Bay Area Tech Giants Under International Pressure to Shut Down Russian Disinformation, Social Media
In the wake of the Russian involvement in the current conflict in Ukraine, American tech giants such as Apple, Google, and Meta are facing pressure to punish Russian companies and individuals.
Irina Raicu, director, Internet ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University says companies are now compelled to act to be on the right side of business ethics, and that “standing on the sidelines” is no longer an option.
“I think there’s been a general understanding that there’s no such thing as neutrality,” said Raicu. “I think they have come to understand that by merely allowing people to use the platform, they’re already not standing on the sidelines. They are becoming conduits for certain messages and certain people and certain groups and therefore, they have a responsibility to either control the information or to actually cut off that access.”
Irina Raicu, director of internet ethics, quoted by CBS 5 KPIX.