Poll: Most Americans not interested in new regulations for big tech companies

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Tightening regulations on Google, Facebook and Amazon, which have increasingly become the rhetorical targets of President Trump and some of the Democrats who want to replace him, does not appear to be something that most Americans are interested in, according to a new Hill-HarrisX poll.

When asked to choose between whether big tech firms should be regulated or be allowed to operate freely, a majority of registered voters, 53 percent, chose the latter option. Forty-seven percent said the companies should face more government rules.



The results show that the public is closely divided on the newly emerging issue.

Trump has repeatedly called out social media companies for alleged unfairness to conservatives and has accused Amazon of bending government rules in order to maximize its profits. While the administration has begun opposing major media consolidations, such as a merger between AT&T and Time Warner, it has yet to push for legislation that would rein in technology conglomerates.



On the Democratic side, two of the party's presidential candidates, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), have begun calling out large tech firms and arguing for new policies to address them. In an interview with The Washington Post published last Tuesday, Klobuchar said that internet giants have become "a major monopoly problem." Last Friday, Warren unveiled a new proposal to break up Facebook, Amazon and Google.

https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/433482-poll-americans-not-interested-in-extra-regulations-for-big-tech


Interesting that the Democrats seem to be more on the "don't regulate" side than the Republicans. Still it's a pretty close poll.

[still_one]

1. Senator Warren also added Apple to her list.

[crazytown]

2. No biggie

Warren wants Apple to stop selling their own software on the App Store. This would affect Logic Pro, Final Cut Pro and Compressor.

[marylandblue]

3. The question is poorly worded

It asks to choose whether big tech companies should be regulated because they are monopolies that reduce innovation and harm consumers or innovators that should be allowed to grow?

Those are not mutually exclusive, and it also assumes regulation is anti-monopoly rather than because of harming consumers.

When I am polled with questions like that, I refuse to answer and say the question is poorly worded.

[crazytown]

5. It's a push poll IMO

Should wealth creators be highly taxed?

[samnsara]

4. this is probably not even in my top 20 of issues im choosing a candidate on...

[crazytown]

6. Facebook?

Really? Not even after 2016?

[kcr]

8. HarriX is an online poll

Which is why their results tend to be all over the place

https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2018/04/americans-want-tougher-tech-regulations.html?page=all

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. An online push poll isn't really worth much of anything.

[gratuitous]

10. And even at that, it only got a 53-47 result

The sins and crimes of big tech companies haven't been very well-publicized (beyond "Ooops, looks like Facebook turned over everyone's private information to a band of pirates again who are currently pillaging everyone's profiles. Oh well, no way that could have been avoided. It'll get fixed sometime . . . soon? We guess." ). And certainly the notion that big tech might be better regulated hasn't enjoyed much time in the political discourse.

This issue has just come onto the scene and is already favored by 47% of the populace. Put a public relations push behind it, and I'd bet it would poll at 60% or higher.