Why is Joe Biden a big deal for Mark Zuckerberg

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If Donald Trump pulls out with a blocked account and controversy, there is a new chapter to be written for Facebook’s future. And the lead actor this time will be Joe Biden. Indeed, the new president of the United States does not appear to be positively looking at Mark Zuckerberg’s empire. It is not a matter of rumors, but rather statements. Biden, in recent years, has repeatedly pointed to Facebook and against what he sees as a kind of tech monopoly. He did this during some public appearances, but also during interviews.

“I’ve never been a big fan of Facebook, you probably know. I’ve never been a big fan of Zuckerberg. I think it’s a real problem.” A few weeks ago, after the election victory, Biden’s vice president of communications tweeted Bill Russo: “If you thought disinformation on Facebook was a problem during our elections, wait to see how it destroys the fabric of our democracy. Next day days. “

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Old disagreements

In short, if the Obama administration is too close (according to some “friends”) to the giants of Silicon Valley, something might change in Biden. Especially for Facebook. Democrats – and this is not a mystery – hold Zuckerberg’s social network responsible for what happened in 2018. Democrats saw the Republicans’ use of Cambridge Analytica data as crucial to Trump’s victory. A few years later, Biden, in an interview with CNN (in 2019), made very serious accusations, talking about social media networks out of control due to the series of fake news promoted by Trump and transmitted by Facebook.

Section 230 Nightmare

Today, in a nutshell, for Mark Zuckerberg, a big new problem appears to be on the horizon: Joe Biden. The new president has the ability (and seemingly intent) to restructure Big Tech and reshape the relationship between social media companies and their users. Something that can be devastating on Facebook. The real point is the potential repeal of Section 230, a legislation that is currently preventing companies like Facebook from being sued for the things people post. A dynamic umbrella of a social network of nearly 2 billion users. A year ago, Biden, in the New York Times, was decisive, speaking of an act that must be “repealed immediately.” Is he now president? This is the big question that scares big tech companies. Imagine what would happen tomorrow if Facebook was responsible (and thus legally responsible) for all the things that users post. It’s honestly hard to imagine Facebook in its current form without Section 230.

Antitrust risk

If repealing Section 230 is a possibility but is still a hypothetical situation, the antitrust issue is more realistic. Facebook was recently sued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 46 states for “unlawfully maintaining its monopoly position” by buying competition. The Federal Trade Commission also said it is trying to “dismantle previous Facebook acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp,” somewhat similar to the dismantling of Menlo Park. “I expect the Biden administration to be very aggressive in enforcing antitrust laws,” Jamil Jafar, a legal expert for media at Columbia University, told the BBC. Consumers ».