A federal judge blocked a Texas law requiring mobile app stores to verify users’ ages from taking effect on January 1st. In an order granting a preliminary injunction on the Texas App Store Accountability Act (SB 2420), Judge Robert Pitman wrote that the statute “is akin to a law that would require every bookstore to […]
A defiant Brendan Carr testified before the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday in his first public appearance before lawmakers since threatening broadcasters who aired comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s show. Over the course of nearly three hours, the Federal Communications Commission chairman ping-ponged between heated exchanges with Democrats and largely muted questions from Republicans. But at least […]
At a congressional meeting to vote on the future of kids online safety, the most spirited debate of the day was about a bill that wasn’t even on the agenda and Apple CEO Tim Cook. 18 bills that aim to regulate the internet to protect children are now headed for a vote before the full […]
Australia is joining a wave of governments around the globe in regulating how kids spend their time online. On December 10th, most major social media platforms will boot children in the country under 16 from their services. Under the law, social platforms will also need to implement a “reasonable” age verification method there – while […]
The Trump administration has ordered US consulates to consider rejecting H1-B visa applicants involved in content moderation or “censorship,” according to a report from Reuters. A State Department cable viewed by the outlet says officials should check an applicant’s resume or LinkedIn profile for a job history involving moderation, fact-checking, online safety, compliance, and misinformation. […]
Last year, the House of Representatives was the place where a leading kids online safety bill came to die. On Tuesday, a powerful House committee positioned itself as the place where that bill could be resurrected… along with 18 other proposals. During a three-hour hearing, an Energy and Commerce subcommittee discussed 19 bills recently packaged […]
For years, lawmakers at the state and federal levels have tried a variety of measures aimed at making kids safer on the internet, from kids-tailored design standards to age verification for individual websites. More recently, a new model has caught on in the states, and now it’s gaining steam in Congress: putting the onus on […]
The House Energy and Commerce Committee released a package of 19 bills aimed at protecting kids on the internet, teeing Congress up for a chance at passing some of the most substantive internet regulations in recent history, alongside a fight over online speech rights. The subcommittee on commerce will consider the bills during a hearing […]
Tech critics’ least favorite law is under siege again, this time with a focus on its recommendation algorithms. On Wednesday Sens. John Curtis (R-UT) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) introduced the Algorithm Accountability Act, which amends Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to make platforms responsible for preventing their recommendation systems from causing certain foreseeable […]
Google filed a motion to dismiss a defamation lawsuit brought by anti-corporate diversity activist Robby Starbuck, who claimed Google’s AI falsely associated him with sexual assault allegations and a white nationalist. Starbuck’s claims against Google came after he filed a similar lawsuit against Meta, whose AI he claimed falsely asserted that he’d participated in the […]