*By Carlo Versano*
Google is "missing an opportunity" by not sending a top official to Capitol Hill next week to testify on election interference and censorship, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin on Wednesday.
Facebook and Twitter are both sending C-Suite executives ー COO Sheryl Sandberg and CEO Jack Dorsey, respectively ー to testify in front of both chambers on Sept. 5.
So far, Google has said it will only dispatch its general counsel, Kent Walker.
"We need policy makers, not simply their lawyers," Warner said.
The heads of the top social and web platforms will head to the Hill to answer questions about how they are combating misinformation campaigns from state actors like Russia and Iran ahead of the midterm elections. Additionally, they are expected to face pointed questions about censorship ー a topic that President Trump has been pushing, most recently on Wednesday afternoon when he told reporters, "I think they treat Republicans and conservatives very unfairly" and such handling "may not be legal."
That echoes the sentiment of several Trump tweets Tuesday which suggested that Google News technology suppressed conservative views. Economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the White House would look into the matter, but many questioned Trump's statements on their face.
"The president doesn't really understand how search algorithms work," Warner said, noting that content is ranked in searches as a result of computer calculations, not human action.
The last time officials from Facebook, Twitter, and Google testified together ー last November on the topic of Russian hacking ー the reaction from lawmakers was largely negative. Since then, each company has shown a more proactive approach to the policing of their platforms.
Warner said he hopes next week's hearings will be forward-looking. "We want to look at solution sets" for these complex problems, he said.
Non-profit, Equal Ground, is looking drive up Black voter turnout in Florida with a new initiative. Jasmine Burney-Clark, the Director of Equal Ground, joined Cheddar to discuss efforts to increase Black voter turnout.
According to the latest Cheddar/SurveyUSA poll, attitudes toward social media giants like Facebook and Twitter are largely mixed among Americans ahead of the 2020 election.
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans powered past a Democratic boycott Thursday to advance Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination to the full Senate, keeping President Donald Trump's pick on track for confirmation before Election Day.
A pilot study from New York University found that over the summer a quarter of NYC transit workers reported testing positive for the coronavirus and that 90 percent of them still had fears of contracting COVID-19 on the job.
Justice Department officials told The Associated Press that Purdue Pharma, the company that makes OxyContin, will plead guilty to three federal criminal charges as part of a settlement of more than $8 billion.
Pope Francis endorsed gay civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for a feature-length documentary that made its premiere at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday.
U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), a vocal critic of big tech, said the antitrust lawsuit filed on Tuesday by the Department of Justice against Google has the potential to become the biggest strike against monopoly power since the Microsoft case settled in 2001.
Sarah Nelson, president of the Flight Attendants Association, joined Cheddar to discuss the airline industry's need for renewed stimulus. Nelson also talks about the impact layoffs and furloughs have had on airline workers.
Social media is taking a particularly important role in this year's election as the platforms works to remove misinformation. Cheddar's Michelle Castillo reports.
Former Trump administration National Security Advisor, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, joined Cheddar to discuss the U.S.-China conflict and the threat the nation poses.
