After Election Marked by Big Tech Censorship, Biden Team Quietly Brings on Facebook, Google Employees
As censorship by Big Tech emerges as a critical issue for many Americans, Google and Facebook staffers are burrowing their way into the transition team of presumptive President-elect Joe Biden.
On Friday, Politico reported that new names have been added to a list that already included several prominent Facebook alumni.
Big Tech has tried to use its influence on the election. For example, YouTube last week declared it would ban videos that suggested the results of the Nov. 3 election were in doubt.
An independent analysis said Google pushed left-leaning users to vote, but not conservative ones.
Four current Big Tech employees are also working on the transition team, according to the report.
The report said that Zaid Zaid, a Facebook public policy official, has become part of the State Department and International Development teams. Christopher Upperman, a manager with Facebook, is now on the Small Business Administration team.
Biden’s Intelligence Community team has added Rachel Lieber, a director of Facebook and an associate general counsel. Deon Scott, a program manager at Google, is now on the Department of Homeland Security team.
According to Politico’s Steven Overly, all were part of the Obama administration in which Biden was vice president.
There’s a lot of sensitivity among progressives and some conservatives to the Biden admin tapping leaders with ties to Silicon Valley. These four were part of the Obama admin before going to work for tech companies.
— Steven Overly (@StevenOverly) December 11, 2020
Biden transition co-chair Jeff Zients served on the Facebook board of directors from 2018 to early 2020, and Erskine Bowles, who held a seat on Facebook’s board from 2011 to 2019, serves as an advisor to the transition team, according to Politico.
Facebook’s former director of public policy, Louisa Terrell, who has directed legislative affairs for the transition team, will direct Biden’s White House Office of Legislative Affairs.
Last month, a number of public interest groups had urged Biden to keep his distance from Big Tech, according to Reuters.
The letter was signed by 32 groups including Public Citizen, American Economic Liberties Project, Open Markets Institute, Progressive Democrats of America, the Revolving Door Project and Athena.
“We believe that your administration must confront the threats posed by the monopolistic Big Tech companies. … however, we can only bring these companies to account if you do not rely on affiliates of these very companies to make up your government,” the letter said.
“We believe that eliminating the decades-old revolving door between Silicon Valley and your administration will only help your cause.”
Last week, the Trump administration, in partnership with 40 states, filed a massive anti-trust lawsuit against Facebook, accusing the giant social media company of buying up potential rivals to ensure market dominance.
In its reporting about Facebook staffers joining the transition, Politico noted that some Democrats are opposed to having them as part of the team.
“We basically think they’re an immoral company,” Politico quoted what it said was a senior Democratic strategist close to the campaign.
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