Hearing to signal Dems’ strategy on Big Tech
WASHINGTON — Democrats and Google executives worked arm in arm for years, particularly during the Obama administration. But when Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, testifies before Congress on Tuesday, some of the toughest questioning is likely to come from Democrats.
The hearing will provide an early glimpse of how Democrats plan to approach Silicon Valley giants in the coming year as they assume control of the House of Representatives.
Democratic lawmakers, angry about Russian misinformation online during the 2016 campaign and concerned about the expanding influence of tech’s biggest companies, are expected to target the industry in the next Congress. Some have already raised concerns about potential antitrust and privacy violations, showing more willingness than Republicans to regulate an industry viewed as an engine of economic growth.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, have warned that Amazon and other tech giants aren’t paying fair wages. Two other Democrats, Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, have called for privacy and online ad legislation, saying big tech companies can’t be trusted to regulate themselves.
The concerns are aimed broadly across the tech industry. On Tuesday, however, they will focus on Google, as Pichai will be alone in testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.
The hearing, “Transparency & Accountability: Examining Google and Its Data Collection, Use and Filtering Practices,” is expected to cover a wide array of topics, led by Republican allegations of anti-conservative biases in how search results are surfaced. A Google spokesman declined to comment about the hearing.
Republicans have accused Google, Twitter and Facebook of secretly placing conservative voices lower in newsfeed and search rankings.
At the hearing, Pichai is likely to get questions about Google’s search results, which company executives have repeatedly denied are altered for political purposes. He will probably also get questions about privacy and how the company handles cases of sexual harassment.
Lawmakers are also expected to press him on Google’s possible plans for re-entering China, a market the company left in 2010 over concerns about censorship and government hacking.