The chief executives of Facebook, Google and Twitter will face skeptical lawmakers again next month when a congressional committee asks them about the way disinformation spreads across their platforms.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee said Thursday that it will hold a hearing on March 25 with Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Sundar Pichai of Google and Jack Dorsey of Twitter.
The committee examined the future of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a 1996 law that protects platforms from litigation over much of the content posted by their users. The January 6 attack on the Capitol, which includes participants with ties to QAnon and other conspiracy theories that have spread widely online, has renewed concerns that the legislation allows the platforms to take a practical approach to extremist content.
“For too long, Big Tech has failed to recognize the role they played in blatantly falsifying information to its online audiences,” said a group of the committee’s top Democrats. “Self-regulation in the industry has failed.”
Andy Stone, a Facebook spokesman, said the company “believes it’s time to update the internet rules, and this trial should be another important step in the process.”
The House Judiciary Committee on Thursday announced its own set of hearings on the technology industry. It is said that it will hold several hearings on updating antitrust laws to address the power of technology giants. The committee interviewed CEOs before completing a lengthy investigation into the companies last year.
The Judicial Committee’s first hearing will take place on Wednesday.
Renault, the French carmaker, reported a loss of 8 billion euros, or $ 9.7 billion, in 2020 as the sales of the pandemic, but the company said it was profitable in the later part of the year.
Most of the annual loss stems from Renault’s interest in its concerned partner, Nissan. The loss at the Japanese carmaker drained € 5 billion from the core, Renault said. On top of that, Renault car sales for the year fell by 20 percent to just three million vehicles.
“After a first-half hit by Covid-19, the group significantly reversed its performance in the second-half,” Renault CEO Luca de Meo said in a statement without giving a figure. He said that 2021 “will be difficult, given the unknowns regarding the health crisis and the shortage of electronic components.”
By 2021, semiconductor shortages, which are a problem for almost all automakers, could reduce production by as many as 100,000 vehicles, Renault said.
Mr. De Meo, who became Renault’s CEO in July, announced a plan to return to profitability last month, which includes production capacity, sales of fewer models and the distribution of parts among vehicles to simplify manufacturing.
In California, wildfires and heat waves in recent years have forced electricity to cut off millions of homes and businesses. Texas now learns that deadly winter storms and intense cold can do the same.
Bill Magness, president and CEO of the state’s Electric Reliability Council of Texas, said Thursday that Texas was “seconds and minutes” from a catastrophic eclipse this week as rotating interruptions were used to cut off electricity. control.
The country’s two largest states have taken very different approaches to managing their energy needs – Texas has aggressively deregulated and allowed the free market to flourish, while California has adopted environmental regulations. Yet the two states face the same ominous reality: they are perhaps unprepared for the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters caused by climate change.
Blackouts in Texas and California have revealed that power plants can be strained and shut down by the kind of extreme cold and hot weather that climate scientists say will become more common as greenhouse gases build up in the atmosphere.
The problems in Texas and California highlight the challenge facing the Biden government to modernize the electricity system to fully emit wind turbines, solar panels, batteries and other technologies by 2035 – a goal that President Biden will have by 2020. campaign.
The federal government and energy businesses may have to spend billions of dollars to harden electricity networks against the threat posed by climate change and to move away from the fossil fuels responsible for global warming. These are not new ideas. Scholars have long warned that U.S. electricity networks, which are managed in the region, will come under increasing pressure and require major upgrades.
“We really need to change our paradigm, especially utilities, because it’s becoming much more vulnerable to disasters,” said Najmedin Meshkati, an engineering professor at the University of Southern California, about blackouts in Texas and California. “They always have to think of the worst case scenario, because the worst case scenario is going to happen.”
transcript
transcript
Congressman calls Robinhood helpline and gets voicemail
After representative Sean Casten of the House Financial Services Committee died over the suicide of Alexhood user Alex Kearns for believing he had lost $ 730,000 on the brokerage app, he called their helpline.
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In June 2020, Alex Kearns, then 20 years old, from Naperville, Illinois, killed himself, largely due to a bug in the Robinhood system. The error was that he turned on the app, saying that he owed $ 730,000 that he did not have, due to option positions that he said were canceled but did not appear. He calls the helpline. The helpline was obviously not manned, as we discussed. He sent several panicked emails – three, to be exact – received no response. Finally, there was a response from the emails that said his positions were in fact covered. But by that point it was too late because he had taken his own life. The – this is a gentleman who is 20 years old. Under Illinois law, he may not buy a beer, but he may take $ 730,000 into positions and expose that he did not have the liquidity to cover. Your mission, Mr. Tenev, is to democratize finances. But the history of financial regulation is to protect people like Alex Kearns from the system. As the old joke goes, you have to leave the table because you are probably the fish, if you play poker and you can not figure out who the fish is at the table. And there is an innate tension in your business model between democratizing finances, which is a noble vocation, and being a channel to feed sharks. So I’m nervous. I think I got exposure. And I’ll call your helpline now. Let’s call and let’s hear what we’re going to hear on the other end of the phone. Voicemail: “Thank you for calling Robinhood. Feel free to visit us at robinhood.com or on our app for support. If you have an urgent trading need, please include the details when issuing. Thank you for a wonderful day. ‘
The chief executives of Robinhood, Reddit, Citadel and Melvin Capital Management were among the witnesses during a hearing on the GameStop trade chase held by the House Financial Services Committee.
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Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev was the target for both Democrats and Republicans, with more than half of the legislators’ questions. “I like your company because, if managed properly, it offers investment opportunities for individuals who are currently frozen out of the markets for some reason,” said Ohio Republican Representative Anthony Gonzalez. He added: “At the same time, however, I believe that a vulnerability has been clearly exposed in your business model.”
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Representative Sean Casten, a Democrat from Illinois, said his sharp interrogation about Mr. Tenev Limited, in which he tells the story of a 20-year-old college student who killed himself last summer and believed he had lost more than $ 700,000 through the Robinhood helpline and to make everyone listen while a short message was played and the call ended. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, said Robinhood’s decisions “harmed” customers and accused him of passing on hidden costs to his customers.
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Keith Gill – known on YouTube as Roaring Kitty – testified that his interest in the company was based on his belief that the market underestimated the value of retailers. His testimony included winking references – such as hanging the apparent red headband of a kitten visible over his shoulder and hanging the statement ‘I’m not a cat’ to the internet meme culture.
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Several hard questions were put to Kenneth C. Griffin, the head of Citadel. Congressmen have asked skeptical questions about Citadel’s practice of paying against customers at online brokers such as Robinhood. Mr. Griffin tried to explain the complexities of the business, but was often cut off. “Our people are tired of getting rid of everyone when you come up with the retirement fund. And that’s exactly what’s happening right now, ”Michigan Democrat Representative Rashida Tlaib told him.