Twitter did not violate election laws by blocking users from sharing a New York Post article on Hunter Biden in October 2020, an Federal Election Commission (FEC) ruling from last month revealed Monday.
The decision to throttle the story was a commercial decision that Twitter 'credibly explained' to the body, rather than for a political purpose, and so it was permissible, the New York Times reports.
A document outlining the decision's 'factual and legal analysis' reportedly said the move was in line with existing Twitter policies related to hacked materials.
However, CEO Jack Dorsey admitted hours after the block that the move was 'unacceptable.'
An official ruling will be made public likely later this month.
A Republican National Committee complaint from October 16 criticized Twitter's purge as 'the most brazen and unprecedented act of media suppression in this country’s history' and accused Twitter of working on behalf of the Biden campaign.
But even Dorsey shied away from the site's aggressive policing after outrage over the move.
Hunter Biden walks to Marine One outside the White House on May 22. His father President Joe Biden won the presidential election less than two weeks after the New York Post's bombshell report
One of the photos allegedly from Hunter Biden's laptop shows him smoking a cigarette, others show him with what appears to be a crack pipe
In a 180-degree turn from its original decision, Twitter began allowing users to share the article within a day.
Dorsey admitted the initial reaction to the story was a 'total mistake' in a March hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Besides the Hunter Biden story, the FEC also dismissed allegations that Twitter violated the law by 'shadow banning' Republicans and adding fact checks to some Trump tweets.
Those claims were 'vague, speculative and unsupported by the available information,' the FEC decision reportedly says.
The article was published less than four weeks ahead of the heated presidential election between then-President Trump and current President Biden.
The New York Post cover breaking their Hunter Biden story - the same one throttled by Twitter on October 14
On October 14, The New York Post published a blockbuster report based on Hunter Biden's emails that were purportedly found on a hard-drive of a computer left at a Delaware repair shop.
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