Google Vs. Cartoonists

Above: a Google street view car with the mounted camera that takes street view photos. Photo nicked from Ubergizmo.

For three years, Google street view cars collected private information from Wi-Fi networks from millions of homes in 30 nations. The incident was the largest wire-tapping scandal in history yet Congress has not held a single hearing.

The Consumer Watchdog group "Inside Google" has posted the animation below -- a CGI cartoon of Google CEO Eric Schmidt testifying before congress. John M. Simpson, the Director of Inside Google, states the reason for the video is

"... to make the case for why Congress should call Google CEO Eric Schmidt to testify under oath about the Wi-Spy scandal and other online privacy issues. The group also said the company’s close relationship with the US government should be probed."

Debra J. Saunders, the self-proclaimed Token Conservative columnist/blogger at the San Francisco Chronicle, writes in "Google Versus Cartoonists:"

Meanwhile, I found it interesting that the cartoonists who created the video do not want to be named.

John M. Simpson, director of Inside Google project, explained that the cartoonists behind the video have been disappointed with Google and its impact on their work. Google, he said, is "a two-edged sword. They really trampled over the idea of intellectual property rights. If you're a cartoonist, you want to get paid for your work."

Related: Mr. Schmidt steps down and founder Larry Page steps back in.