Overview
- The Senate Judiciary Committee, which sent invitations Friday, set a June 23 session titled “Examining Tech Industry Practices and the Implications for Users and Families: Is This Social Media’s Big Tobacco Moment?”.
- Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Google’s Sundar Pichai, TikTok’s Shou Zi Chew and Snap’s Evan Spiegel have not yet committed to appear, with committee staff saying they are in active talks to confirm attendance.
- Pressure increased after March jury decisions, including a $6 million California verdict against Meta and Google over designs that hook young users and a New Mexico ruling that found Meta harmed children and led to $375 million in civil penalties.
- Lawmakers are pushing the Kids Online Safety Act, an updated children’s privacy bill known as COPPA 2.0, and efforts to curb or repeal Section 230, a law that shields platforms from most lawsuits over user‑posted content.
- Committee aides say questioning could also examine whistleblower retaliation, ties to China and TikTok’s post‑ByteDance U.S. setup, targeted ads to teens, and broader data‑privacy practices.