
<a href="https://reason.com/2025/07/25/xs-win-in-federal-court-is-a-victory-for-free-speech-and-open-disclosure/" target="_blank">View original image source</a>.
In a ruling that could put chills down the spines of government officials everywhere, X Corp., the company formerly known as Twitter, just took home a major win in its ongoing tussle for free speech. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a prior decision, which had granted the Justice Department a broad nondisclosure order to keep user data under wraps. Turns out, the judge was not too impressed with the government’s attempts to gloss over the need for transparency. Shocking, right?
At the heart of the case is a subpoena demanding personal information about former FBI agents Kyle Seraphin and Garrett O’Doyle, who dared to testify about political targeting. The court stated that the government had made a misstep by asking for an all-encompassing nondisclosure order without showing a solid reason to believe that disclosure would cause harm. So, essentially, the court said, “Nice try, but you’ve gotta be more specific!” Privacy advocates are probably raising their glasses in celebration right now.
While this victory is definitely a win for free speech, it also lights the way for a broader discussion about privacy rights in our digital age. After all, if we can’t trust the government to handle customer records responsibly, what does that mean for us as everyday citizens? Let’s hope we don’t end up in a world where we have to wear tinfoil hats just to have a private conversation. What are your thoughts on government transparency: do you think we should know more about how our data is being used?
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