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Caught Our Eye

Facebook adds Sen. Judiciary counsel amid new concerns

Posted by Keturah Hetrick on May 19, 2020

Facebook hired a Senate Judiciary attorney to its public-policy team, just as the social-media giant has stirred new regulatory concerns.

Aparna Patrie served as committee counsel under Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and has previously worked for ex-Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-Mass.) and ex-Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), as well as for the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.

She joined Facebook earlier this month as a public-policy manager. At a time when many big tech companies are facing increased anti-trust scrutiny, Facebook sparked new concerns just days ago when it acquired image platform Giphy for a reported $400 million.

Last year, Facebook disclosed that it dropped more than $16.7 million on federal lobbying, making it the tenth biggest lobbying spender of 2019, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.