Big Tech undermine free speech and democracy

The World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) asserts that the right to freedom of expression is insufficient to protect democratic debate because it does not address the power imbalances created by Big Tech. The statement claims that major tech companies—including Amazon, Meta, X, and Alphabet—have aligned themselves with the U.S. far-right, prioritizing profit over the public good and supporting agendas that deny climate change. WACC calls for a rights-based communication framework, the involvement of more movements in the fight for democratic tech, and the support of state blocs like the EU or African Union to create non-profit-driven technology and media ecosystems.

• The right to freedom of expression is insufficient for protecting democratic communication because it fails to address power imbalances in how public opinion is shaped, creating a need for a distinct 'right to communicate' to combat communication injustice.
• Major technology companies, specifically Amazon, Meta, X, and Alphabet, are described as being aligned with the U.S. far-right and prioritizing profit over the public good, including supporting agendas that deny climate change.
• To realize an alternative vision of communication as a human right rather than merchandise, WACC advocates for the support of states or blocs such as the European Union (EU) or the African Union to build technology and media ecosystems not motivated by profit.

APA

Rowley, S. (2025). Big Tech undermine free speech and democracy. World Association for Christian Communication. https://waccglobal.org/big-tech-undermine-free-speech-and-democracy/

Chicago

Rowley, Saskia. Big Tech undermine free speech and democracy. World Association for Christian Communication, 2025. https://waccglobal.org/big-tech-undermine-free-speech-and-democracy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Rowley |first1=Saskia |title=Big Tech undermine free speech and democracy |publisher=World Association for Christian Communication |date=27 January 2025 |url=https://waccglobal.org/big-tech-undermine-free-speech-and-democracy/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{rowley2025big, author = {Rowley, Saskia}, title = {{Big Tech undermine free speech and democracy}}, publisher = {World Association for Christian Communication}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://waccglobal.org/big-tech-undermine-free-speech-and-democracy/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }