Google chief to appease lawmakers in return to US patriotism

Google's chief executive Sundar Pichai is expected to flaunt the company's American roots at a US congressional hearing today, in a bid to appeal to lawmakers' inner patriotic sentiment.

In written testimony published ahead of the hearing, Pichai highlighted Google's contributions to the US economy, support for American jobs and numerous bases across the country. 

"It's no coincidence that a company dedicated to the free flow of information was founded right here in the US," he is expected to testify before the House Judiciary Committee.

"As an American company, we cherish the values and freedoms that have allowed us to grow and serve so many users. I am proud to say we do work, and we will continue to work, with the government to keep our country safe and secure."

The hearing comes just hours after a second data breach to Google's social network, Google+, was revealed to have hit 52.5m accounts for six days last month. An earlier breach in October suggested the personal data of up to 500,000 users was exposed.

The firm has expedited the process to shut down the Google+ platform as a result, which is now set for sundown in April next year.

Lawmakers called for today's hearing after criticism emerged that Google's search results could be biased against conservative politicians and media, as well as reports of Google's intention to re-enter the heavily-censored Chinese market.

The session will be Pichai's first appearance after Google senior executives declined requests to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee alongside Facebook operations chief Sheryl Sandberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in September.

"We have invested an enormous amount of work over the years to bring choice, transparency, and control to our users," Pichai is expected to add today. "These values are built into every product we make."

"We work hard to ensure the integrity of our products, and we've put a number of checks and balances in place to ensure they continue to live up to our standards."