken mifepristone, the first of two drugs used for a medical abortion, while simultaneously discouraging consumption of the second drug, misoprostol.

May 6, 2020

TTP Investigation: Facebook is Allowing Sales of Wildlife Linked to Coronavirus

The Tech Transparency Project released a new report revealing that pangolins, one of the world’s most trafficked mammals, are being openly sold on Facebook. Recently, pangolins have emerged as a possible conduit in the transmission of Covid-19 to humans, making the trade even more alarming. Despite Facebook’s policy banning the sale of endangered and other animals or their parts, the TTP investigation found pangolin trafficking is taking place in plain sight on the platform.

April 22, 2020

TTP Report Shows Vast Network of Right-Wing Extremists Use Private Facebook Groups to Organize for Imminent Civil War

The review by TTP found 125 Facebook groups devoted to the “boogaloo,” the term that far-right extremists use to describe a coming civil war. The number and overall membership of these public and private groups has been growing quickly during the coronavirus, and Facebook has failed to remove them despite the violent rhetoric used by “boogaloo” supporters.

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