Opinion: Large tech doesn’t support Republicans or Democrats, it’s just the most important

Our cars headed toward the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and we wanted to go out. On June Day in DC, it’s nice in the shadows, but no it’s hotter than hell. The breeze was encouraging, so Laura Marquez-Garrett (LMG) (the lawyer who used them/their pronoun), I walked around the corner and found the bench nearby. We await its seminar outside of the FTC, “Attention Economy: How Big Tech Companies Use Children and Harm Families.” We have signed the workshop but decided not to go at the last minute.

There are many reasons why we decided not to participate, the main reason is Internal Documentation Showcased plans for different FTC workshops to drive anti-transgender rhetoric. This makes it difficult to see the FTC as the nonpartisan, Consumer Protection Agency, as it should be. In addition, at the “Attention to Economy” seminar, the FTC chose Exclude pro-business Free market advocates involvement, which suggests that one of our country’s largest consumer protection mechanisms may be losing its purpose.

Americans don’t like censorship, which is dangerous, especially because companies like Meta, Snapchat, Tiktok, Google or Apple The speakers at large tech seminars are not part of. Freedom of speech flourishes. Danger is not when the industry or opposition voices speak publicly – it is when they operate in the shadows, misleading legislators behind closed doors. We need companies to file lawsuits in public squares where their arguments may be challenged. No large technical representatives at the workshop will only be scrutinizing the disappearing underground driving their conspiracy.

As we sit outside the FTC, our conversation turns to the difficulty of pursuing our goals, which many consider impossible – keeping children safe online – while working with governments that often seem to invalidate the existence of transgender life. We discussed the discipline required to maintain both jobs. This kind of bipartisan cooperation is essential because now, the only winners in our deadlocked political system are companies like Meta, Apple and Snap Inc., while parents and children continue to lose.

This is not a new idea. Ralph Nader wrote Unstoppable About how the right-wing league drives real change. The sector is not only a win for some technology companies – it is their strategy. Paralyzed democracy cannot pass meaningful legislation.

Make real changes

The most famous online safety legislation for children at the last session was the Children’s Online Safety Act (KOSA), which would confirm the care obligations for social media platforms in its design. In response to proposed legislation, social media companies Claims that this will lead to censorship and denial of valuable resources in the LGBTQ+ community. Although the bill’s strength was evident in bipartisan negotiations, leading to its passage in the Senate 91-3, these vulnerable communities remain scared. Events such as the Ant-Trans FTC workshop will only exacerbate these fears.

In the FTC’s “Attention to Economy” seminar that we skipped, the event focused on “conservative family values” and positive parties. Lauren Finer of Verge Write“Republicans are slamming the internet,” and the invited lineup may be “a targeted message to those who have previously hampered children’s online security reform: fellow Republicans.”

But Republicans didn’t kill Xhosa. Big Tech did it.

LMG tells Bloomberg It’s about “choosing big technology over kids”. The same article shows that the frustration of the two parties with large tech lobbyists misled Congressional aides. “Tech companies are doing everything they can to play to both sides,” said Jon Schweppe, a conservative American Principles project.

The war at the party line will only hurt the children. Large tech doesn’t see Democrats or Republicans, but just people who can help them make money. In Colorado, former tech entrepreneur Democratic Governor Jared Polis vetoed SB25-086, a bill to protect children from online predators. Then, big tech flips enough Republicans with gun hall groups Block overwrite.

Big Tech hopes we believe that cooperation is dead. But that’s not. The 91-3 Senate vote for Xhosa proves this. The same goes for the bipartisan efforts of Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal, Josh Hawley and Ed Markey, Lindsey Graham and Amy Klobuchar. Leaders from both sides gathered to challenge Big Tech’s unlimited power. They debated, revised and compromised – all of which passed a bill that could save lives.

We cannot let these companies break down this fragile progress. The bet is too high.

Back to the hot day in Washington, DC Jennie Deserio and Amy Neville The corner near LMG and I. Jennie and Amy are two parents from the opposite side of the political aisle, unifying grief and purpose. Jennie loses her son Mason after Tiktok’s suicide meaning. Amy threw his son Alexander to a fake drug sold on Snapchat. Mom just came from an FTC workshop we chose not to attend.

Parents like Jennie and Amy, as well as advocates like me and me, are working with unlikely allies to protect children online. The bipartisan cooperation is not dead yet – but it is hung by a thread. If we want to stop our children from dying in the hands of large technologies, we all have to remain focused and disciplined. We all have to prioritize child safety by design, rather than confuse this fundamental issue with issues designed to be distracted and divided. Everyone who cares about children should sit down at the table.

If we are asked to show up and do this work to protect all children online and do so without harming any one child, we will. The question is whether this administration will use the FTC to take charge of large-scale technologies or target people fighting for survival. If we choose the former, we can make real, lasting changes.

Lennon Torres is a public voice for the OPED program to prevent child sexual abuse. She is an LGBTQ+ advocate, grew up in the eyes of the public and gained national recognition from young dancers on TV shows. Lennon Hot Plan. This column reflects the author’s opinions.

Laura Marquez-Garrett is a parent and happens to be a lawyer. They graduated from Harvard Law School in 2002 and then spent twenty years building successful litigation practices in major law, specializing in electronic evidence and forensic investigations. In February 2022, Laura left the corner office to join a company focused on large-scale technology hazards and corporate accountability. Now, they have contributed variously to the goal of changing and keeping social media companies accountable for design-based harm to children and families. This column reflects the author’s opinions.