‘We’re just fucking illegal’: Leaked documents show Uber thwarted police and secretly courted politicians

During this period, Uber attempted to recover its image by courting politicians, including French President Emmanuel Macron. The texts show how Macron went out of his way to support Uber’s growth in France and enabled the company to maintain regular communication with its immediate staff.

He is just one of many government leaders, billionaires and media moguls whom society has secretly pressured to cover up what reports say are illegal practices.

When an executive raised concerns about Uber drivers facing potential violence from angry competitors in the taxi industry, Kalanick reportedly said « I think it’s worth it » and that « the violence guarantees success ». A spokesperson for Kalanick denied ever suggesting exploiting violence against the app’s pilots.

Devon Spurgeon, the spokesperson for Kalanick, the former CEO, said the Consortium for Investigative Journalists was offering a « bogus program ».

« Pressing its false agenda that Mr. Kalanick directed illegal or improper conduct, the ICIJ claims to have documents that Mr. Kalanick was or even wrote on, some of which date back almost a decade, » a- she added. « Revealingly, the ICIJ flatly denied requests to review any of these documents, further heightening concerns about the authenticity of many of the source documents. »

When the company needed data to sway policymakers, according to The Guardian report, it also paid academics to publish research that would bolster its misleading economic claims about the company’s business model – which offered pricing unsustainable as it entered new towns to ensure it outweighed local taxi competitors.

In response to the leak, Uber issued a statement acknowledging « mistakes and missteps », but insisted that current management had transformed the company.

More than 180 journalists are investigating the « Uber Files » and will publish a series of reports dissecting more than 124,000 documents in the coming weeks.