White House says social media companies have ‘responsibility’ to manage platforms amid leaked document fallout

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Thursday said social media companies have a “responsibility” to manage their platforms to avoid the spread of material that could damage national security amid the fallout of sensitive leaked documents that circulated on Discord, Twitter and other platforms.

“We do believe that social media companies have a responsibility to their users and to the country to manage the private sector infrastructure that they create and now operate,” Jean-Pierre told reporters in Ireland, where President Biden is visiting for a few days. “So we do believe that they have a responsibility.”

She added that “we normally urge companies to avoid facilitating those circulation of material detrimental to public safety and national security.”

Late last week, a batch of classified documents that detailed U.S. briefing materials and were marked “secret” appeared on social media platforms, including Twitter and Telegram. 

The documents show details on the U.S. assessment of the war in Ukraine, including plans for building up the Ukrainian military ahead of a planned counteroffensive, as well as insight into Russian military planning.

The leaks also include sensitive material on Canada, China, Israel and South Korea, among other nations.

The Department of Defense is reviewing the scope of the leak, and the Justice Department is leading an investigation into the source.

The White House has not yet confirmed the veracity of the documents, saying that at least some of them appear to be doctored. 

Biden on Thursday said the administration is getting closer to determining the source, and he downplayed the severity of the fallout from the leaks.

“I’m concerned that it happened, but there’s nothing contemporaneous that I’m aware of that is of great consequence,” he said.