WASHINGTON—This week, Daniel Cochrane, senior research associate in the Tech Policy Center at The Heritage Foundation, provided testimony before the Texas legislature on how Big Tech platforms manipulate American voters and elections. As a result of the testimony provided by Heritage and other experts, the Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs voted unanimously to authorize an investigation of Facebook, Google, and other tech giants ahead of the November 2024 election.  

Cochrane issued the following statement after the hearing:  

“Texas is leading the way in holding Big Tech accountable for subjugating our self-governing republic. This week’s unanimous committee vote sends a clear message that manipulating the information environment to reinforce Big Tech’s leftist ideology and agenda endangers the American tradition of self-government. 

 

“Americans have a right to know how the most powerful platforms on earth shape political discourse. Texas’s investigation is an important step forward. But states need to back it up with concrete policies that prioritize platform transparency and rein in politically-driven algorithmic interventions and content moderation decisions.”