[ad_1]
Small Business Administration urged to cut ties with Big Tech
A federal agency tasked with supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs is facing fresh pressure from liberal advocacy groups to end its partnerships with tech giants, links that the critics argue undercut the Biden administration’s efforts to rein in the behemoths.
Over a dozen consumer advocacy and anti-monopoly groups on Monday called on the Small Business Administration (SBA) to reject corporate sponsorships from alleged “monopolists” like Amazon, Google and Meta for its flagship event next year.
The groups, which include the Revolving Door Project and the American Economic Liberties Project, wrote in a letter to Administrator Isabel Guzman, shared first with The Technology 202, that the SBA “is lending unwarranted legitimacy to these corporations and undermining the work of other agencies confronting anti-competitive practices that harm small businesses.”
The agency has listed Amazon, Google and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, as co-sponsors for its annual National Small Business Week event every year since President Biden took office.
The cost for corporate sponsors in 2024 is set to range from $10,000 to $150,000, according to an SBA guide shared with prospective partners and cited in the letter. The guide states that sponsors will “benefit from highly visible coverage,” with the “overall potential reach” from last year valued at $130 million in advertising.
Top sponsors will also be given the chance to present at SBA events, to be featured in event materials and to receive a “list of attendees who opt-in to receive communication from co-sponsors,” according to the document.
This arrangement has also come under fire from GOP lawmakers such as Reps. Ken Buck (Colo.) and Claudia Tenney (N.Y.), with Buck calling it “thinly veiled theater” of small business support.
SBA spokesperson Christine Saah Nazer said in a statement that the event “would not be possible without the help of our co-sponsors … many of which the SBA has partnered with for years, ensuring consistent programming quality across several administrations.”
Biden’s antitrust enforcers are leading suits against each of the giants, accusing them of stifling smaller rivals either through anticompetitive conduct or by scooping up start-ups — allegations the companies have disputed and are fighting in court.
The Federal Trade Commission in September alleged that Amazon holds a monopoly over online retail, a claim the company called “misguided.” (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post. The Post’s interim CEO, Patty Stonesifer, sits on Amazon’s board.)
The Justice Department, for its part, is pursuing two suits accusing Google of maintaining monopolies over online search and digital advertising, efforts the giant has called “deeply flawed.” And the FTC filed an amended lawsuit in 2021 accusing Meta of holding a social networking monopoly. The company has said there’s no basis for the claim.
The companies have expressed a commitment to supporting small businesses, including by backing the SBA’s annual event. Google declined to comment. Meta did not return a request for comment.
Amazon spokesperson Tim Doyle said the company was “proud” to sponsor the event in 2023 to “recognize the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners, and share tools and resources to support their growth.”
The letter is just one example of how Big Tech critics have dialed up pressure on agencies outside the DOJ and the FTC, arguing that their actions have at times contradicted the Biden administration’s position.
For example, left-leaning advocacy groups have criticized Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for repeatedly meeting in private with top tech executives and voicing concern about regulations overseas that target Silicon Valley titans, as we reported.
Outside groups and a bipartisan cast of lawmakers have also pushed for the U.S. Trade Representative to reject the influence of the tech giants in trade talks. They notched a major win in October when the top trade official, Katherine Tai, dropped the U.S.’s standard digital trade demands in World Trade Organization negotiations.
TikTok struggling to remove fake videos of Hamas victims
Deepfake videos of victims killed by Hamas on Oct. 7 are going viral on TikTok, and the platform is struggling to take them down as they slip through its content moderation tools, Bloomberg News’s Alexandra Barinka reports.
“Bloomberg reviewed dozens of deepfake videos on TikTok portraying victims of tragedy in various languages, racking up sometimes millions of views and thousands of comments,” Barinka writes, adding, “Most recent are the Israel-Hamas war victim videos, which appear designed to generate both sympathy and virality, though their creators are often anonymous.”
The report continues, “The videos feature dead children, private citizens and celebrities, and none of the posts reviewed show evidence that the victim or their survivors consented to the use of that person’s likeness.”
“Like other platforms, TikTok continues to invest in detection, transparency, and industry partnerships to address this rapidly evolving technology,” a TikTok spokesperson told the outlet. “We have firm policies in place to remove harmful AI-generated content from our platform.”
AT&T taps Ericsson for $14 billion network overhaul, booting Nokia
AT&T on Monday said it picked Ericsson to overhaul its network infrastructure, devoting $14 billion to an expected five-year project that represents a major win for Ericsson over rival Nokia, Bloomberg News’s Todd Shields reports.
Shields writes: “The deal will have Ericsson build AT&T’s network with open architecture, which will let vendors compete to supply components, according to a company statement Monday. Most networks today are locked into a relationship with a single manufacturer.”
“Having a number of suppliers can boost flexibility, lower costs and avoid reliance on non-US vendors classified as security risks such as Huawei Technologies Co.,” the report adds, citing documentation from the Federal Communications Commission.
Ousted propaganda scholar Joan Donovan accuses Harvard of bowing to Meta
Prominent disinformation scholar Joan Donovan accused Harvard University of dismissing her to ingratiate with Facebook and its current and former executives in violation of her right to free speech, our colleague Joseph Menn reports.
Donovan said in a filing with the Education Department and the Massachusetts attorney general that her position was eliminated at Harvard as the school was getting a $500 million donation from Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg’s charitable arm, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, named for him and his wife, Priscilla Chan.
“As research director of Harvard Kennedy School projects delving into mis- and disinformation on social media platforms, Donovan had raised millions in grants, testified before Congress and been a frequent commentator on television, often faulting internet companies for profiting from the spread of divisive falsehoods,” Joseph writes.
“The document’s allegations of unfair treatment and donor interference are false. The narrative is full of inaccuracies and baseless insinuations, particularly the suggestion that Harvard Kennedy School allowed Facebook to dictate its approach to research,” Kennedy School spokesperson Sofiya Cabalquinto said in an email. “By policy and in practice, donors have no influence over this or other work.”
These are some of the notable companies laying off workers (Julian Mark, Hamza Shaban, Aaron Gregg and Jacob Bogage)
A Brazilian city passed a law about water meters. ChatGPT wrote it. (María Luisa Paúl)
- Bertram Lee has joined NTIA’s Office of Policy Analysis and Development. He previously served at the Future of Privacy Forum, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and Public Knowledge.
- Sen. Todd C. Young (R-Ind.), SEC Chair Gary Gensler and others speak at an event held by the Messenger discussing AI innovation and regulation beginning at 8 a.m.
- NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson testifies to the House Energy and Commerce Committee at 10:30 a.m. The committee also marks up a slew of spectrum, privacy and tech bills at 2 p.m.
- Commerce Department Director of AI Policy and Strategy Victoria Houed speaks at an Aspen Institute event on ambiguity and hype in artificial intelligence at noon.
- The Center for Strategic and International Studies holds a discussion on U.S. and E.U. semiconductor policy tomorrow at 10 a.m.
- The House Oversight Committee convenes a hearing on White House AI policy tomorrow at 2 p.m.
That’s all for today — thank you so much for joining us! Make sure to tell others to subscribe to The Technology 202 here. Get in touch with tips, feedback or greetings on Twitter or email.
[ad_2]
Source link