Holding "Big Tech" Accountable for Years of Overreach
After years of censorship scandals, the JAWBONE Act seeks to block future government collusion with Big Tech companies
Regulatory officials just opened a probe, internationally, into Apple over its iCloud service. Regulators say Apple makes it hard for rival cloud companies to work properly on iPhones and iPads. Full device backups and smooth background syncing only work well with Apple’s own service. This fits a pattern we’ve seen for years: Big Tech locks users in and squeezes out competition.
It’s about time someone called them on it. Apple isn’t the only one. Google is still fighting a big U.S. antitrust case over how it locked up search defaults on phones and browsers. These companies grew huge by playing hardball, not by offering the best product every time.
But let’s not forget how willing Big Tech was to play ball with government power when it suited them. Back on October 8, 2025, the U.S. Senate held hearings called “Shut Your App: How Uncle Sam Jawboned Big Tech Into Silencing Americans.” Lawmakers laid out how the Biden administration, through agencies like CISA, leaned on platforms to censor Americans—especially conservative voices—on COVID, elections, and other hot topics. Big Tech mostly went along instead of pushing back hard for free speech.
That history matters. These same companies that now cry foul over European rules or U.S. antitrust cases were quick to help one political side limit what people could say online. Skepticism about Big Tech isn’t just about high prices or closed systems. It’s about concentrated power that can be used against regular folks when politicians apply pressure.
A promising development is the new bipartisan JAWBONE Act making its way through Congress. Sponsored by conservatives like Senator Ted Cruz and even some Democrats such as Ron Wyden, the bill would force government agencies to report their contacts with tech platforms and give ordinary Americans a stronger way to hold officials accountable when they cross the line into censorship. It aims to stop future jawboning by making these behind-the-scenes pressures transparent and subject to real consequences. While it’s no silver bullet, the act shows growing recognition across the aisle that Big Tech’s cozy relationship with Washington has gone too far and needs real guardrails to protect free speech for everyone.
Real reform should focus on protecting speech and opening up competition without handing more control to the same government that once teamed up with these firms. The recent moves against Apple and Google show the problems are real. We need solutions that don’t create new ones.
Sources / Additional reading
- Italy opens first DMA probe into Apple over iCloud access: https://www.verdict.co.uk/news/italy-opens-dma-probe-apple/
- U.S. files appeal in Google search antitrust case: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/us-files-appeal-in-google-search-antitrust-case-5905121
- Bipartisan JAWBONE Act targets government censorship threats: https://reason.com/2026/06/17/bipartisan-jawbone-act-targets-government-censorship-threats/
One-pager summary here:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/JAWBONE-One-Pager-FINAL.pdf
Official JAWBONE Act bill text (PDF):
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/JAWBONE-Act-FINAL.pdf