Jaishankar calls for debate on responsibility, accountability of Big Tech firms...

 Jaishankar calls for debate on responsibility, accountability of Big Tech firms...

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday called for a debate on the responsibility, accountability and influence wielded by big tech companies as “non-state players”, saying such issues cannot be brushed under the carpet.

Jaishankar’s remarks came against the backdrop of a tussle between social media giant Twitter and the Indian government following the implementation of controversial new digital media rules. He made the comments while participating in a virtual conversation with former UK prime minister Tony Blair.

The minister said there was a debate in different parts of the world on big tech, including a “very vigorous one in India”. While acknowledging technology and innovation as forces of progress that had opened new vistas, Jaishankar said there is also a need for democratic societies to debate the responsibility that comes along with the power wielded by big tech companies.

Without naming any particular company, Jaishankar said, “In a democratic society, we have to ask ourselves...big tech is there, it’s very visibly in my life. You have a big presence [but] where is the responsibility which comes with it? They have huge power, where is the accountability?”He added, “This is again not an issue limited to India. They harvest our data as they do across the world. So you have, in a sense, the opposite of the American revolution, which is you have representation and no taxation.”

Besides looking at the role of big tech as a governance issue, a political issue, and a democratic issue, there is also the need to examine the influence such firms command, he said.

“International relations have been devised on the basis of state-based players. What happens when you have non-state players who in some ways are bigger than many states? These are very serious questions which need debating,” Jaishankar said.

“I think they can’t be brushed under the carpet, saying you shouldn’t question them because then you are attacking freedom of speech. I think that’s a cop out. It obviously serves their interest, so it’s a very, very legitimate debate.”

Blair, while responding to a question on big tech companies challenging democracy from the moderator of the conversation organised by India Global Forum, described such firms as “vast behemoths with enormous power”.

He said many firms should now be seen as public interest companies since they have enormous impact on the lives of people, and there is a need for a regulatory framework within which they should operate.

Blair said another key issue is the digital divide, as hundreds of millions of people don’t have access to technology. He also called for focus on the power of China in the technology sphere.

Twitter is currently engaged in a tussle with the Indian government over the new IT rules, which came into effect on May 23. The government has criticised Twitter for deliberate failure to comply with the new guidelines that mandate appointments of chief compliance officer, nodal officer and grievance officer by social media platforms with more than 500 million users. The US giant also recently lost its intermediary status in India, making Twitter liable for any unlawful user-generated content.