CNN's Mary Katharine Ham Loves Waffle House, Isn't So Sure About Twitter: Podcast
A conversation about social media, privacy, and the public-private, left-right free speech fight
Social Media
The Battle of Ideas Turns Coercive
Too many people (and governments) want to shut down and punish speech they disagree with.
Europe's New Data Privacy Rules Will Make Facebook and Google More Powerful
The EU's GDPR should serve as a cautionary tale for Americans eager to reign in tech titans
Westworld Season Two Is a Parable About Corporate Data Collection
The HBO series turns Facebook and Twitter into a theme park filled with sex, violence, and robots.
Is This Prom Dress an Act of Cultural Appropriation?
Social media can actually be pretty good at hosting heated conversations about racism and sexism.
How The Simpsons Fights Fake News: Podcast
Journalism prof Michael Socolow has three simple rules to up your social-media literacy.
She Posted Rap Lyrics to Remember a Dead Teen, So the U.K. Prosecuted Her for Hate Speech
Why all Americans should be thankful for the First Amendment
Russia Bans Telegram, a Popular Encrypted Messaging App
"Privacy is not for sale, and human rights should not be compromised out of fear or greed."
What Should Have Happened at the Facebook Hearing
Congress doesn't have the best track record on privacy rights.
Ben Sasse Asked Mark Zuckerberg Whether He Defines Hate Speech Like College Students Do
"You used language of safety and protection earlier. We see this happening on college campuses all across the country."
Why You Shouldn't Want Congress To Regulate Facebook & Other Social Media
We need to up our media literacy game, not delegate responsibility to politicians who have no idea what they're doing.
Beware Censorship by Proxy
Prodding private companies into self-censorship is a dangerous government tradition.
Silicon Valley's Ultimate Diversity Problem Is Ideological
More tech folks call themselves libertarian than anything else. So why are they afraid to speak up at work?
Mozilla's New Firefox Extension Will Try to Stop Facebook from Tracking You
But wouldn't have stopped the Cambridge Analytica incident
California Bill Offers Phony Solution to Fake News Problem
Proposal to verify online "bots" is security theater that will make it harder for small online firms to compete with the likes of Facebook.
University of Virginia Hires 'Social Sentinel' to Monitor Students' Social Media Posts
"They are being watched, and that's a problem."
Social Media Beats Censorship in Iran
The vigorous debate over censorship shows how much Iran has changed in recent years.
Cambridge Analytica Was Doing Marketing, Not Black Magic
There's no reason for alarm (yet) over a Facebook data "breach" that benefited a firm with ties to Trump's campaign.
5 Reasons Not to Feed the Russian Troll Hysteria
"If voters are making [stupid] decisions," says Senior Editor Jacob Sullum, "that's not the Russians' fault."
Facebook Bans Nationalist Anti-Muslim Group Britain First
"We do not do this lightly, but they have repeatedly posted content designed to incite animosity and hatred against minority groups."
Judge Tells Trump to Pretend to Listen to Twitter Haters
A lawsuit leads to a suggestion that the president engage in a kinder, gentler ignoring.
A Jailed Model Claims to Have Evidence of Russian Meddling in U.S. Elections. Her Story Is Even Weirder Than You Think.
Rybka has spent the past several years as a protegee of pickup artist and seduction coach Alex Lesley-and picked up a plausible claim to 2016 election dirt along the way.
Stone Age Statue Was Too Racy for Facebook
How can a company be expected to arbitrate "fake news" when it can't even tell ancient artifacts from porn?
House Passes 'Anti Sex-Trafficking' Bill Opposed by Both DOJ and Trafficking Survivors
The bill makes "promoting prostitution" a federal crime, holds websites legally liable for user-posted content, and lets states retroactively prosecute offenders.
'Crisis Actors,' Conspiracy Theories, and the Fear of Social Media
Yes, kooky rumors can spread quickly online. In this case, the angry reactions to those rumors may be spreading even faster.
Don't Feed the Russian Troll Hysteria
The "information warfare" described in Friday's indictment is not an existential threat to American democracy.
Feds Announce Indictments of Russian Nationals for Attempting to Influence American Elections
Thirteen individuals and three companies accused of conspiracy against the U.S., wire fraud, and identity theft.
No, Russians Bots Aren't Responsible for #ReleaseTheMemo
But partisan Democrats tried to use a fake news scare to quash it anyway.
Tomi Lahren Thinks Tons of Teens Really Are Eating Tide Pods, Blames Liberals
Parents aren't neglecting to keep their kids safe from laundry detergent. If anything, teens are overprotected.
Dianne Feinstein Ignores GOP Lawmakers, Blames #ReleaseTheMemo on Russians and Social Media Instead
Any excuse to try to censor the internet
Regulations Prevent Some People from Using Google Arts & Culture's Portrait-Matching Feature
Illinois and Texas think biometric identifiers are a lawsuit waiting to happen.
Government Will Protect Us From Bad Speech? That's the Fakest News of All.
When government officials suppress critics, they do so only to help themselves.
Your Social Media Post Does Not Have To Be Socially Useful
Critics of free speech use the same old arguments on new technologies.
Playboy Sues Boing Boing Over Link to Playboy Centerfolds
Boing Boing has filed a motion to dismiss.
Breaking News Before Local Cops Do Lands Laredo Vlogger With Felony Charges
Sharing arrest and accident info on Facebook before cops can tell "official" media is not OK, say Laredo police-and nevermind that one of their own was the source.
Government Is the Cause of—Not the Solution to—Online Censorship
As people worry about the net neutrality vote, public officials threaten our rights to free speech.
Posting or Hosting Sex Ads Could Mean 25 Years in Federal Prison Under New Republican Proposal
A related measure would open digital platforms to liability for past crimes committed by users.
You Don't Lose Your Right to Anonymity Just Because You Lost a Lawsuit
An appeals court defends anonymous speech.
Cops Brag That They Bullied a Woman Out of Town After a Neighbor Said She Sells Sex
An investigation would've taken months, so Larksville Police decided to skip that part.
Markets Deliver Social Justice Better Than Government Does
Elizabeth Nolan Brown argues in The New York Times that we can thank "feminism, but also free markets" for the ongoing purge of predatory men.
Twitter Cracking Down on Promoting Violence—With a Major Exception
The government is regularly excluded when we use the word "violence."
Government Protection From Russian Misinformation Would Be 'Cure' Far Worse Than Disease
Information-and, yes, misinformation-flows more easily and cheaply than ever, making access nearly universal. That's a good thing.
Sen. Feinstein's Threat to 'Do Something' to Social Media Companies Is a Bigger Danger to Democracy Than Russia
Do not ignore the self-interest of elected officials in controlling online political messaging.
The Never-Ending Search for Foreign Subversives
Stop scapegoating Russia for America's divisions—and stop using Moscow as an excuse to call for restrictions on speech.
