The Spy in Your Pocket
Byron Tau's Means of Control documents how the private sector helps government agencies keep tabs on American citizens.
Science & Technology
Supreme Court Seems Likely to Strike Down Florida and Texas Social Media Laws
The laws violate the First Amendment because they require social media sites to abjure most content moderation, and platform speech they disapprove of.
Texas and Florida Want the Supreme Court To Bless Their Unconstitutional Social Media Laws
Both states are trying to force tech companies to platform certain sorts of speech.
Feds Make a Pharma Patent Grab
A Biden administration ploy could give the federal government control over drug prices.
If Semiconductor Chip Demand Is High, Why Do We Need More Subsidies?
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says more chip subsidies are needed, even before the Biden administration has distributed $52 billion or measured how effective that spending was.
AI Contracts Woke Mind Virus
Plus: Russian sanctions, Finnish gun ranges, Milei supremacy, and more...
Biden Pours Out Another $6.5 Billion for the CHIPS Act's Costly Protectionism
It's part of the government's expensive public-private partnership meant to address concerns over a reliance on foreign countries, like China, for semiconductors.
Frozen Embryos Are Now Children Under Alabama Law
State Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Parker cited the Bible to explain why.
The Best of Reason: The Real Student Loan Crisis Isn't From Undergraduate Degrees
Misled by a bad law, graduate students are drowning in debt.
Government Is Snooping on Your Phone
Many apps collect data that is then accessed by outside entities. Should you care?
Goodbye, Navalny
Plus: A listener asks if the editors have criteria for what constitutes a good law.
U.S. Begins To Talk Ceasefire
Plus: Catholic funeral for transgender activist, Donald Trump's props, deep tech in El Segundo, and more...
Is the Human Brain a Prediction Machine?
In The Experience Machine, philosopher and scientist Andy Clark offers an updated theory of mind.
Sarah Silverman's Lawsuit Against OpenAI Is Full of Nonsense Claims
And a federal judge just said so.
Progressives Are Ditching Free Speech To Fight 'Disinformation'
From limits on liability protections for websites to attempts to regulate the internet like a public utility, these proposals will erode Americans' right to express themselves.
Shrinkflation Is Real—and It's Largely Biden's Fault
The president criticized companies for selling "smaller-than-usual products" whose "price stays the same." But it was his and his predecessor's spending policies that caused the underlying issue.
Shoshana Weissmann: Online Age Verification Rules Are Unconstitutional and Ineffective
"None of these laws prevent kids from viewing anything. They just prevent kids from posting," argues Shoshana Weissmann.
Kids Have First Amendment Rights Too, Federal Judge Reminds State Lawmakers
Banning people under age 16 from accessing social media without parental consent "is a breathtakingly blunt instrument" for reducing potential harms, the judge writes.
Biden's Cognitive Shrinkflation
Plus: A listener asks if the state of Oregon’s policy on drug decriminalization should be viewed as a success.
PROTECT Act Could Require Removal of All Existing Porn Online
Sen. Mike Lee's "technological exploitation" bill also redefines consent.
Joe Biden's No Good, Very Bad Day
It was a week of bad news for the president. Fortunately for him, he probably won’t remember.
Why Are Teens Depressed? It's Not Social Media.
Maybe the problem for teens isn't screens, but what they are replacing.
Climate Scientist Michael Mann Wins Defamation Suit Against Mark Steyn and Rand Simberg
The jury found no real damages, but gave a sizeable punitive award that could be challenged on appeal.
Nanny State Social Media Mandates Are No Substitute for Effective Parenting
Throughout Republican-run Western states, lawmakers are passing legislation that treats adults as if they are children.
New Report Measures Attempts to Impose, and Evade, Internet Repression
Interest in virtual private networks provides insights into a global battle over digital freedom.
Toronto Schools Don't Want Children Harmed by the Solar Eclipse
More like total eclipse of the fun.
Was Amazon 'Free to Ignore' White House Demands That It Suppress Anti-Vaccine Books?
The Biden administration's interference with bookselling harks back to a 1963 Supreme Court case involving literature that Rhode Island deemed dangerous.
AI Versus Age-Verification Laws
AI tools churning out images of fake IDs could help people get around online age-check laws.
The Best of Reason: Can Free Markets Win Votes in the New GOP?
As the party grows more populist, ethnically diverse, and working class, will Republicans abandon their libertarian economic principles?
Trump's Terrible, Popular Tariffs
Plus: A listener asks if it should become the norm for all news outlets to require journalists to disclose their voting records.
Ron DeSantis Supports Legislation Banning Lab-Grown Meat
"You need meat, OK? We're going to have meat in Florida," DeSantis said during a press conference.
No Progress on Global Emissions 8 Years After Paris Climate Agreement
Officials admitted at COP28 that they are not "on track" to achieving climate goals. And they are not likely to be any time soon.
Must Government Fund Science?
AEI's Tony Mills and British biochemist Terence Kealey debate whether science needs government funding.
Millionaire Mars Missions
Plus: Republicans are trying to expand a tax deduction they once wanted to cap, a "shocking" and "stunning" January jobs report, and street blocking protestors in D.C.
He Was Arrested for Making a Joke on Facebook. A Jury Just Awarded Him $205,000 in Damages.
The verdict vindicates the constitutional rights that Louisiana sheriff's deputies flagrantly violated when they hauled Waylon Bailey off to jail.
Do New Documents Prove a COVID Lab Leak?
Health reporter Emily Kopp and biologist Alex Washburne discuss new documents that detail plans to manipulate bat-borne coronaviruses in Wuhan on the latest episode of Just Asking Questions.
Mark Zuckerberg Is Not a Murderer, Mr. Senator
Republicans and Democrats are using emotional manipulation to push an agenda of censorship.
The Best of Reason: Comedy's Truthiness Problem
Hasan Minhaj’s stand-up tests the boundaries of fact and fiction.
Florida's Youth Social Media Ban Is an Affront to Freedom
Don't let a moral panic shut everything down.
She Was Arrested for Her Journalism. A Federal Court Says She Can't Sue.
Priscilla Villarreal, also known as "Lagordiloca," has sparked a debate about free speech and who, exactly, is a journalist.
An Instagram Star Walks the Fine Line Between Self-Creation and Snake Oil
Social media influencer Caroline Calloway might not be a reliable narrator, but Scammer is an honest memoir nevertheless.
Should Government Fund Science? A Soho Forum Debate
AEI's Tony Mills and British biochemist Terence Kealey debate whether science needs government funding.
Utah Would Rather Repeal Social Media Age Check Law Than Defend It In Court
Laws like Utah's would require anyone using social media to prove their age through methods such as submitting biometric data or a government-issued ID.
What if Men Could Produce Their Own Eggs?
In vitro gametogenesi could allow same-sex couples, post-menopausal women, and couples experiencing infertility to have children.
