The first hearing, to be held by the House Energy and Commerce Committee on March 25, marks the latest congressional inquiry featuring Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. “For far too long, big tech has failed to acknowledge the role they’ve played in fomenting and elevating blatantly false information to its online audiences. Industry self-regulation has failed,” Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) and other panel leaders said. Lawmakers also found that federal antitrust watchdogs had failed to police these abuses fully, prompting bipartisan calls for reform. The new House hearings illustrate the ever-toughening political climate that faces Silicon Valley, as policymakers throughout Washington seek to turn their years of sharp statements and public rebukes into policy that clamps down on the industry’s most controversial practices.

Source: Washington Post February 18, 2021 21:06 UTC