Politicians see themselves confirmed by Facebook revelations

European politicians see themselves confirmed by the allegations of the whistleblower Haugen against Facebook: Online networks should be better controlled, they demand. Tech companies invest a lot of money in lobbying to prevent that.

After the whistleblower Frances Haugen against serious allegations has raised her former employer Facebook, politicians in Europe are calling for the network to be regulated more closely. It is now “really urgent” to implement the planned bills and “not to weaken them”, said EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton.

Haugen had Facebook before the US -Congress accused of putting profits before the safety and wellbeing of the people: “The company management knows how Facebook and Instagram can be made safer. But they are not making the necessary changes because they have put their astronomical profits above the people. ” That has consequences for people, democracy and society.

For example, the company is said to have switched off filters against false information after the US election campaign in order to attract more users. Commissioner Breton said that shouldn’t happen in Europe.

Expensive lobbying work

The European Parliament and the European Council currently have two legislative proposals before: the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. They are supposed to regulate the Internet, for example with personalized advertising and illegal content.

However, the tech companies invest a lot of money in lobbying the EU to prevent or weaken such laws . According to LobbyControl and Corporate Europe Observatory, with more than 97 million euros annually and more than 140 lobbyists, they are now the most strongly represented industry in Brussels – ahead of the pharmaceutical industry and the financial sector.

Breton emphasized that one should not give in to lobbying and weaken the proposed legislation. After a conversation with Haugen, he understood “your perspective, especially when it comes to questions of transparency, data and algorithms”.

Lambrecht: Self-regulation not enough

Federal Minister of Justice Christine Lambrecht (SPD) also wants to regulate social networks more in the future. “The latest revelations about Facebook show how urgently we need strong and effective regulation of social networks in Europe,” said Lambrecht. “In a united Europe, it affects us all when social networks with their algorithms intensify hatred and agitation and promote undesirable political and social developments.” social responsibility. Therefore appeals to a sense of responsibility and self-regulation were not enough.

Grütters: Limit market power

Berlin’s Minister of State for Culture Monika Grütters (CDU) wants to limit the market power of large platforms. “The failure of several Facebook services last Monday, but also the statements made by the former Facebook employee Frances Haugen once again showed how dependent many people around the world are on these services – in terms of technology, content and communication,” said Grütters. Therefore, they must continue to work at full speed on the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act.

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg had rejected the allegations against his company. What Haugen described was “simply not true” and “deeply illogical”. He doesn’t know of any tech company that makes products that make people angry or depressed.