Technology
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."
Your Lobster Leftovers Could Serve up a Substitute for Plastics
Could animal chitin lead to a new tech revolution?
Silicon Valley's Dangerous Political Blind Spots
Will the lack of ideological diversity doom big tech companies?
What Should Have Happened at the Facebook Hearing
Congress doesn't have the best track record on privacy rights.
Before People Fretted About Fake Videos, People Fretted About Fake Photographs
Do deepfakes really represent "the collapse of reality"?
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."
Americans Can't Stand Each Other, So Let's Stop Forcing Our Preferences on One Another
If you want to avoid conflict among hostile groups, decentralize power-preferably to individuals.
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.
Cops Will Use Drones to Monitor Traffic at Coachella
"We want people to come here and have a good time and to feel safe."
Driverless Trucks Will Be Great for Consumers, Safety, and Truck Drivers
Don't buy the doom and gloom over autonomous big rigs.
New Backpage Ruling Lays Bare Some of the Lies Undergirding FOSTA
The ruling allows a civil suit against Backpage to proceed for one of the case's three plaintiffs.
Mexico's 'Silicon Valley' Offers Different Image for Americans
You don't have to worry about the wall when you work in the cloud.
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."
Climate Change Problems Will Be Solved Through Economic Growth
"How bad will climate change be? Not very."
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.
$20 Fee for Porn Access Proposed in Rhode Island
Device makers would be required to block porn, prostitution hubs, and all content that fails "current standards of decency."
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.
Balaji Srinivasan: Technology Will Lead to a Borderless World
The Silicon Valley entrepreneur says cryptocurrencies, virtual reality, and mobile devices are helping individuals escape failed institutions.
'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.
Consumers Are Open to Superhuman Vision and Cognitive Enhancements. Are Regulators?
The first comprehensive survey on attitudes about human enhancement finds Americans are open to some crazy new technologies.
What's Hot in Porn Tech: Blockchain, Cam Girls, and Snapchat
New technologies are helping the adult industry adjust to government regulations and give more power to performers.
This Boring British Cops Clone May Show the Future of American Mass Surveillance
Mass surveillance is up and running on Britain's roads. Will ours be next?
Free Banking for Bitcoin? How the Lightning Network Could Help
How do we scale the system for broad use?
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.
FakeApp: Finally, a Program that Will Let You Seamlessly Put Donald Trump in Porn!
Fake news just took a giant step forward. Here's why that's good news.
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.
