Do Some Tech Companies Have Too Much Influence? - Lessons From the Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Russia is increasingly isolated politically and economically, and countries are not the only parties choosing to flex their economic might. Recently, some major companies have implemented their own forms of economic sanctions.

But this begs the question: Are these companies’ actions a sign they are too big for their own good?

Nearly half of professionals in the U.S. (45%) say they do not support the recent bans of Russian state media companies by major social media companies, according to a recent user-initiated poll on the professional social network Blind. More than one in four respondents (27%) said they only supported “censorship” if required by a court or legal order.

Earlier this week, internet giants, including Google-owned YouTube, Meta-owned Facebook, and TikTok, blocked channels and profiles connected to the Russian state media outlets RT and Sputnik in Europe amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

In the same poll on Blind, the remaining 28% of respondents said they supported companies deciding to “censor” as they see fit.

“Businesses are free to refuse content that they disagree with, especially when that content is government produced,” said a verified Credit Karma professional. “I do not support government compelled speech.”

The professional at the financial-technology company described the recent corporate actions as “non-government private actors making decisions for their own property.” The user continued: “It’s called liberty.”

Others expressed concern with the exercise of what some call the outsized geopolitical influence of companies sanctioning another country as a government might.

“Big tech flexing their power into politics is such a dangerous and recent thing we have to accept,”

- verified Workday professional

The growing list of companies sanctioning Russia

At least two dozen major private companies and organizations have stopped business or limited access to their goods or services in Russia. Some of the global companies include:

• Airbnb
• Apple
• Airbus
• Boeing
• BP
• Daimler Truck
• Disney
• EA Sports
• Equinor
• ExxonMobil
• FedEx
• Ford
• GM
• Harley-Davidson
• HSBC
• International Olympic Committee and other major sports governing bodies, including FIFA
• Maersk
• Mastercard
• Meta
• Microsoft
• Netflix
• PayPal
• Reddit
• Shell
• Snap
• Societe Generale
• TikTok
• Twitter
• UPS
• Visa
• Volvo
• WarnerMedia

The wide breadth of the companies involved, including many large U.S. technology companies, has also led to criticism from some technologists as evidence of a “big tech monopoly.”

“All my thoughts and prayers are with [the] people of Ukraine,” a verified Airbnb professional said on Blind. “But this censoring is not going to help them [Ukrainians] and sets a wrong precedent for future cases,” citing the actions taken by Facebook, Google, Mastercard, Netflix, PayPal-owned Venmo and Visa.

In the end, the issue may be a problem of our own collective doing.

“I’d say they are intentionally performative,” an anonymous verified professional said on Blind, referring to the many companies’ decisions to sanction Russia. “Tech companies should not be the judge of anything or step into politics, but everyone expects [from] them some kind of social responsibility to do the right thing. This means they have to do something to make the crowd not mad.”

The bottom line

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has extended beyond the borders of Europe, and companies increasingly have a say. The professional social network Blind found that some U.S. tech giants’ recent decisions to sanction Russia have drawn the concern of some technologists about the influence these companies command.

Also published on Teamblind's blog