Techdirt

Another Horror Story Leaks Out From Trump’s Favorite Deportation Hellhole

Anyone with the tiniest bit of humanity would have found a better way to mass deportations, if they even felt compelled to do it all. Under Trump, the extra layers of cruelty are an essential part of the package -- something…

Take Back Our Digital Infrastructure To Save Democracy

Watch the tech oligarchs who lined up behind Donald Trump at his inauguration, and you'll see the most important story of our time: the fascists are winning because they've built a direct pipeline from concentrated technological power to…

Daily Deal: The Complete Raspberry Pi And Alexa A-Z Bundle

Learn Raspberry Pi and start building Amazon Alexa projects with The Complete Raspberry Pi and Alexa A-Z Bundle. Catered for all levels, these project-based courses will get you up and running with the basics of Pi, before escalating to…

The “Warrior Ethos” According To Trump: A Field Guide To Being Scared Of Everything

The Trump administration wants you to know they're very, very tough. So tough, in fact, that they're launching a comprehensive purge of the Naval Academy to eliminate "corrosive DEI programs" and restore what they…

Trump FCC Abandons Efforts To Make U.S. Broadband Fast And Affordable

Section 706 of the Telecom Act requires the FCC to determine whether broadband is being deployed "on a reasonable and timely basis" to everyone. If the answer is no, the law says the FCC must "take immediate action to accelerate…

‘Hail Satan’ But For Break Rooms, As Trump Issues Guidance For Religious Freedom In Workplaces

Trump -- perhaps more than other presidents -- often feels compelled to present his religious bona fides. Of course, he naturally has none. But as often as evangelical figureheads proclaim him to be…

Didn’t Take Long To Reveal The UK’s Online Safety Act Is Exactly The Privacy-Crushing Failure Everyone Warned About

Well, well, well. The “age assurance” part of the UK's Online Safety Act has finally gone into effect, with its age checking requirements kicking in a week and a half ago. And what…

Now That They’re Free: Venezuelan Men Sent To CECOT On What They Endured

This story was originally published by ProPublica, along with The Texas Tribune, Alianza Rebelde Investiga, and Cazadores de Fake News. Republished under ProPublica’s CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 license. Now that he’s free, Leonardo José…

President Of ‘Facts Don’t Care About Your Feelings’ Party Fires Statistician For Reporting Facts That Hurt His Feelings

We're becoming everything we (perhaps naively) assumed most Americans didn't want America to be: a backwater burg on the world map, overseen by a corrupt sheriff and known mostly…

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StackSkills is the premier online learning platform for mastering today's most in-demand skills. Now, with this exclusive limited-time offer, you'll gain access to 1000+ StackSkills courses for life! Whether you're looking to earn a promotion, make a career…

Substack’s Algorithm Accidentally Reveals What We Already Knew: It’s The Nazi Bar Now

Back in April 2023, when Substack CEO Chris Best refused to answer basic questions about whether his platform would allow racist content, I noted that his evasiveness was essentially hanging out a "Nazis Welcome"…

Politico’s Rushed Adoption Of Half-Cooked ‘AI’ Continues To Go Terribly

We’ve noted repeatedly how early attempts to integrate “AI” into journalism have proven to be a comical mess, resulting in no shortage of shoddy product, dangerous falsehoods, and plagiarism. It’s thanks in large part to the…

Funniest/Most Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt

This week, our first place winner on the insightful side is MrWilson with a comment about the failure to get indictments in supposed ICE assaults: And the fact that prosecutors and grand juries didn’t find evidence of actual assault in so…

This Week In Techdirt History: July 27th – August 2nd

Five Years Ago This week in 2020, we took a look at tech in the pandemic, from the big ways people were using it to stay connected to the strange details like Fox putting fake videogame crowds in sports broadcasts and how it was finally forcing…

Smart Home Device Maker Renders Devices Dumb Unless A New Subscription Is Paid For

This isn't going to stop happening unless governments finally get involved to do their most basic job: protect their citizens. This habit among digital and tech companies of selling a thing only to claw back some of…

Creativity, The Fifth Freedom & Access To Knowledge

This series of posts explores how we can rethink the intersection of AI, creativity, and policy. From examining outdated regulatory metaphors to questioning copyright norms and highlighting the risks of stifling innovation, each post addresses a…

LinkedIn Joins The Parade Of Cowards: Quietly Strips Anti-Trans Protections To Appease MAGA Mob

Microsoft-owned LinkedIn has quietly joined the parade of tech giants rolling back basic protections for transgender users, removing explicit prohibitions against deadnaming and misgendering from its…

He Was Asked About His Tattoos And A TikTok Video In Court. Five Days Later, He Was In A Salvadoran Prison.

This story was originally published by ProPublica. Republished under a CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 license. In the early days of President Donald Trump’s second term, I spent a few weeks observing…

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The Courses Digest, Labs Digest, and Exams Digest Bundle gives you unlimited access to expertly crafted online courses, interactive labs and study tools. Whether you're aiming for industry-recognized certifications or expanding…

Don’t Vibe Check Me, Bro; Or How To Deal With Comments In An Era Filled With Post-Factual Nazis

A whole lot of bad faith arguing continues now that Donald Trump has somehow regained his position as The Person Most Likely To Abuse His Power While Serving As The Most Powerful Man In The World.…

Trump Infrastructure Bill Revamp To Net Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk Billions In New Subsidies For Broadband They Can’t Really Deliver

There's $42.5 billion in broadband grants are headed to the states thanks to the 2021 infrastructure bill most Republicans voted against (yet routinely try to take credit…

Credit Card Companies Fielding A Ton Of Complaints Over NSFW Games Disappearing On Platforms

A week or so ago, Karl Bode wrote about Vice Media's idiotic decision to disappear several articles that had been written by its Waypoint property concerning Collective Shout. Collective Shout is an…

ICE, Georgia Sheriff’s Office Combine Forces To Keep A Salvadoran Journalist Locked Up Indefinitely

This too will be swept away by this administration's steady stream of injustices, but it's still worth highlighting before it's buried by even worse news later. The mass deportation program enacted…

Judge Pulls Opinion Full Of AI-Style Hallucinations, But No One Is Willing To Say It Was Written By AI

Let’s say you're a federal judge, and you need to write an opinion about a securities case. You could do it the time-tested old-fashioned way: read the briefings, read the relevant caselaw, check…

ICE Is Spending More Time Targeting The Least Dangerous People In America

The "worst of the worst" ruse was never taken seriously by anyone, least of all those who performatively repeated it to serve as cover for their hatred and bigotry. The mantra means nothing. The same agency that claims it's…

Daily Deal: The JavaScript DOM Game Developer Bundle

The JavaScript DOM Game Developer Bundle has 8 courses to help you master coding fundamentals. Courses cover JavaScript DOM, Coding, HTML 5 Canvas, and more. You’ll learn how to create your own fun, interactive games. It’s on sale for $30. Note:…

Everyone Hates Trust & Safety. Everyone Needs Trust & Safety. This Is A Problem.

Here's the contradiction at the heart of the internet: everyone complains about content moderation, but no one wants to use an unmoderated platform. Everyone thinks trust & safety professionals are either censorial…

Study Shows Musk’s Starlink Too Congested To Tackle U.S. Broadband Woes Despite Billions In New Subsidies

A new study from researchers at X-Lab shows that Elon Musk's Starlink satellite broadband service lacks the capacity to put a serious dent in U.S. broadband. Despite recent efforts by the…

Exercise Bike Company Yanks Features Away From Purchased Bikes Via Firmware Update

Here we go again. The idea that, at least in the realm of digital goods or IoT devices, we no longer own what we've bought has been a long-running theme here at Techdirt. While the practice of pulling back features…

ICE Claims Officer Was ‘Assualted’ During An Illegal Search Of A Hospital But The Recording Shows Something Else

For weeks, ICE and DHS have been claiming there's been an outsized outbreak in violence against ICE officers. The government preferred to use a misleading stat: the percentage. That way…