Politics

Politics Follow Follow Big tech companies tend to make a lot of enemies — but there are none more powerful than the US government. Apple, Google, Amazon, and Meta are regularly called in front of Congress to fend off monopoly accusations — and lawmakers bring up bills to rein in the companies just as often. The Federal Trade Commission has taken a particularly central role, leading a lawsuit to sever Facebook and Instagram while blocking new acquisitions for Oculus and the company’s virtual reality wing. Like it or not, these regulatory fights will play a huge role in deciding the future of tech — and neither side is playing nice. D Quote Dominic Preston Feb 16 Link The hottest new trend in tech. First came Jmail , then Jikipedia . The Epstein files have yielded a lot so far, but I didn’t expect a whole new tech ecosystem to be among them. alectrem : at this rate they’re going to make a whole platform of web services and IPO before all the files are even released Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily . After spooking Hollywood, ByteDance will tweak safeguards on new AI model Jess Weatherbed Feb 16 T Terrence O'Brien Feb 15 Link Pam Bondi claims the DOJ has released “all” the Epstein files now. In a letter sent to Congress Saturday, the Attorney General said that the DOJ had released “all ‘records, documents, communications and investigative materials in the possession of the Department’” in accordance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. She also included a list of over 300 people mentioned in the files. Jikipedia turns Epstein’s emails into an encyclopedia of his powerful friends Terrence O'Brien Feb 14 A powerful tool of resistance is already in your hands Lauren Feiner Feb 14 E External Link Emma Roth Feb 13 Link The DHS is reportedly pressing social media platforms for info about ICE critics. Google, Reddit, Discord, and Meta have received “hundreds” of subpoenas from the DHS in recent months, according to a report from The New York Times . The agency is reportedly asking the platforms for the names, email addresses, phone numbers, and other information associated with accounts that “track or criticize” ICE. Homeland Security Wants Social Media Sites to Expose Anti-ICE Accounts [ The New York Times ] Can Democrats post their way to midterm victories? Kamala Harris’ campaign account, @KamalaHQ, has rebranded as a digital rapid response operation. Mia Sato Feb 13 The same day DHS announced the surge would end in Minnesota, ICE activity increased in small towns The less densely populated areas outside the Twin Cities make it harder for protesters and observers to organize. Gaby Del Valle Feb 13 G External Link Gaby Del Valle Feb 12 Link I honestly didn’t think they had it in them. Senate Democrats blocked a bill funding the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday, which could trigger a temporary shutdown of the department. The vote was 52 to 47, with just one Democrat — Sen. John Fetterman — voting in favor. “We will not support an extension of the status quo,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said before the vote. DHS shutdown all but certain after failed Senate vote [ Politico ] In one swoop, Trump kills US greenhouse gas regulations Justine Calma Feb 12 Top DOJ antitrust enforcer is out weeks before Live Nation trial Lauren Feiner Feb 12 El Paso airspace closure was reportedly triggered by the CBP’s use of an anti-drone laser Emma Roth Feb 12 DHS announces the end of its ‘surge operation’ in Minneapolis, but not entirely Gaby Del Valle Feb 12 D Quote Dominic Preston Feb 12 Link Even a stopped clock… There are plenty of good reasons to have your doubts about Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, but he’s right — if understandably self-serving — in criticizing Russia’s “authoritarian” restrictions on both Telegram and WhatsApp . Cr4shMyCar : Heartbreaking: worst person you know makes a great point Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily . T Quote Thomas Ricker Feb 12 Link From dumb to dumber. The sudden closure of El Paso airspace yesterday came after US customs officials fired an anti-drone laser on loan from the Department of Defense without coordination with the FAA. And, according to The New York Times , it wasn’t triggered by “Mexican cartel drones breaching US airspace” as the administration claimed: Officials targeted what they thought was a drug cartel drone, but turned out to be a party balloon. L Twitter Lauren Feiner Feb 11 Link FTC says it’s ‘not the speech police’ in letter warning Apple News about its alleged promotion of left-leaning outlets. Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson warned Apple’s news product could violate a law against deceptive business practices if its alleged promotion of some ideological content violates its terms of service. Ferguson doesn’t cite specific terms it might have violated, but urges a “comprehensive review” to ensure they’re consistent. S External Link Stevie Bonifield Feb 11 Link The New York Times uses a custom AI tool to monitor “manosphere” podcasts. For the past year, the Times has been using LLMs to create what’s internally known as the “Manosphere Report,” according to Nieman Lab . The AI-generated reports include episode transcripts and summaries for around 80 primarily right-wing podcasts, including the Ben Shapiro Show , Red Scare , and The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show . How The New York Times uses a custom AI tool to track the “manosphere” [ Nieman Lab ] Instagram and X have an impossible deepfake detection deadline Jess Weatherbed Feb 11 L External Link Lauren Feiner Feb 11 Link Advocacy group sues Trump officials for urging tech companies to remove ICE reporting tools. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) is suing Attorney General Pam Bondi and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for their alleged roles urging Meta and Apple to remove a Facebook group and app documenting ICE agents . FIRE claims they unconstitutionally coerced companies to censor speech. In a statement, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin accused FIRE of spinning “this correct decision for Apple to remove these apps as them caving to pressure instead of helping prevent further harm to federal officers.” Update: Added DHS statement. FIRE sues Bondi, Noem for censoring Facebook group and app reporting ICE activity [ The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression ] D Quote Dominic Preston Feb 11 Link The internet sometimes forgets. You should always assume that anything online about you might well stay there forever, but don’t worry: so long as you have the budget of Jeffrey Epstein, you can probably make it go away . Cav_man : The internet never forgets anything unless you’re wealthy enough in which case it devolopes a healthy sense of amnesia. Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily . Bezos could have saved The Washington Post’s local news and sports reporters Plus: DC thinks Bezos is a bastard; Newsmax goes to war with Nexstar; and more in this week’s Regulator. Tina Nguyen Feb 10 Jeffrey Epstein’s digital cleanup crew According to recently released documents, the convicted sex offender had a vast network of people working to whitewash his digital presence. Mia Sato Feb 10 Could the Trump Phone be a good phone? David Pierce Feb 10 FCC accused of withholding DOGE information ‘in bad faith’ Lauren Feiner Feb 9 Live Nation’s monopoly trial is reportedly fracturing Trump’s Justice Department Jess Weatherbed Feb 9 D Dominic Preston Feb 9 Link EU tells Meta to let other AIs back on WhatsApp. The European Commission has weighed in on the November decision to block the likes of ChatGPT and Copilot from WhatsApp, and thinks it violates EU antitrust laws. It’s surprisingly fast for the organization, which called the issue “urgent” because of the risk of “irreparable” damage to competition in the nascent AI industry. Image: European Commission J External Link Jess Weatherbed Feb 9 Link The State Department is deleting X posts. The removals — which follow the Trump administration’s previous data purging efforts — target all posts prior to the president returning to office in January 2025, with a goal to “limit confusion on US government policy,” A spokesperson told NPR that the department’s X accounts “are one of our most powerful tools for advancing the America First goals.” State Department will delete X posts from before Trump returned to office [ NPR ] Section 230 turns 30 as it faces its biggest tests yet The law has survived the dot-com bubble and the Supreme Court, but it’s up against potentially larger challenges. Lauren Feiner Feb 8 There isn’t even a cynical explanation for Jeff Bezos destroying The Washington Post Tina Nguyen Feb 6 R External Link Richard Lawler Feb 6 Link Trump deletes racist Obama clip from his Truth Social account and blames anonymous staffer. A clip that put Barack and Michelle Obama’s faces on the bodies of apes appeared on the president’s Truth Social account for about 12 hours before it was deleted, but not before press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the post, saying it was simply “an internet meme.” An unattributed statement from the White House published by Variety said “a staffer had erroneously made the post and that it has been taken down.” It’s an excuse Trump has used before . Trump Deletes Racist Video of Obamas After Outcry [ New York Times ] The Jeffrey Epstein Fortnite account is fake Emma Roth Feb 6 How the men in the Epstein files defeated #MeToo The emails show the “anti-woke” crusaders are afraid of accountability. Elizabeth Lopatto Feb 6 TikTok’s infinite scroll is too addictive, say EU regulators Dominic Preston Feb 6 D Quote Dominic Preston Feb 6 Link America’s finest news source. I like to think you can usually tell the difference between a Verge headline and an Onion one, but these days the lines are getting blurry . endlessben : I think you hit “Publish to The Verge” instead of “Publish to The Onion.” It’s ok, it happens. Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily . Republicans attack ‘woke’ Netflix — and ignore YouTube Emma Roth Feb 5 @KamalaHQ is relaunching as a Gen Z ‘progressive content hub’ Mia Sato Feb 5 Why is the Trump administration really appealing its Meta loss? Lauren Feiner Feb 5 Senators ask Meta why it waited so long to make teen accounts private by default Emma Roth Feb 5 D External Link Dominic Preston Feb 5 Link Imgur fined by UK privacy watchdog over children’s data handling. The fine, a measly £247,590 (about $335,000), is because Imgur owner MediaLab wasn’t checking users ages, and so handled young kids’ data without proper consent measures. After the ICO warned a fine was coming last September, Imgur started blocking UK users entirely — a ban which is still in effect. ICO fines Imgur owner MediaLab over children’s privacy failures [ ICO ] This Town, 2.0 Tech surrenders to the daily chaos of Washington politicking. Tina Nguyen Feb 4 Most Popular Most Popular Apple’s doing something on March 4th Why are Epstein’s emails full of equals signs? OpenClaw founder Peter Steinberger is joining OpenAI The Pocket Taco is the best way to turn your phone into a Game Boy Anker’s USB-C cable that lets you charge two gadgets at once is 20 percent off Advertiser Content From This is the title for the native ad