SAN FRANCISCO: Alphabet Inc’s Google disclosed in a quarterly filing on Tuesday that it spent a company-record $21.2 million on lobbying the US government in 2018, topping its previous high of $18.22 million in 2012, as the search engine operator fights wide-ranging scrutiny into its practices.
In its filing to Congress on Tuesday, Facebook Inc. disclosed that it also spent more on government lobbying in 2018 than it ever had before at $12.62 million. That was up from $11.51 million a year ago, according to tracking by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.
Google’s spent $18.04 million on lobbying in 2017, according to the center’s data.
Google and Facebook declined to comment beyond their filings.
US lawmakers and regulators have weighed new privacy and antitrust rules to rein in the power of large Internet service providers such as Google, Facebook and Amazon.com Inc. Regulatory backlash in the United States, as well as Europe and Asia, is near the top of the list of concerns for technology investors, according to financial analysts.
Microsoft Corp. spent $9.52 million on lobbying in 2018, according to its disclosure on Tuesday, up from $8.5 million in 2017 but below its $10.5 million tab in 2013.
Apple Inc. spent $6.62 million last year, compared to its record of $7.15 million in 2017, according to center data going back to 1998.
Apple and Microsoft did not respond to requests to comment. A filing from Amazon was expected later on Tuesday.
Google disclosed that new discussion topics with regulators in the fourth quarter included its search technology, criminal justice reform and international tax reform. The company is perennially among the top spenders on lobbying in Washington along with a few cable operators, defense contractors and health care firms.
Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai, who testified in December before a US House of Representatives panel for the first time, has said the company backs the idea of national privacy legislation. But he has contested accusations of the company having a political bias in its search results and of stifling competition.
Susan Molinari, Google’s top US public policy official, stepped down to take on an advisory role this month.
Facebook said discussing “election integrity” with national security officials was among its new lobbying areas in the fourth quarter. The filing said the company continued to lobby the Federal Trade Commission, which is investigating its data security practices.
Google, Facebook spend big on US lobbying amid policy battles
Google, Facebook spend big on US lobbying amid policy battles
- Google disclosed in a quarterly filing on Tuesday that it spent a company-record $21.2 million on lobbying the US government in 2018
- Facebook Inc. disclosed that it also spent more on government lobbying in 2018 than it ever had before at $12.62 million
Israel extends foreign media ban law until end of 2027
- Order replaces temporary emergency legislation that allowed authorization of so-called ‘Al Jazeera bill’
- Extension of temporary order empowers Communications Ministry to restrict foreign channels deemed to cause ‘real harm to state security’
LONDON: Israel’s Knesset approved late Monday an extension of the temporary order empowering the Communications Ministry to shut down foreign media outlets, pushing the measure through until Dec. 31, 2027.
The bill, proposed by Likud lawmaker Ariel Kallner, passed its second and third readings by a 22-10 vote, replacing wartime emergency legislation known as the “Al Jazeera Law.”
Under the extended order, the communications minister — with prime ministerial approval and security cabinet or government ratification — can restrict foreign channels deemed to cause “real harm to state security,” even outside states of emergency.
Measures include suspending broadcasts, closing offices, seizing equipment, blocking websites, and directing the defense minister to block satellite signals, including in the West Bank, without disrupting other channels.
Administrative orders last 90 days, with possible extensions. Unlike the temporary measure, the new law does not require court approval to shut down a media outlet.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from human rights and media groups, who warn it entrenches restrictions on Arab and foreign outlets amid a broader erosion of press freedoms.
“Israel is openly waging a battle against media outlets, both local and foreign, that criticize the government’s narrative; that is typical behavior of authoritarian regimes,” International Federation of Journalists General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said in November after the bill’s first reading.
“We are deeply concerned about the Israeli parliament passing this controversial bill, as it would be a serious blow to free speech and media freedom, and a direct attack on the public’s right to know.”
In a parallel development, the Israeli Cabinet unanimously approved on Monday the shutdown of Army Radio (Galei Tzahal) after 75 years, with operations ceasing on March 1, 2026.
In a statement, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara warned the decision “undermines public broadcasting in Israel and restricts freedom of expression,” lacking a legal basis.
