This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the dire state of tech regulation, follow Adi Robertson. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here. How it started In 1973, long before the modern digital era, […]
For all his bluster about voter fraud, Elon Musk has been one of the most flagrant flaunters of US election law. Now his America PAC has been slapped with a reprimand by the Georgia State Election Board for sending out pre-filled absentee ballot applications. State law prohibits anyone, other than an authorized relative, from sending […]
The US Supreme Court struck down some of Donald Trump’s tariffs on foreign imports, which have become a hallmark of the chaos of the second Trump administration. The court’s ruling deals specifically with duties levied using a law called the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), something no other president has done – the 1977 […]
The Trump administration just tossed out Biden-era restrictions on mercury and other toxic pollutants from power plants. It’s repealing Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) just as electricity demand in the US ticks up with the buildout of new AI data centers. Those standards are particularly impactful when it comes to pollution from coal plants […]
Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr is urging broadcasters to air “patriotic, pro-America content” in celebration of the US’s 250th anniversary. The initiative, called the “Pledge America Campaign,” encourages broadcasters to run public service announcements, short segments, or specials to promote “civic education, inspiring local stories, and American history.” Carr says broadcasters can “voluntarily choose […]
Substack has updated its partnership with betting platform Polymarket, “introducing native tools that make it easier to share, discuss, and debate prediction market data directly on Substack.” Additionally, Polymarket will effectively pay “a cohort of creators,” including Matt Yglesias, to use its data though the newsletter platform’s pilot sponsorships program. This is just the latest […]
New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) dropped her proposal to allow robotaxi companies to launch commercially in cities other than New York City, citing a lack of support among state legislators, Bloomberg reports today. The move is a blow to Waymo and other robotaxi companies who saw New York, and especially New York City, as […]
Hello and welcome to Regulator, a newsletter for Verge subscribers about the love-hate (but mostly hate) relationship between Silicon Valley and Washington. I hope everyone got to celebrate George Washington’s birthday in their preferred manner: skiing, staycationing, subscribing to The Verge if you haven’t already, etc. Prediction: this is going to be a mess Political […]
Nevada is suing to block the prediction market platform Kalshi from allowing residents to place bets on the outcomes of events, including elections and sports games, as reported earlier by Business Insider. The lawsuit adds to a growing number of legal battles across the country, claiming that Kalshi is harming the state’s gambling market by […]
The Late Show host Stephen Colbert says CBS blocked him from broadcasting an interview with James Talarico, a Democratic representative from Texas. During his opening monologue on Monday night, Colbert says the network’s lawyers told him in “no uncertain terms” that he couldn’t have Talarico on the show, forcing him to post the interview on […]