New ‘disinformation’ board paused amid free speech questions

By NOMAAN MERCHANT and AMANDA SEITZ
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security has paused a new and controversial board’s work on disinformation and has accepted the resignation of its leader. Wednesday’s move follows weeks of criticism from Republicans and questions about whether the board would impinge on free speech rights. Nina Jankowicz, picked to lead the board, wrote in her resignation letter that the board’s future was “uncertain.” Jankowicz tells The Associated Press she’s “not going to be silenced.” The Disinformation Governance Board was hampered from the start by questions about its purpose and an uneven rollout. The Homeland Security Department says the board “was never about censorship or policing speech.”