The Senate Commerce Committee voted Thursday to subpoena the CEOs of Twitter, Facebook and Alphabet, Google’s parent company.
Committee Chairman Roger WickerRoger Frederick WickerRestaurants brace for long COVID-19 winter The Hill’s Morning Report – Sponsored by Facebook – Republicans lawmakers rebuke Trump on election Hillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns MORE (R-Miss.) had threatened to subpoena Twitter’s Jack Dorsey, Facebook’s Mark ZuckerbergMark Elliot ZuckerbergFacebook takes down Trump campaign ads tying refugees to coronavirus Hillicon Valley: Productivity, fatigue, cybersecurity emerge as top concerns amid pandemic | Facebook critics launch alternative oversight board | Google to temporarily bar election ads after polls close Conservative groups seek to block Facebook election grants in four swing states: report MORE and Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai last week but was required to hold a vote after ranking member Sen. Maria CantwellMaria Elaine CantwellHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Key Democrat opposes GOP Section 230 subpoena for Facebook, Twitter, Google Hillicon Valley: Zuckerberg acknowledges failure to take down Kenosha military group despite warnings | Election officials push back against concerns over mail-in voting, drop boxes MORE (D-Wash.) opposed the plan.
The unanimous vote will compel the CEOs to appear for a hearing on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which is considered the bedrock of the modern internet.
ADVERTISEMENT
The 1996 law, which has come under increased scrutiny since President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump signs bill averting shutdown after brief funding lapse Privacy, civil rights groups demand transparency from Amazon on election data breaches Facebook takes down Trump campaign ads tying refugees to coronavirus MORE targeted it in an executive order in May, gives internet companies immunity from lawsuits for content posted on their sites by third parties and allows them to make “good faith” efforts to moderate content.
Wicker made it clear during Thursday’s executive business meeting that the hearing is required because of allegations of anti-conservative bias on their platforms.
Conservative voices actually dominate many platforms on social media including Facebook, the most powerful of them all.
But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from persistently making the allegation about bias, which the tech companies have also vociferously denied.
Cantwell ultimately agreed to vote for the subpoena after changes by Wicker, allowing privacy and misinformation to be discussed alongside the supposed bias.
ADVERTISEMENT
A spokesperson for Facebook declined to comment on the subpoena vote.
Spokespeople for Twitter and Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the vote.
If they ultimately appear, this will be the second major hearing of the year with some of tech’s biggest executives.
The House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust this summer held a hearing on competition in digital marketplaces featuring Zuckerberg, Pichai, Apple’s Tim Cook and Amazon’s Jeff BezosJeffrey (Jeff) Preston BezosPrivacy, civil rights groups demand transparency from Amazon on election data breaches NASA’s Bridenstine: We really are going to the lunar south pole Twitter mandates lawmakers, journalists to beef up passwords heading into election MORE.
The panel is set to release a report on the issue as early as next week.