*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.
Netflix may benefit in the short-term from its decision to pull an episode of a comedy show that criticized Saudi Arabia's royal family, but in the long-term, the move could hurt the public's trust in the brand, Jack Crowe of the National Review told Cheddar Wednesday.
The Democratic Party establishment still have a chance to embrace the Green New Deal ー and their success in upcoming elections might just depend on it, Justice Democrats Communications Director Waleed Shahid told Cheddar on Monday.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019.
Elissa Slotkin is ready to swap the farmland of Michigan for the gridlock of Washington. Come Jan. 3, the incoming Democratic congresswoman, a former CIA analyst, will represent Michigan’s 8th District, which President Trump won by a nearly 7-point margin in 2016.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Monday, Dec. 31, 2018.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
As 2018 dwindles, we're reviewing the year's most extravagant fails as part of Cheddar's Hall of Shame.
With oil prices nearing 18-month lows, John Hofmeister, former president of Shell Oil, is worried about the negative impact of lower prices. In fact, he says, if prices drop below
$40 a barrel, the cost of production will exceed the revenue it brings. That said, Hofmeister noted that lower oil prices are having a big impact on the consumer. People are driving more, and the impact hits everything from plastics to clothing and air fares.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Dec. 28, 2018.
New Year's Eve is set to generate major cannabis sales, second only to the iconic marijuana holiday 420, according to MJ Freeway. The global cannabis technology and data company predicts total U.S. sales on New Year's Eve 2018 could reach up to $75 million, within striking distance of the $80 million generated in sales on April 20.
