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 […]
The tech industry trade group NetChoice is suing Virginia over a new law that will restrict minors from using social media for more than one hour per day. The lawsuit, filed on Monday, asks the court to block the law over claims it violates the First Amendment by putting “unlawful barriers on how and when […]
Less than two years ago, TikTok was a crisis situation on Capitol Hill. The chair of the House Select Committee on China called it “digital fentanyl” that brainwashes young Americans into supporting Hamas. A former national security adviser said letting TikTok remain in the US under its Chinese owner “would be akin to allowing Soviet […]
The legal fight over whether the president can send troops into Portland, Oregon, depends on whether judges believe their own eyes or their smartphones. Even before inception, the lawsuit has been dogged by a war on reality fueled by social media influencers, some of whom have direct lines to federal officials. At every turn, influencers […]
One of the biggest flashpoints for internet regulation, the Kids Online Safety Act, is poised for a revival – but possibly without the central feature that’s kept people fighting over it for the past three years. Since 2022, supporters of KOSA have backed its plan to require web platforms to protect kids from a variety […]
At a Senate hearing Wednesday on government censorship of tech platforms, a Meta executive expressed regret to Republican lawmakers for failing to speak out more against the Biden administration’s requests that it remove health and election misinformation, including satire. Google, meanwhile, held firm in its stance, saying that evaluating – and often rejecting – government […]
The Trump administration’s heightened monitoring of immigrants’ social media accounts seeking grounds to revoke their visas stifles the speech rights of both noncitizens and citizens alike, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) alleges in a new lawsuit. The lawsuit seeks to end the State Department’s “Catch-and-Revoke” policy, which threatens to strip visaholders of their legal status […]
Instagram is making a major update to teen accounts that will only allow them to view content similar to what you would see in a PG-13 movie. Under the new system, Instagram will continue to hide content containing nudity, sexual content, or suggestive poses from teens, but now it will also avoid recommending content with strong […]
Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-TX) was one of a handful of Republicans to speak out against the “mafioso”-like comments Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr issued ahead of Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension last month. Now, he’s hoping the liberal outrage over government censorship will fuel bipartisan support for a new bill letting Americans sue […]