A Congressional committee suggested legislation to realign big-tech companies and deal with disinformation and extremism, according to MarketWatch. The six-hour virtual meeting took place on Thursday with the House Energy and Commerce Committee and CEOs of Alphabet, Facebook, and Twitter.
Committee Chair Frank Pallone Jr. said the big-tech’s business model itself has become a problem.
Committee member Jan Schakowsky said the big-tech platforms have become hotbeds of disinformation despite new policies.
Committee member Doris Matsui declared, “Big Tech is handing our children a lit cigarette, and they become hooked for life.”
One of the regulations, “Protecting Americans from Dangerous Algorithms Act,” being reintroduced this week, seeks to narrowly amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and make big-tech more accountable.
Another bill, the “Online Consumer Protection Act,” also seeks to hold tech companies more accountable.
Democrats have expressed fears over disinformation, hate speech, and conspiracy theories in the latest big-tech scrutiny.
Regulation still faces challenges given the economic impacts of the big tech, their global reach, and lobbying efforts within Washington.
Most big-tech stocks are currently gaining. GOOGL is up 0.16% on premarket, FB is up 0.093%, TWTR is up 0.49% on premarket, MSFT is down 0.039% on premarket, AMZN is up 0.38% on premarket.
