Media Bits and Bytes – July 23, 2024
- Digital Fascism and Antifascism
- RNC Coverage
- Microsoft and the System Crash
- AI’s Hidden Problems
- CEOs Rethink News
- Why Morning Joe Was Preempted
- Protecting LGBTQ+ Digital Identities
- Microsoft Buys Access to Authors’ Research
- Tips for Reddit Users
- Why Did The Wall Street Journal Fire Selina Cheng?
Digital Fascism and Antifascism
By Byron Clark
Fightback Newsletter
The utopian dreams of the early internet were misguided, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be something better than the perpetual fascism machine it sometimes looks like today. A better internet is possible.
By Mary L. Trump
The Good in Us
Even after the grotesque spectacle of WWE and UFA domestic abusers, racists, and misogynists; even after that rambling, self-aggrandizing, delusional speech; newspapers portrayed Donald as if he were a new person, the kind of guy who wants to bury hatchets and do what’s best for all Americans.
Microsoft and the System Crash
By Jeff Parsons
Tom’s Guide
As IT systems managers and security executives pick up the pieces from the Microsoft outage that shut down critical infrastructure systems globally, the post-mortem has already begun. Airlines, hospitals, public transportation, 911 centers and other important systems worldwide were taken offline after cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike pushed out an update to its Falcon Sensor software.
By John Feffer
Foreign Policy in Focus
Presumably, the human will to power will be inscribed in the DNA of this thinking robot. But AI may end up killing us all in a much more prosaic way. It doesn’t need to come up with an elaborate strategy. It will simply use up all of our electricity.
By Richard J. Tofel
Second Rough Draft
A CEO without news experience may not grasp how large of an asset is newsroom morale, or how much sapping it may cost an enterprise. Such issues can become particularly tricky in a unionized environment— especially one in which there are no profits over which to haggle, either because the organization is a nonprofit, or because it is no longer profitable.
By Tom Jones
Poynter
The “Morning Joe” controversy got a little more controversial, with co-host Joe Scarborough seemingly threatening to walk off the show if his program is ever pulled from the air again. CNN reported the MSNBC show was off the air “to avoid a scenario in which one of the show’s stable of two dozen-plus guests might make an inappropriate comment on live television” after the injury to Donald Trump.
Protecting LGBTQ+ Digital Identities
By Paige Collings and Daly Barnett
Electronic Frontier Foundation
For LGBTQ+ individuals, digital spaces enable people that are not yet out to engage with their gender and sexual orientation. In the age of so much passive surveillance, it can feel daunting if not impossible to strike any kind of privacy online. What’s most important is that you think through the specific risks you face and take the right steps to protect against them.
Microsoft Buys Access to Authors' Research
By Matilda Battersby
The Bookseller
Authors have expressed their shock after the news that academic publisher Taylor and Francis, which owns Routledge, had sold access to its authors’ research as part of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) partnership with Microsoft. Academics published by the group claim they have not been told about the AI deal, and are receiving no extra payment for the use of their research by the tech company.
If you’re sticking to the basics of what Reddit has to offer, you’re missing out on the full experience—and there are quite a few ways to tailor your time on Reddit so you get more of the good stuff that you’re interested in, and get to it faster.
Why Did The Wall Street Journal Fire Selina Cheng?
By Selina Cheng
Columbia Journalism Review
International press organisations and a top US congressional panel are leading a growing chorus of support for Hong Kong Journalists Association chairwoman Selina Cheng, who said she was fired by The Wall Street Journal for assuming her leadership role in the union.