Was Amazon 'free to ignore' White House demands that it suppress anti-vaccine books?

Emails obtained by Rep. Jim Jordan show White House officials pressured Amazon to curb distribution of anti-vaccine books.

David Gergen : The Amazon episode is also reminiscent of a 1963 Supreme Court case that involved the sale of books that government officials perceived as a public menace.

He says Rhode Island Commission to Encourage Morality in Youth was tasked with "investigating situations which may cause, be responsible for or give rise to undesirable behavior of juveniles" Gergen says the case is reminiscent of the Biden administration's interactions with social media companies.

Amazon agreed to limit the visibility of the books in search results.

The trouble began in March 2021 , when White House COVID-19 adviser Andrew Slavitt did an Amazon search and did not like what he found.

Amazon responded to official pressure by dropping at least one book, making it harder to find others.

David Gergen : Unlike Rhode Island censors, White House didn't threaten to institute criminal proceedings.

He says Biden administration didn't want Amazon to suppress anti-vaccine books.

Gergen says it's not clear that the Biden administration's interference had much of an impact on the availability of the books on Amazon .