Nancy Scola

Andrew Yang Wants to Pay You to Use Your Phone Less Noble Mobile is giving customers money back for not doomscrolling. Here’s why Mark Cuban and Scott Galloway are backing the idea.

The rest is here. (It's in Inc's premium section; consider a subscription!) Hope you'll give it a read. www.inc.com/nancy-scola/...

The whole thing is, of course, a bit of a flyer, but it's got some high-profile supporters.

The first investor is @profgalloway.com, and @mcuban.bsky.social told me, "I'm a fan of Andrew's. I hope he makes a killing!"

There's also a Yangian twist. One of the problems with the U.S., says Yang, is we're on our phones too much. Noble pays you back about a buck in "Data Dividend" for every gigabyte under 20 you use.

Stanford's Anna Lembke, author of "Dopamine Nation," told me she's intrigued:

But Yang also pitches his Noble Mobile as a chance to leverage the fact that Americans pay a premium for 'Big Three' cell phone service to make the economic math work better for everyday people—what he frames as one of the central ambitions of his political career.

First, running a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, is undeniably potentially a very good business.

Not for nothing did Ryan Reynolds sell his Mint Mobile—essentially the bulk reselling of T-Mobile service—for $1.3 billion.

I found myself curious why 2020 Democratic presidential candidate & 2021 NYC mayoral candidate @andrew-yang.bsky.social's latest act isn't another run for office but as CEO of a mobile phone service startup called Noble Mobile.

For the good folks at @inc.com, I dug in. Some tidbits…

New episode of the #computationalantitrust podcast. I talked with @nancyscola.bsky.social about the interplay between computational antitrust and antitrust reporting. Nancy had so many great insights. I very much enjoyed recording it, and I hope you'll enjoy listening to it.

Israel’s Zones of Denial A wave of triumph sweeps Israel in the aftermath of its campaign against Iran, even as Gaza’s suffering recedes from public view. Beneath the celebrations, a question nags: What is Israel becoming?

David Remnick reports from Israel:

"[T]he horrific scale of suffering among Gazans is nearly invisible in the Israeli media... Media executives seem convinced that they will alienate audiences if they give the subject much attention." www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

This DC-Area Lawyer Wants More Americans Betting on Elections Pratik Chougule wants to make wagering on politics as popular and legal as wagering on sports. Is that all in good fun—or a bad bet for democracy?

Political prediction markets are having their moment in Washington. For the good folks at @washingtonian.com I profile Pratik Chougule, the host of the podcast "Star Spangled Gambler" who is at the center of the push to make betting on politics mainstream.

www.washingtonian.com/2025/07/10/e...

560 | Nancy Scola: How to Win the New Ideas War in Washington Podcast Episode · The Realignment · 07/10/2025 · 1h 3m

Had a fascinating time talking about how political "idea flow" works in Washington with Marshall Kosloff on "The Realignment Podcast." podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/5...

Why I’m Resigning from the NSF and Library of Congress I cannot participate in systems that require dishonesty as the price of belonging.

"For me, the answer now lies in refusal, the withdrawal of participation from systems that require dishonesty as the price of belonging."

Today I am resigning from the National Science Board and the Library of Congress Scholars Council.

I wrote about my decision in TIME.

time.com/7285045/resi...

The Woman Who Can Make or Break Trump’s Big Tech Crackdown Gail Slater, the head of the DOJ’s antitrust division, will show how serious the right is about bringing big tech companies to heel.

I profile Gail Slater, the new head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division, for @POLITICO Magazine.

Wyoming senator fights cashless trend at National Park properties Tourists frustrated by the growing number of National Park Service properties refusing to accept cash have an ally in Sen. Cynthia Lummis.

Interesting fight brewing over some national parks no longer accepting cash.

Senate just approved Gail Slater to head DOJ’s antitrust division — for what it’s worth, filling the job more than six months sooner than in the first Trump administration.

How Americans Feel About Trump’s Tariffs Trump loves tariffs. Do Americans? It depends how pollsters ask the question.

Interesting look at the complexities of public polling on tariffs.

Real News Companies—And Most Reporters—Should Be Off Twitter It's no longer just ethically questionable—it's incompatible with basic professionalism.

I am being exceptionally petty, yes, but having seen several of your posts cross my X timeline today I'm wondering if this no longer applies: www.offmessage.net/p/real-news-...

Yesterday was really busy so it's worth saying again. The scope of the DOGE really shrank in terms of what was proposed to what was in the EO set it up yesterday...

from $2 trillion in cuts to, apparently, a more narrow focus on government technology....

www.nextgov.com/digital-gove...

What Jared's office actually does Inside the Office of American Innovation.

A reminder that the first Trump admin tried to use the existing framework of the EOP to 'reinvent government,' and there's a reason you probably don't remember the attempt.

Establishing And Implementing The President's "Department Of Government Efficiency" – The White House By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1.

Not the most consequential of things, but as @amac0.bsky.social notes this whole idea of 'DOGE' just stepping into the U.S. Digital Service wrapper as 'U.S. DOGE Service' makes it the "U.S. Department of Government Efficiency Service."

Likely going to be an interesting debate on the left over whether Democrats took too big of a swing at 'Big Tech' in the first place — or if it was a "you come at the king you best not miss" situation.

Though he's perhaps saved by the fact that the FCC has never really had a formal role in the TikTok debates.

On Day One, Trump Makes Carr FCC Chairman GOP chairman pledges to create growth through “agency actions on spectrum, infrastructure, and the space economy.”

Carr made warning of the dangers of TikTok central to his whole Washington identity, so now that he's the Trump-appointed FCC chair things are going to get interesting.

Trump revokes Biden executive order on addressing AI risks U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday revoked a 2023 executive order signed by Joe Biden that sought to reduce the risks that artificial intelligence poses to consumers, workers and national security.

I think we're going to look back at the issuance of Biden's AI executive order in October 2023 as a surprisingly significant moment in the political timeline.

FTC issues rules requiring hotels, ticket sellers to reveal ‘junk fees’ The industries must display the full price of a hotel room, concert ticket or sporting event upfront to customers or face potential federal punishment.

NEW: The FTC issues long-awaited rules prohibiting ticket sellers and hotels from hiding "junk fees," promising to punish those that fail to disclose service charges and other add-ons prominently www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

Bluesky's safety team: "We received more reports in two days than in all of last year..."

AOC's Oversight rise marks Democratic generational shift Ocasio-Cortez has earned the support of the majority of the panel’s Democrats, based on interviews with a dozen members.

This is being treated as a big deal and it's potentially an even bigger deal than that. House Oversight is an enormously powerful tool in skilled hands. www.politico.com/news/2024/12...

FTC Sues Southern Glazer’s for Illegal Price Discrimination The Federal Trade Commission sued the largest U.S.

For the first time since 2000, the FTC has sued a company for violating the Robinson-Patman Act, an FDR-era law that prohibits price discrimination www.ftc.gov/news-events/...

I Was Canceled by Bluesky. And I Still Don’t Know Why. The liberal alternative to Elon Musk’s X platform reinstated me but never explained what my original offense was. That’s a bad message.

New this morning for @politico.com.

The latest effort at mending relations with the US president-elect is also the first time Facebook's parent company has contributed to an inauguration fund. www.ft.com/content/d4c1...

As with DOJ antitrust chief, Trump picks as FTC chair someone seemingly quite willing to question ‘Big Tech.’