A coalition of Republican state lawmakers are floating legislation targeting big tech companies. The “Tech Accountability Bill” is in response to unsubstantiated claims of censorship toward conserative voices and politicians on social media platforms. The bill would, among other things, compel tech companies to publish their moderation standards and allow users to opt-out of post […]
New Domains: Amazon’s Twitter War Against Rep. Pocan and Unions
Last Friday, an Amazon warehouse in Alabama held a historic vote on whether to unionize. The vote drew national attention, as it would be the first worker’s union for the online retail giant. But in advance of the vote, Amazon’s various Twitter accounts targeted high-profile politicians who were pushing for the union vote and speaking […]
Big Tech and Democracy
The suspension of former Pres. Trump’s accounts on major sites like Twitter and Facebook last month has reignited a national conversation about what and how we communicate on the internet—and why we should reimagine it. Who stays? Who goes? Who decides? Today, we talk with social media expert Sarah T. Roberts about these issues, including […]
On big corporations regulating “free” speech
Many were pleased when President Trump’s Twitter and Facebook and other social media accounts were locked, due to his inflammatory rhetoric. But others are concerned about the power of these large monopolies to regulate “free speech” with little or no oversight. Thomas Hanna, Director of Research at the Democracy Collaborative and author of the book […]
What’s the Word: Parler
While President Trump’s Twitter ban is the major headline in social media news, another platform has recently come under fire for its role in last week’s Capitol riot. Parler, the social media app branded as the conservative alternative to Facebook and Twitter, has just been removed from Apple, Google, and Amazon platforms. Today on “What’s […]
Extremism at the Capitol and Online
In the wake of last week’s events at the U.S. Capitol, major social media platforms including Twitter and Facebook have suspended Donald Trump’s accounts, while alternative social media sites like Parler have been removed by hosting services. Today on the show, we hear about the involvement of police and military in the events of January […]
