Big Tech News
Follow the latest Big Tech news with reporting, analysis, and commentary on censorship, free speech, and conservative views on Silicon Valley’s power.
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- News
Whistleblower Group Says Big Tech Blocking Ads for Documentary Alleging Biden Corruption
A conservative advocacy group asserts big tech firms still haven’t run any of their ads for a documentary on alleged corruption by the Biden family, a week after it raised concerns about potential censorship to leaders in Congress. Empower Oversight’s documentary, “Shielded by Power: The Whistleblowers vs. The Big Guy,” covers how, in 2020, social…Fred Lucas -
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Justices Struggle Over Venue in Case Involving Big Tech, Saudi Arabia
Supreme Court justices grew fiery at times, and occasionally comical, during Monday’s arguments in the case of a former Twitter employee who was a paid informant of the Saudi Arabian government. Justices considered a narrow legal question about venue—whether a defendant can be prosecuted in a place where the alleged conduct didn’t occur. In the…Fred Lucas -
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Jury Finds Meta and Google Liable in Social Media Addiction Trial
REUTERS—A Los Angeles jury found Alphabet’s Google and Meta liable for $3 million in damages on Wednesday in a landmark social media addiction lawsuit that will influence thousands of similar cases against the tech companies. Punitive damages for the companies will be decided next. The Los Angeles case involves a 20-year-old woman who said she…Reuters -
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Big Tech in the Crosshairs of New Coalition With Lots to Spend
A new pro-family technology coalition plans to spend at least eight figures this year to protect children from dangers presented by artificial intelligence. On Friday, the White House released its National Framework on AI, which called for measures to protect children, but didn’t go far enough for many child safety advocates. For the first time,…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
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Free Speech Clash: Tech Coalition Challenges Trump Anti-Censorship Visa Policy
A tech group that has received funding from left-leaning nonprofits is suing the Trump administration over the threatened deportation or revocation of visas for noncitizens the State Department identified as trying to censor Americans. While the administration says the policy targets foreigners seeking to censor Americans, the plaintiff, the Coalition for Independent Technology Research, alleges…Fred Lucas -
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Blackburn Takes Aim at Big Tech for Harming Teens’ Mental Health
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., took the Senate floor last week to call out Big Tech, targeting Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and accusing social media companies of harming young users. Her remarks come as a case unfolds in Los Angeles County Superior Court, where 20-year-old Kaley G.M. is suing Meta and Google’s YouTube. She accuses the companies of designing addictive and harmful…Reagan Campbell -
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The Rise of Political ‘Aesthetic’ Activism on TikTok
It doesn’t look like a political rally. There are no podiums, no party banners, no policy papers in sight—just trending sounds, pastel filters, and 30-second clips filmed in dorm rooms and bedrooms across America. But on TikTok, politics isn’t debated so much as curated, stylized, and performed. And as millions of young users scroll through algorithm-fed activism, a deeper…Katherine Matt -
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Why Trump’s Tech Defense in the EU Is an ‘America First’ Policy
A fundamental principle of international law is comity—the mutual respect sovereign nations afford one another in enforcing their laws. For the United States, comity is not an abstraction. It is the predicate for stable trade relationships and predictable cross-border enforcement. When that principle erodes, diplomacy becomes nearly impossible. Comity is central to the U.S. dispute…Joel Thayer -
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How TikTok’s Algorithm Poisoned the Minds of Young, Liberal Women
Ninety-one percent. That’s the share of young liberal women who oppose deportations of illegal immigrants. In a country where 61% of voters support deportation efforts, one demographic has positioned itself further from the American mainstream than any other group in modern polling. This hasn’t shown itself in just one issue. It’s a pattern. And understanding…Brent Buchanan -
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They Threatened ICE Online—Then X and Google Got Involved
Social media companies helped federal law enforcement identify two men this week who allegedly made online threats to kill Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. On Thursday, the Justice Department announced that the social media company X helped identify a 21-year-old Justin Mesael Novoa, who allegedly posted online, “Can’t wait to shoot these … p—- ice…Fred Lucas -
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From Rock to Tech, Talent Flees Taxes
California Democrats should listen to The Rolling Stones. The band famously fled England in the 1970s, heading into tax exile in the south of France. Mick Jagger and his mates weren’t alone—a generation of rock royalty abandoned the U.K. because of its steep taxes: David Bowie opted for Switzerland; Rod Stewart went to California. “We…Daniel McCarthy -
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Meta Does It Right With Nuclear Power
Meta did something right, and it deserves recognition and replication. Recently, the American-owned technology company announced a private partnership with three nuclear firms, Vistra, Terra Power, and Oklo, to expand electricity production supporting their own data center needs and generating surplus power to benefit the regional grid. This should happen anywhere data centers are in the discussion….Daniel Turner -
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The $100 Billion Question Nobody’s Asking: Why Are Taxpayers Funding Big Tech Contracts With Nothing to Show for It?
When the government, or anyone for that matter, spends $100 billion annually on information technology, you’d expect transformative results. Instead, we get a masterclass in institutional capture. It’s clear the federal government is serving the best interests of massive software companies, not taxpayers or federal workers. Instead, the federal IT landscape resembles a graveyard of…Evan Swarztrauber -
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Tech Neutrality Lets Big Tech Off the Hook
Imagine this: You’re waiting your turn at the DMV only to discover that it’s under new management. The federal government announced a ban on state driving laws just this morning. No longer will states be allowed to set their own public guardrails like speed limits. Instead, Washington will write the rules—maybe. Because while calling for…Wesley Hodges -
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How Obama, Biden Regulations Slowed Technology Growth in Health Care
Regulations from Obamacare and under the Biden administration not only increased the cost of health care, they also made it more difficult to advance artificial intelligence and other technology in medicine, experts told a House panel Wednesday. The regulations amount to “layers of permission” for health data, said Dr. Ziad Obermeyer, Blue Cross of California…Fred Lucas -
Marco Rubio Says Uncle Sam Is Monitoring Social Media. Who Doesn’t Believe Him?
WASHINGTON—Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this bombshell during Wednesday’s White House Cabinet meeting: “We had an office in the Department of State whose job it was to censor Americans.” Rubio offered that he is surprised a federal agency monitoring the social media posts and commentary of American citizens is not a bigger story. Maybe…Debra Saunders -
Mark Zuckerberg Wants Us to Forgive, Forget Facebook’s Sins
Mark Zuckerberg is waging a charm offensive. His company, Meta, just agreed to pay $25 million to settle a lawsuit that President Donald Trump filed back in 2021 after being suspended by Facebook and Instagram. The settlement comes on the heels of Zuckerberg’s attendance at Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, Meta’s purported shift away from…Daniel Cochrane -
California’s Volunteer Fire Unit Vanishes From Web, Social Media After Controversial Dismantling
Fire-ravaged California is grappling with the threat of floods, mudslides, and toxic ash this week as the state’s embattled leaders face more questions about their decision to dismantle an emergency response volunteer firefighting unit—and now attempt to erase its existence. In the latest twist, the website and social media accounts for the firefighting unit, known…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
The Fall of the Censorship Wall at Facebook
Since Donald Trump won reelection, the fiercest Trump-bashers in the press have raged against any sign of media titans softening their approaches before the second term begins. Visits to Mar-a-Lago? Outrageous! Donating to Trump’s inauguration? Unconscionable! Then Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced his Meta sites would be abandoning the censorship of “fact-checkers,” in place since…Tim Graham -
Moms Inadvertently Expose Daughters to Predators on Instagram
Mothers inadvertently are exposing their young daughters to male predators on Instagram in a quest to garner money and fame, an investigation published Thursday by The New York Times found. The Instagram accounts, numbering in the thousands, reveal how social media platforms are altering the definition of childhood and the increasing commodification of young girls,…Jason Cohen