A big-tech/arms makers coalition is hyping the threat from Russia and China to stave off government regulation, and more.
By Eli Clifton, Responsible Statecraft
It should come as no surprise that Facebook, alongside many big tech companies, opposes anti-monopoly regulatory efforts, expanding antitrust rules, and strengthening privacy and user rights. But Facebook has taken its advocacy against congressional efforts to regulate the industry to new heights: it has now partnered with the weapons industry to scare Americans about China and Russia.
In 2020, Facebook, which changed its name to Meta in October, 2021, launched American Edge, a political advocacy group claiming to represent “a coalition dedicated to the proposition that American innovators are an essential part of U.S. economic health, national security and individual freedoms.”
“With direct financial ties to the Chinese Communist Party, many Chinese companies present threats to America’s national security but some Washington politicians are pushing for new laws that will empower Alibaba, Tik Tok and other Chinese companies at the expense of America’s tech innovators,” says an American Edge YouTube ad from January that ran between 100,000 and one million times in the greater Washington, DC area. Edge spent over $1.4 million running that ad and similar ones on Facebook.
Recent Posts
Don’t Despair: Trump Isn’t Invincible
November 12, 2024
Take Action NowDonald Trump’s reelection is awful, but wallowing in misery only benefits his far-right agenda — and risks squandering the…
There Was No “Pogrom” In Amsterdam
November 12, 2024
Take Action NowThe far right is fanning the flames of conflict.By Mira Oklobdzija, Foreign Policy In FocusIn early…
It’s Time For Corporate Democrats To Face Their Failures
November 12, 2024
Take Action NowThe corporate wing of the Democratic Party has failed to achieve the electoral success it once promised with Bill Clinton…
Biden’s Middle East Legacy Is One Of Abject Failure
November 11, 2024
Take Action NowBiden’s Gaza policy has left the larger Middle East in flames.By Juan Cole, Tom DispatchPresident…