Tag Archive | "Washington DC"
Ex-Googler’s New White House Job Rankles Some
Andrew McLaughlin’s departure from Google to the Obama administration has prompted a little grumbling among some consumer advocates and the search giant’s corporate foes. “We do not object to Mr. McLaughlin’s appointment because he is associated with Google per se. The problem is that he has been a lobbyist for the biggest digital marketing company in the world, and we believe no special-interest connected person should assume a position of vital importance to the country’s future,” wrote John M. Simpson, founder of Consumer Watchdog, and Jeffrey Chester, founder of the Center for Digital Democracy.
Continue reading...Google’s influence grows in the W.H.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Consumer groups urged the White House on Wednesday to back off its reported pick for deputy chief technology officer because he was listed as a registered lobbyist for Google. Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy said Andrew McLaughlin, the head of Google’s global public policy, would break President Barack Obama’s executive order barring lobbyists from serving in policy areas they lobbied in the previous two years.
Continue reading...Critics Rip Obama’s Proposed Google Pick
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
As rumors swirl that President Obama plans to appoint Google's Andrew McLaughlin as White House deputy chief technology officer, consumer watchdogs bay over possible ethics violations. "Mr. McLaughlin is very good at what he does — lobbying around the world for Google’s interests," said John M. Simpson, consumer advocate at Consumer Watchdog. "That's not what this job requires. It should not go to any person whose most recent position has been advocating policy for a technology company."
Continue reading...Obama’s Rumored Tech Pick Panned
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
A pair of watchdogs on Wednesday urged the White House not halt the pending appointment of Google's top global public policy executive to the position of deputy chief technology officer under CTO Aneesh Chopra, saying it would violate the intent of President Obama's ethics rules. Although the choice of Google's Andrew McLaughlin for the position has been widely reported, it has yet to be announced.
Continue reading...Consumer Groups To Obama: Google Lobbyist’s Appointment To Technology Post Raises Ethics Rules Questions For White House — Appointment Should Not Go Forward
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Washington, DC -- Two consumer groups today urged the White House not to move forward with the pending appointment of Google’s top global public policy official to the position of Deputy Chief Technology Officer in the White House, saying it would violate the intent of President Obama’s ethics rules meant to end the revolving door between lobbyists and the executive branch.
Continue reading...Google’s New Scourge Strikes A Nerve
Friday, May 15, 2009
In-your-face watchdog gets advice from Microsoft 'people,' interest from Verizon SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- Google Inc. has attracted a number of critics over the years, but the Internet search giant hasn't yet had to deal with any as jarringly adversarial as Consumer Watchdog. "Their tactics tend to be more confrontational than others'," said Tim Little, executive director of the Rose Foundation, an Oakland, Calif.-based organization that funds Consumer Watchdog. "But sometimes there's a place for folks being confrontational."
Continue reading...Google Presentation On “Google, Competition and Openness” Shared With Justice Department And Myths Debunked By Consumer Watchdog
Friday, May 8, 2009
Washington, DC -- Consumer Watchdog has sent to the U.S. Justice Department a Google document presenting the best corporate arguments for why Google should not be viewed as monopolistic, along with a duplicate of the presentation marked up with comments from an expert countering the claims. The nonprofit consumer group received both documents from an anonymous industry insider.
Continue reading...ConsumerWatchdog.org: Leaked Google Presentation Meant To Counter Fed Inquiries On Competition
Friday, May 8, 2009
Is Google a monopoly? That question, which is increasingly gaining the attention of regulators in Washington, D.C., is also the subject of an intense public relations war between Google and detractors. Today, a new front was opened up, after a consumer advocacy group released a copy of a Google presentation on Google's business practices, along with critical commentary that casts doubt on Google's claims that it supports competition. The group, ConsumerWatchdog.org, said that the Google presentation is part of a campaign to counter federal inquiries into potentially anticompetitive practices.
Continue reading...Regulators Question Google’s Deal With Publishers — Online Book Project Raises Antitrust Concerns
Thursday, April 30, 2009
U.S. antitrust enforcers are asking questions about Google’s settlement with publishers over its book-scanning project, representatives for Consumer Watchdog and the American Antitrust Institute said. Consumer Watchdog, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based consumer group, spent about an hour on the phone with Justice Department lawyers this month to discuss their concerns, John Simpson, a consumer advocate at the group, said in an interview.
Continue reading...Google Lobs $880,000 At Health Record Lobby – What Ye Worry?
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- Why is Google lobbying the US Congress over the webification of the nation's health records? It won't say. But lobbying it is. Consumer Watchdog is convinced that Google is lobbying for exclusion from the US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which provides privacy protections for America's personal health records. As it stands, the laws that govern what doctors can do with a patient's medical records do not apply to the Google Chocolate Factory. If you upload your health records to Google, you have to assume the company will always do the right thing.
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Wednesday, June 3, 2009
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