In Part 1 of this two-part series, we look at how others have reviewed The Tyranny of Big Tech by Senator Josh Hawley. Here we will highlight what makes the book worth reading.

Before we go further, however, I want to make a quick observation. Of the reviews we considered in Part 1, In New Book, Josh Hawley Takes On The Tyranny Of Big Tech (thefederalist.com) provides the most accurate review. Therefore, if you have doubts about reading the book, I suggest you read that review.

So, what is the focus of this and the remaining posts in this series? I will highlight some of the ideas in the book that struck me as most interesting.

What is Corporate Liberalism?

I was a bit surprised when Hawley used Corporate Liberalism as his preferred label for Big Tech advocates. What is Corporate Liberalism? Well, political labels can be confusing. Consider The New York Times’ take on this.

In the early 1960’s, the New Left used such terms as ”corporate liberalism” and ”Cold War liberalism” to condemn a doctrine they saw as supporting American military intervention all over the world and stifling more radical initiatives at home.

On the right, liberalism came to be associated with civil rights and thus with the decline of the old white-dominated social order in the South and the threat to white ethnic enclaves in the North. As this won the loyalty of black voters, it drove off some whites.

Describing Liberalism – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Want an example of what The New York Times is talking about?

Whether seated in Congress or exiting a voting booth, a corporate liberal is someone who supports anything progressive that does not challenge corporate power. In practice, this means corporate liberals will fight for progressive identity politics. If it has to do with race, sexual orientation, and gender, it generally doesn’t challenge corporate power. Major corporations support progressive positions on those issues, too. Corporate liberals march for gay rights and the larger LGBTQ community itself. They support feminism. They support reproductive rights. They support African-American protests against police brutality—up to the point where they become threatening to the establishment. (Bill Clinton did initiate the prison industrial complex that unduly incarcerates huge numbers of minorities.)

The Corporate Liberal in America – CounterPunch.org

Essentially, Hawley is using a label invented by Democrats. Democrats unhappy with the party’s corporate cronyism use this label to describe the Democratic Party’s establishment’s connections with corporate America. Of course, the Democratic Party and corporate America reject this label, but Big Tech, because it is actively trying to censor and shut down Conservatives, is having a difficult time covering up its Democratic Party connections.

Therefore, Hawley’s use of the expression Corporate Liberalism is actually quite clever.

• The term emphasizes the connection between Establishment politicians and corporate America. When people see and understand that connection, they don’t like it.
• When Hawley uses the term, Corporate Liberal, he invites the Democrats who reject Corporate Liberalism to join with him in fighting the abuses of Big Tech.

What will Part 3 focus on? What exactly is the threat posed by Big Tech?

Additional References

Here are some examples of how the expression “Corporate Liberal” is defined and used.

• Corporate liberalism – Wikipedia
• Barack Obama, Corporate Liberal | Washington Examiner
• Corporate Liberal Media Has A Disinformation Problem, And Polling Proves It | The Daily Caller
• Center for a Stateless Society » Remembering Corporate Liberalism (c4ss.org)

Here is a short video that defines the expression.