It just got a lot harder to believe that Google doesn’t have any bias against conservatives.
After Tucker Carlson released a leaked email from a Google director saying that the company tried to influence Latino voters, Breitbart released a video of Google execs talking to a large audience of employees the day after the election. Google co-founder Sergey Brin told the company that he was “deeply offended” by the results of the election, which “conflicted with many of the company’s values.”
“Let’s face it, most people here are pretty upset and pretty sad,” Brin said. “I’ll be mourning all week, I’ll be honest with you.”
Senior Vice President for Global Affairs Kent Walker told the audience that Trump’s election was a result of “tribalism that’s self-destructive in the long-term.” But the good news, according to Walker, was that “history is on our side,” since apparently, “the moral arc of history bends towards progress.”
CFO Ruth Porat actually cried on stage while discussing the election results. She told everyone to hug the person next to them, crying “We all need a hug.” She said, “It did feel like a ton of bricks fell on my chest,” and also stated that all the employees felt the same way. Porat then quoted Hillary Clinton on stage.
VP of People Operations Eileen Naughton talked very seriously about what would happen if Google employees moved to Canada because of the results of the election. “Look, we move people at Google all the time,” she said. “We are not going to lose talent for lack of comfort staying in this country.”
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Later in the video, Brin makes an argument that Trump voters are like “extremists.” Another employee, unnamed, stands up and says that “white men” must go through training, “read about privilege,” and eliminate “the voice of oppression.” He is heavily applauded.
Execs also discussed the possibility of making sure “people make informed decisions that are best for themselves” in future elections. Walker made a statement about making sure that the “rise of populism” in America doesn’t advance any further.
Google denied there was anything of political impact in the presentation. A spokesperson for the company responded to a request for comment to Breitbart, saying, “everyone at Google has been able to freely express their opinions at these meetings. Nothing was said at that meeting, or any other meeting, to suggest that any political bias ever influences the way we build or operate our products.”
Media outlets like the New York Times completely downplayed the content of the video and instead highlighted the anger of conservatives, saying instead that “it is not a surprise that Google employees and executives -- many of whom are significant donors to the Democratic Party -- were disappointed by the outcome of the presidential election.”
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