January 6 commission gives 15 social media companies 2 weeks to turn over records related to Capitol riot

• The January 6 committee is seeking records from 15 social media companies in a wide-ranging probe.
• In 2 weeks, lawmakers want to see documents and communication about misinformation and extremism.
• The companies include mainstays like Facebook, Google, and Twitter, and sites like 8kun and Gab.

The House Select Committee investigating the January 6 assault on the US Capitol is demanding that 15 social media companies turn over records to lawmakers within the next two weeks, the commission announced on Friday.

"[The committee] is examining the facts, circumstances, and causes of the attack and relating to the peaceful transfer of power, in order to identify and evaluate lessons learned and to recommend corrective laws, policies, procedures, rules, or regulations," said Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, according to a press release.

The commission is seeking records related to misinformation, efforts to overturn the 2020 election, domestic extremism, and foreign influence, including "data, reports, analyses, and communications stretching back to spring of 2020," the release said.

The commission sent essentially identical letters to 15 companies, including Facebook, Google, Twitter, YouTube, Tik-Tok, Reddit, Snapchat, Telegram, Twitch, Zello, 4chan, 8kun, Gab, Parler and theDonald.win.

Each company has until September 9 to respond to the records request.

The letter also names "domestic violent extremists, including racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists, militia violent extremists, sovereign citizen violent extremists, QAnon, or other extremists associated with efforts to overturn the 2020 election" as an area of interest.

Each company is being directed to turn over all "documents and information" pertaining to these topics since April 1, 2020, including whether policies or algorithms have been implemented or considered in response. The commission is also requesting documents pertaining to law enforcement actions as well.

This is the second time the commission has issued a records request this week. On Wednesday, lawmakers requested seven federal agencies and the National Archives to turn over records related to former President Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. They're also seeking records of his communications with his family, top staffers, and right-wing activists and media personalities. In response, Trump has claimed that these records are covered by executive privilege, even though that will ultimately be up to the Biden administration to decide.