WASHINGTON (Reuters) – California will join other states participating in a meeting organized by the U.S. Justice Department to discuss concerns about conservative voices being stifled on social media, a spokeswoman for the state’s attorney general said on Thursday.
FILE PHOTO: California Attorney General Xavier Becerra speaks at a media conference in Los Angeles, California, U.S. August 2, 2018. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson
The Justice Department invited officials from California Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s office to the Sept. 25 meeting after Becerra reached out to Washington, spokeswoman Sarah Lovenheim said in an email statement.
“States like California, the nation’s tech leader and home to a $385 billion tech industry, have a wealth of insight and expertise to share in any inquiry about the role of technology companies, and we look forward to a thoughtful conversation in Washington, D.C.,” Becerra said in a statement.
Companies like Facebook Inc, Twitter Inc and Google owner Alphabet Inc have been accused by some conservatives of seeking to exclude their ideas.
The Justice Department said last week the meeting would focus on competition issues and concerns over whether social media giants intentionally stifled the free exchange of ideas.
Texas and South Carolina said previously they would participate, while others said they were not invited.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reporting by Diane Bartz and Dan Levine; Editing by Leslie Adler and Peter Cooney