The FTC is dropping its appeal in the Media Matters case. They've withdrawn the civil investigative demand that is at the heart of the dispute (and presumably also want to avoid a D.C. Circuit decision). storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

True! Fun fact: They did this because someone leaked Robert Bork’s rental history during his confirmation battle.

THREAD: I've now analyzed @massgovernor.bsky.social's proposed social media legislation and ... ... it is somehow even worse than the House bill that passed last week (which was already one of the worst bills on this issue we've seen in the US.) You might wanna sit down for this. Here goes: 🧵

“Governor Healey is right that we can’t trust Big Tech, so why does she want to force our kids to send them even more data, and force them to share that data even more widely?” www.boston.com/news/local-n...

We call this the "Chicken Little SCIF" It's where they send Members to tell them the sky will fall unless you vote the way the Speaker and White House tell you

I told the Globe “incredibly disappointing to hear the governor say that she supports the social media ‘ban’ legislation that just passed the House, which is completely unworkable, unconstitutional, and lets Big Tech off the hook while punishing parents and teens” www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/14/m...

Powerful questions from @eff.org client Amandla Thomas-Johnson, re Google sharing of his information with ICE: "Am I now a marked individual? Can I travel safely to see family in the Caribbean? Who, exactly, can I hold accountable?" www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...

Brutal.

In India, a growing number of people are using AI chatbots daily, yet these systems aren’t built for diverse linguistic and cultural contexts, which limits their experience. More from @cdt.org's @aliyabhatia.bsky.social → cdt.org/insights/op-...

The Denial of Saint Peter, by Caravaggio, 1610

Age verification laws purport to keep minors from accessing online adult content. But not only are they ineffective, as Michael McGrady Jr. writes, they are part of the right’s agenda to target sex workers, curb free expression, and reshape digital labor.

NEW: "The Park Service has every right to modify [Malcolm X Park], which so badly needs care, but doing so during the summer hurts all D.C. residents," writes @aliyabhatia.bsky.social, who lives near the park, in a new opinion piece. "Yes, the park deserves care. But so do our neighbors."

We couldn’t have hoped for a better advocate than @aclu.org National Director Cecillia Wang today in the SCOTUS, arguing against Trump’s effort to end birthright citizenship. If there’s any fairness left, this wil be a big win for democracy, citizenship, & the integrity of the 14th Amendment.

Cecilia Wang, National Legal Director of the ACLU, on DOJ saying they're not asking the Supreme Court to overrule Wong Kim Ark: "That is a fatal concession" fuck em up Cecilia

Happy Trans Day of Visibility ❤️🏳️‍⚧️❤️

Cecillia Wang was born in Oregon after her parents legally emigrated from Taiwan, making her a U.S. citizen by birth. Now, she is set to appear before the Supreme Court to address a question fundamental to the nation and her family: Who deserves to be an American? https://wapo.st/4uU4bAd

Awesome day for Trans Visibility with @evangreer.bsky.social and @fightforthefuture.org!

I’m EFF’s next Executive Director! So proud to take the torch from Cindy Cohn and lead @eff.org forward in its next chapter. Here’s the link to the EFF announcement – www.eff.org/press/releas... Together, we can meet the challenges and keep building a future where technology works for the people.

This is excellent news for everyone that cares about civil liberties and digital rights! Congratulations @nicoleozer.bsky.social and @eff.org!

Thanks to @masnick.com and the folks @techdirt.com for the chance to write even more about the Afroman Trial and Section 230. It's so rare that my interests in rap music, defamation law, and intermediary liability protections come together so neatly.

Glorious

FCC Chair Brendan Carr keeps violating the First Amendment. Today, @cdt.org joined @techfreedom.org, civil society orgs, First Amendment experts, and former FCC Commissioners in a letter to Chair Carr expressing our concerns with the weaponization of the FCC to censor speech.

FCC Chair Brendan Carr is weaponizing the “public interest” standard against viewpoints he dislikes. Such jawboning violates the First Amendment, due process, and the rule of law. 75+ civil society groups & free speech experts joined us in this coalition letter 🧵 techfreedom.org/fcc-threats-...

I testified to the Senate about Section 230 yesterday. It was an unusually substantive and thoughtful hearing. www.youtube.com/live/F8T5vCm...

Great article. Let's talk about Afroman and Section 230. 🧵

Congress has done many hearings about Section 230 but they rarely include the expertise of @daphnek.bsky.social. Tune in at 10 am today to hear Daphne testify about Section 230 and why it's the best model for protecting online free speech that we have. www.commerce.senate.gov/2026/3/liabi...

New Interview: www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...

If you don't see the problem with forcing this man to carry an F for female on his driver's license then I don't know what to tell you

Periodic reminder that the First Amendment isn’t magic. It requires broadcasters to defend their rights. If they don’t, if they capitulate for whatever reason - money, convenience, fear - the far that this is a flagrant First Amendment violation won’t matter.

Here's yet another reason why the TikTok SCOTUS decision was VERY BAD. Genevieve Lakier on the part where some on the Court seem to think a divestiture requirement isn't a speech regulation: lpeproject.org/blog/the-tik...

Must read from @janus.bsky.social about how “age verification” laws are paving the way for the online version of what just happened to trans people in Kansas (gift link!) www.theverge.com/policy/89207...

If you cite "Anxious Generation" supportively, you should listen to the <If Books Could Kill> podcast about the book, on why it's not very rigorous or persuasive. www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQBM...

Are you a recent law graduate interested in the First Amendment? Interested in working on issues where technology policy intersects with free speech, including generative AI, social media, trust & safety, and Section 230? Come work with the FX team at CDT! cdt.org/careers/#op-...

New piece by @mluria.bsky.social and me on what today's hearing on kids' safety is missing: the perspectives of parents and teens who are deeply skeptical of whether these bills will meet their needs. Huge thanks to @viacristiano.bsky.social for his sharp edits. www.techpolicy.press/congress-chi...

Same as it ever was…

Brett Max Kaufman and I wrote this piece about the NSA's "vocabulary of misdirection" a long time ago but maybe someone at Open AI should read it. slate.com/news-and-pol...

Please look at Baby Globe. Happy birthday, @wikipedia.org, the last best thing in the internet.

In this CDT Tech Talk, @riana.bsky.social and I talk about Grok and the challenges inherent in preventing the generation of NCII by generative AI systems. The Grok case is undoubtedly extreme, but it highlights some thorny speech issues that we need to grapple with.

It's important that lawmakers are demanding answers here. Every user of social media (including our clients in the cases we've filed) deserves to know whether companies are stepping up to protect them or selling them out to a repressive government.

“‘The fact that Amazon is reconsidering their relationship with Flock should be a very large and glaring sign that schools should also perhaps reconsider that relationship,’ said Kristin Woelfel, policy counsel for equity in civic technology at the nonprofit CDT.”

“Each little dot: a person.”

Read @aliyabhatia.bsky.social on the need for multilingual evaluations of AI models. As these systems become further integrated into existing services and content moderation practices, how they work (or don't work!) in languages other than English becomes even more critical.

So BEFORE anyone asks, it's STILL the Streisand Effect. It's not the Talarico Effect or the Colbert Effect or the Brendan Carr Effect. It's the Streisand Effect.

As an attorney with occasional experience with the Equal Time rule, I can explain what's going on here and how the FCC's Brandon Carr is leveraging his position to force late night and daytime talk show hosts to exclude Democratic candidates. First I need to explain the Equal Time rule itself. 1/

Let me just make a few little adjustments to that title… “How a scientist with a PhD in Geology and 25 years of experience is helping lead California’s earthquake work” Way to devalue my experience.

I’m in New York this weekend to see Hilary Harnischfeger’s show, Songs for Clouds, at uffner & liu. There are still beautiful things. Check it out! uffnerliu.com/artists/28-h...

The ACLU (including my team) has filed multiple actions to block subpoenas sent by DHS to identify people speaking out against its abuses. Today's NYT story shows that those cases are the tip of the iceberg: DHS has sent HUNDREDS of subpoenas to tech companies. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/13/t...

👋 EFF's team of activists, lawyers, and technologists regularly take on multiple threats to digital rights and privacy. We've noticed, we're not distracted, and we'll be fighting back.

Will India truly forge a 'third way' at the #AIImpactSummit next week in Delhi or further entrench Big Tech actors' roles in the Global South at the expense of local alternatives? Great read by @ambakak.bsky.social and Astha Kapoor: restofworld.org/2026/india-a...

That's right. www.thefire.org/news/fire-su...