Glad to see more on the risks of an AI bubble. Yes, and...will lack of value to people be what slows the AI train enough to let public interest & human rights impacts (finally) catch up to the tech? Or do open source AI models (see: DeepSeek) demonstrate VC $$$$ aren't nec to build AI for all uses?

Enjoying today’s OTI’s 15th anniversary event today, and looking forward to a great discussion with OTI’s former and current leaders @saschameinrath.bsky.social @abdavidson.bsky.social @bankston.bsky.social @lcoral.bsky.social and Sarah Morris.

FABBS is hiring a short-term Tech Policy Fellow to focus on behavioral science and AI (link below). Share with early career policy wonks @ilpfoundry.bsky.social @asa-scipol.bsky.social @scipolguy.bsky.social @abankston.bsky.social @matthourihan.bsky.social @snapcoalition.bsky.social #scipoljobs

I just gave to support @51st.news and you should too if you can. National news is important but local news coverage is how you learn about the stuff that impacts your day to day living, which is even more valuable, so I’m glad to support.

“The societal benefit of a comprehensive guide to the cultural sector can’t be readily calculated on a balance sheet.” www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv... This was me too, and the ground level awareness of what was out there to see and do was so eye-opening for me.

If we really want to "win the global race to AI," it makes no sense to toss out gov't goals for faster speed and decide it doesn't matter whether people can afford their internet bills. Speed/service goals matter if you want people to use AI...as does being able to pay your internet bill.

DHS is urging law enforcement to treat even skateboarding and livestreaming as signs of violent intent during a protest, turning everyday behavior into a pretext for police action. www.wired.com/story/dhs-te...

I haven’t read Judge Alsup’s AI #fairuse case yet [she adds to stack/tabs], BUT noting that “training AI” makes it sound like it’s a person learning how to write by reading lots of books, to which they add their own thought and life experiences to create something original. /1

Here's how much of my personal data DOGE has access to. The results aren’t pretty. Take the quiz yourself now to discover how much of your sensitive info is now exposed. (And props to my colleagues at @techanddemocracy.newamerica.org!) #HandsOffMyData dogequiz.newamerica.org/share/?share...

IT'S STILL A MORATORIUM AND JUST AS BAD. The new text says the ban only applies to new BEAD grants. But the feds can yank the old grants and reissue them. When they do, states have to accept the moratorium to get funds. It's not just $500m of new money, but all $43 BILLION. It kills state law. 1/5

Last night in northwest DC

The recent clowning of D's rural broadband infra efforts has been so disappointing and lazy. There's a bigger story about gov't capture by corporate interests that's much more illustrative of why we don't have nice things. Here's an ex:

Imagine the world were all of your data could only be shared or sold if you OPTED IN. And if the default were that nothing you shared with a tech company could be shared or sold otherwise…that’d be a game changing shift of power. wapo.st/4kBQ8d5 (gift article)

Certainly an argument for humans (both the engineering of the scam and their actual labor), but also perhaps an argument for open source AI??

Thanks to the FCC's Learn Without Limits program, libraries across the country are using #ERate discounts to support wi-fi hotspot lending. But some in Congress want to end the program. Tell your Rep to keep communities connected & protect this funding: bit.ly/TakeActionHotspots #ForOurLibraries

RIP Loretta Swit, known in her time in homes across America as Major Houlihan on M*A*S*H, a character she transformed over the course of more than a decade on the show from from a hardass villain to a sympathetic protagonist. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/o...

So asking permission of artists before you use their life’s work to create tech that will be used to supplant them is unreasonable and unworkable. Huh.

I appreciate this piece from @annalenhart.bsky.social on how kneecapping states' ability to regulate AI means that we undervalue states as incubators of ideas. After all, you need those ideas even more when the rest of the nat'l policymaking players seem poised to let AI co's do whatever they want.

Sometimes the “equity” in Digital Equity Act means that some people in rural areas are less likely to have high speed internet access than others and nothing more nefarious than that. Here’s a good take from @gregsargent.bsky.social on how cutting Digital Equity Act funds hurts red-state voters.

Just hours after the Copyright Office released its report on AI training—stating the obvious, that much unlicensed commercial training of AI on copyright-protected material is unlikely to qualify as fair use—President Trump has fired the Register of Copyrights. www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tru...

"Ending" the Digital Equity Act is such a sad, unnecessary self-own. The digital inclusion work of DEA is 1 on 1, time-intensive, community-driven, and community-based--helping folks in rural areas, vets, seniors, people w/ disabilities, and yes, members of minority or ethnic groups. 1/

Your occasional reminder that while inappropriate uses of Signal for highly sensitive gov't work are bad for #nationalsecurity, there's still a FIRE HOSE of geolocation data on US citizens available for *anyone* worldwide to buy from unregulated data brokers. (article from Nov but still true!)

Nifty little 1 minute video on how Wikipedia works

A little joy for your day and a small reminder why living in a city can be randomly awesome (and a chance to say the word “Ronkonkoma,” which also brings me joy):

Had the pleasure of speaking with @davidalruiz.bsky.social, the host of Lock and Code @malwarebytes.com, about DOGE’s grab of tax records, student‑loan files—even medical info—and why that looks a lot like a data breach in plain sight.

Powerful insight from @theintercept.com on admin's willingness to condemn millions to civic and social death, from SSA marking immigrants as dead, to denying trans people any official existence at all. "This is not mere metaphorical killing: Expulsion from official public life can be truly deadly."

This thread is a good reminder that only those with internet access + skills to use that access (+ working SSA websites!) will be able to avoid going in-person to SSA offices. The consequences of being on the wrong side of the digital divide are getting bigger every day.

Curious what of your data DOGE has? We made a tool to show you what DOGE has based on your life circumstances and interactions with the federal gov’t. This isn’t abstract…it’s your sensitive info at risk: www.newamerica.org/oti/briefs/q...

Ahhh, TFW you’ve successful provided tech support to your mother (on Windows despite being a longtime Mac-only user!). Tech policy feels like rolling a large snowball up a mountain, so it’s nice to succeed at something small and tangible on occasion.

The nat'l intel sieve is leaking more than you think: gov't staffers' texts on personal cell phones are still viewable via the unaddressed Salt Typhoon telco hack. And that's before you get to state secrets being shared sans proper/any security protocols. www.wired.com/story/chinas...

If you’ve ever used Libby or other e-reader programs through your library or ever gotten an inter-library loan, the money for that comes from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

I am a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission. Earlier today, the president attempted to illegally fire me. This is corruption, plain and simple. I will see the president in court. My full statement:

Here's the full email. Feinman's term ended and he was not reappointed. The Commerce Dept. is still weighing how it will change BEAD, but its stated preference for a low-cost, "tech neutral" use of funds could mean billions more for satellite operators like Starlink.

The #KeepItOn 2024 report is here! In 2024, the #KeepItOn coalition documented impact stories along with 296 shutdowns around the world + increased social media blocks. We documented 72 shutdowns coinciding with grave human rights abuses in 17 countries. It’s the worst year yet!

Looking forward to checking out this new #podcast on #section230 www.techdirt.com/2025/03/03/a...

Clearly I'm preaching to the choir by talking on the internet about the value of helping people use the internet...but it's really where the hardest work of closing the #digitaldivide is. Come learn from folks on the ground! 📅 2/26 @ 2p ET bit.ly/4hTq4bi

Just in: Travis LeBlanc and Ed Felten, two of three purged members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, have just sued the Trump administration, challenging what they say are illegal terminations and asking a court to reinstate them.

The current political transition puts public interest technologists in the federal government in limbo. Reilly Martin & Stephanie Cain from Technologists for the Public Good urge states to seize this moment by investing in tech talent & creating pathways for diverse perspectives.

Since we're all about cutting gov't costs, I wanted to reup one of the many interactive budget balancing/debt fixing tools that lets YOU try balancing the U.S. budget. Needless to say this week, but there are a lot of people and families and livelihoods reflected in every expense. #humancosts

From Nat'l Lifeline Association on decisions people make to afford internet bills. Of 68K+ Lifeline or fmr Affordable Connectivity Program users surveyed: -40% cut food spending -36% discontinued telehealth -64% couldn't maintain regular contact w friends/family = #humancosts of the digital divide

Great reminder of what a diversion Tiktok and content moderation have been in the #techpolicy space subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025... from @politico.com

Great thread on an important piece from @bedoyaftc.bsky.social about one of the reasons groceries are more expensive now. As with internet service providers, so it is with groceries...#competition matters.

On Jan 6 and any other day, it all go back to information and media, so here's a timely (tho a few months old) primer on gov't regulation of speech on broadcast tv + radio and how it does/n't apply to the internet-with nods to all the hot #techpolicy issues @reckless.bsky.social @theverge.com

For my first post here (!) sharing that I'm in @wsj.com in @patiencehaggin.bsky.social's piece how to make #broadband nutrition labels better. Namely, people need to be able to find the labels and understand them. This is doable, come on people.