Facebook, Twitter, YouTube: Business Models Not Addictive

Representatives from Facebook, Twitter and YouTube denied their business models are based on maximizing user engagement, during a hearing Tuesday in which members of both parties raised concerns. The power of social media companies over people’s lives is “of great concern” to a wide number of legislators, Senate Privacy Subcommittee Chairman Chris Coons, D-Del., told us. “Exactly what statutory, regulatory or voluntary measures can best address it, I think it would be premature after the first hour of our first hearing to say I have an endgame in mind.”

Tuesday’s hearing was a starting point to find bipartisan solutions with ranking member Ben Sasse, R-Neb., Coons said. There will “absolutely” be follow-up hearings on algorithmic design, Coons added.

If the product is free, the consumer is probably the product, Sasse said during the hearing. The companies’ denial doesn’t reconcile with comments from Center for Humane Technology President Tristan Harris, said Sasse. Asking social media companies about algorithm issues is like asking BP, Exxon and Shell about what they’re doing to combat climate change, said Harris. The business model is to create a society that is addicted, outraged, polarized, performative and misinformed, he said.

Sasse asked witnesses if they agree with Harris’ argument that companies skim harmful content off the top without dealing with underlying issues. Facebook’s focus is long-term, said Vice President-Content Policy Monika Bickert. It tried to prioritize content from family and friends over news, suspecting this would lead to less time spent on the site, she said: It led to consumers spending tens of millions of fewer hours there.

There's no clear, easy regulatory fix, said Sasse, but everyone should agree there’s a problem. He accused Twitter of capitalizing on “short-term rage,” noting sometimes a viral tweet is factually wrong, but the correction gets about 3% of the traffic. Connectivity is key to solving problems, and that’s what Twitter’s service does, said U.S. Public Policy Head Lauren Culbertson.

YouTube Government Affairs Director Alexandra Veitch agreed with Sasse that these are “meddlesome problems,” but said misinformation isn’t beneficial to YouTube’s business. Advertisers are aware of the quality of content, and users have tools to limit engagement and control autoplay options, she said.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said he’s considering privacy legislation modeled after EU general data protection regulation’s principles. He asked witnesses if they would vote for such legislation. Veitch said she’s not an expert on the GDPR, and Bickert similarly dodged. Culbertson said Twitter complies with the GDPR, but there are tensions with the First Amendment in the U.S. She said she welcomes a conversation. Kennedy cited his legislation that would remove Communications Decency Act Section 230 immunity for platforms that optimize foreign engagement. Harvard public policy lecturer Joan Donovan told Kennedy she would support legislation requiring oversight of algorithmic systems, not necessarily his bill.

Section 230 immunity should be removed, said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. He agreed addiction is the business model, asking why companies that engage in algorithmic amplification and behavioral advertising should get such immunity. Harris told him if platforms took a more hands-off approach to moderating, the most outrageous and illegal content would spread furthest. While asking about content moderation practices, Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said conservatives are most consistently censored by such platforms.

Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., said he’s not excited about Big Tech companies being the arbiters of free expression: The root of Facebook’s content issues is that the platform has too much power. The company shouldn’t be deciding what ideas prosper, he said, asking if it plans to buy more of its competitors, as it did Instagram and WhatsApp. Bickert told him it’s a competitive market, denying his claim that the social network dominates competitors.