Google bans African Stream, locks prominent media group out of Workspace

By Andrew Wasike​​​​​​​

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - African Stream, a pan-African digital media organization dedicated to providing a voice for Africans, accused Google of censorship after the technology company locked the platform out of its Gmail Workspace on Tuesday.

The ban resulted in the loss of two years of emails and files stored on Google’s cloud, African Stream said in a statement.

“Like other technology and social media platforms, such as YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram and Threads, all of which have given us the boot in the last two weeks, Google did not provide any credible reason for banning us,” it said.

African Stream, known for its cutting-edge African-centered content, claims the ban is part of a broader crackdown by US tech companies.

African Stream said the ban is part of a broader effort to silence its voice following allegations by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who suggested the platform is influenced by Russian propaganda and labeled the outlet as "Kremlin propagandists."

The company denies the claims and said it has never violated any policies.

"How can Big Tech bow down after one speech by a US official?" African Stream asked rhetorically and said it operates exclusively on social media, delivering African-centered content aimed at challenging negative stereotypes and amplifying African voices across the globe.

African Stream is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.