Senators Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. announced that they issued subpoenas to the executives of X, Snap, and Discord, calling them to testify at a hearing about online child sexual exploitation.
Tech Executives Refuse Hearing Appearance
According to the report, the executives have been invited before but have been repeatedly refusing to appear after several weeks of negotiations. Both the Congress and the Committee have been rallying on big tech' responsibility to protect children from the dangers of the online world.
"It's at the top of every parent's mind, and Big Tech's failure to police itself at the expense of our kids cannot go unanswered," the senators wrote in a joint statement.
Earlier this year, the senators promised that big tech companies will have an opportunity to explain their "failures to protect kids." According to the senators, this will be their chance to address and inform the government of the companies' efforts to mitigate online chile sexual exploitation on their platforms.
Tech Executives Issue Updates on Participation
Following the call-out, X's head of US and Canada government affairs, Wifredo Fernandez assured that the company is already communicating with their schedule to participate in the hearing. Meanwhile, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel confirmed his appearance to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
A Discord spokesperson is also actively engaging with the Committee on how they can contribute to the discussion and has cleared that they are welcoming the opportunity to help.
On the other hand, the senators are also communicating with Meta and TikTok, with the CEOs expected to testify voluntarily sometime in the New Year, according to a spokesperson. The hearing on child safety will be on December 6.
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