Democrats are making a plea to tech giants like Facebook, Google and Twitter that failed to stop hoaxes and trolls from swarming the 2016 election: Don't bungle the 2020 Census.
Some industry players are trying to get ahead of Washington and take action before being drawn into a political fracas. Sandberg’s pledge, which she announced in June as part of a civil rights audit, said the company would put “people, policies and technology in place to protect against census interference.”
in March. A Twitter spokesperson said company representatives have held several meetings with Census Bureau officials and civil rights groups to talk about those efforts.Last month, the Hawaii Democrat pressed the CEOs of Facebook, Google, Twitter and Reddit in a series of letters to “help ensure that the 2020 Census is full, fair, and accurate” by taking steps to restrict and disclose misleading information that appears across their products.
“It’s well documented what Russian bots did at the behest of the Kremlin in terms of targeting communities of color with misinformation” in 2016, said Rep. Yvette Clarke , one of the lawmakers leading the caucus’ task force. “I could see that same type of tactic being deployed when it comes to getting an accurate census count."
But even the ostensibly apolitical promise to prevent interference faced opposition from conservatives, including the Media Research Center, the umbrella organization for Gainor's TechWatch group. ItFacebook of working with liberal leaders to push "for even more censorship than Facebook already has" — questioning, for example, whether “any mention of illegal immigration on the census would be removed as ‘potentially suppressive.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
We're launching Connectivity & Tech Pro to help telecom and tech executives stay ahead of disruptive trendsGet edge with access to news, expert analysis, and a community of the most important decision-makers shaping the future technology and communications.
Read more »
Your Virtual Assistant Could Lead You Right Into A Tech Support ScamAI-powered voice assistants can be incredible helpful things, but sometimes they're helping the wrong people.
Read more »
Tesla's Musk, Alibaba's Ma to talk at Shanghai tech event this weekTesla Inc CEO Elon Musk and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd chairman Jack Ma will spea...
Read more »
India's 5 best paying tech jobs right nowIndia's booming IT scene is creating a wealth of high paying opportunities, according to a new study identifying the country's five most lucrative tech professions right now.
Read more »
La Mer Just Launched a New Moisturizer to Fight 'Tech Neck'Neck skincare is officially a thing.
Read more »
Women in tech face discrimination at the intern level too, says survey'We've brought our girls so far -- through obstacles in elementary, middle, high school and college -- only to face this kind of behavior in the workforce.'
Read more »