The Senate Commerce Committee unexpectedly voted this morning to introduce the heads of Facebook, Twitter and Google to the subpo, to force them to testify at the hearing – possibly before Election Day.

The committee reached a unanimous, bipartisan vote after Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey agreed that none of the three members volunteered to attend today.

Zuckerberg and Pichai, along with Apple CEO Tim Cook and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, testified before the House Judiciary Subcommittee earlier this year. Instead, about antitrust issues, that hearing Squeezed two completely distinct realities Simultaneously in a small room, such as Democratic members were primarily asking about competition issues and Republicans were primarily complaining about the alleged (and incompetent) use of the Internet.Bias“Against the voices of Rs.

The Senate hearing, when it finally takes place, once again demonstrates exactly two perfectly parallel realities. Democratic members of the committee were initially expected not to vote in favor of Petapana or Maybe to boycott the vote. However, the committee’s top Democrat, ranking member Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-W Wash.), Chair of the Committee, Sen. After Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Agreed to support the move, the hearing could include privacy discussions. And “media dominance” in addition to questions About Section 230.

“I really can’t wait to ask Mr. Zuckerberg more questions,” Cantwell said during the committee meeting. “I think the issues we’re discussing about how we will function in the information age are very important.”

But, she added, “What I don’t want to see is the depressing effect on individuals who are trying to break down hate speech or misinformation about covid during the epidemic. Part of this discussion will end with the fact that some of these social platforms are positive. Tried to go ahead and take down the information that is wrong. “

Allegations of biased partisanship often begin with the removal or affixing of warning labels on election-related and COVID-19 misinformation from the platform, particularly spreading false claims between both the president and his re-election campaign. Voting And Coronavirus disease.

Conservative politicians and media personalities are targeting Article 230 of the Internet The most important and most misunderstood law, All year round. At the highest level, Section 230 allows Internet Platforms to more or less moderate user content shared on that platform if they want to – by creating a heavy, medium or not at all – content creation entity, not the platform on which it is shared. Is, responsible for it.

Some Republican members of Congress have introduced bills this year to amend or rewrite that particular section of the law. The Justice Department also took the unusual step of sending Proposed draft bill To Congress, full of provisions that would undermine Article 230 defense and not be illegal on the grounds that it is “offensive” it can block most platforms from intermediate content.