PayPal message informing of Consortium News blocking: This Organization is currently ineligible to receive donations.
The online payment system gave no warning or reason why Consortium Newsâ account has been âpermanently limited.â PayPal indicated that only if âapplicableâ will the balance be returned.
PayPal has canceled Consortium Newsâ account without any prior notice or due process and with virtually no explanation.
As Consortium News is today launching its Spring Fund Drive, it has lost one of its most important ways for its viewers and readers to show their support through donations. Clicking on the yellow PayPal donate button on our home page now yields this message:
PayPal has sent an email to CN that says:
âYou canât use PayPal anymore. ⌠We noticed activity in your account thatâs inconsistent with our User Agreement and we no longer offer you PayPal services. ⌠Because of potential risk exposure, weâve permanently limited your account. Youâll no longer be able to use the account for any transactions.â
The message says that âany money in your PayPal balance will be held for up to 180 days,â after which, âif applicable, weâll email you with information on how to withdraw any remaining money.â
RELATED CONTENT: PayPal Blocks Multiple Alternative Media Figures Critical of US Empire Narratives
Consortiumâs PayPal account page now shows a similar message (click to enlarge):
No Prior Notice or Explanation
There was no prior notice sent nor was Consortium News afforded any due process. A PayPal customer service agent confirmed in a telephone call on Sunday that the âback officeâ gave no specific reason for âpermanently limitingâ CNâs account other than that an âinvestigation and reviewâ of CNâs âhistory found some potential risk associated with this account.â
She said the âpotential riskâ from CN is ânot exactly specified by the back office.â The agent said, âIt has something to do with the history of this account.â Asked whether any agency, government or private, or any individual had complained to PayPal about CN, the customer service agent replied, âI donât see any existing case.â
RELATED CONTENT: PayPal Blocks Donations to The Grayzone that Mention Iran
The agent could not explain why Consortium News was given no notice or any due process, but promised to ask the âback officeâ to contact CN to explain.
Regarding the $9,348.14 balance in CNâs PayPal account, the agent said that after a 180-day review PayPal would decide whether to return it. âIf there was a violation,â she said âit is possibleâ the money could be kept as âdamagesâ to PayPal. Violations under the Restricted Activities of the User Agreement  include providing âfalse, inaccurate or misleading informationâ to PayPal, other PayPal customers âor third parties.â
Given the current political climate it is more than conceivable that PayPal is reacting to Consortium Newsâ coverage of the war in Ukraine, which is not in line with the dominant narrative that is being increasingly enforced. Last week PayPal also froze the account of the alternative news site MintPressNews.
PayPal was sued in California in January in a class action for similarly shutting down accounts.
Featured image: PayPal message informing of Consortium News blocking: This Organization is currently ineligible to receive donations.
(Consortium News) by Joe Lauria
Joe Lauria
Joe Lauria is editor-in-chief of Consortium News and a former UN correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and numerous other newspapers. He was an investigative reporter for the Sunday Times of London and began his professional career as a stringer for The New York Times. He can be reached at joelauria@consortiumnews.com and followed on Twitter @unjoe .
