Benford Law, Rafferty, is a bill to stop companies from using social media to promote themselves on behalf of their competitors.
It was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives last week, and was also supported by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
In the Senate, however, Republican senators like Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Dean Heller have opposed the bill.
“If a company can promote itself on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or other platforms, they are now free to do so,” Cruz told Business Insider last week.
“It’s an abuse of Congress to force companies to make their products or services more expensive and therefore less appealing.”
“Companies have already made an effort to do the bidding of their own consumers and consumers have responded by using other ways to express their views,” Cruz said.
“This is the latest example of the corporate media’s ability to use social media as a tool to sell to their own audience.
Consumers are demanding that the corporate power brokers that control our media and political discourse step in and stop this madness.”
Rafferity has gained widespread support from businesses and advocacy groups who say it will help the public understand the impact of technology on their business.
“When consumers feel they’re being left behind, they’re more likely to take action to keep their companies relevant,” said Mark Hetfield, a professor at the School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
“So we need to understand how to make sure the public is informed about these issues and that we’re not creating a backlash, because that will only encourage more people to take actions.”
Hetfield says Rafferity’s passage has made it more important for Congress to address the issue.
“This is a real issue for our country,” he said.
“[The bill] is the next step in addressing a problem that’s out there.”
Business Insider contacted several of the sponsors of Rafferities legislation, but none of them responded to our request for comment.
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