Alive to New Threats, Google Reorganizes its Public Policy Shop

BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: Google is beginning to enter into hunker-down mode. The company is finally alive to the grave new threats that it faces. They are two-pronged: More-intensive antitrust scrutiny, and regulation of privacy/AI/Section 230 free speech. As Drew Clark wrote about for a CATO Institute policy late last year, “Seeking Intervention Backfired on Silicon Valley.” You can almost trace the fall of Google to the day that it joined in pushing for sweeping net neutrality regulation.

Scoop: Google exec reorganizes policy shop as global threats loom, from Axios

Google’s top policy executive is reorganizing the company’s worldwide influence operation, according to an internal email obtained by Axios.

Why it matters: The long-rumored shake-up comes as the search giant faces newly hostile regulators around the world.

What they’re saying: “Our increased responsibilities, the heightened public focus on tech and the growth of our business are placing greater demands on Google than ever before, and those demands will only increase,” said Karan Bhatia, who leads public policy around the world, in his email.

• “This reorganization restructures our function to better meet those demands and to successfully engage with governments and other stakeholders.”

Source: Scoop: Google exec reorganizes policy shop as global threats loom – Axios