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Daily Deal: Babbel Language Learning (All Languages)

1 year 1 month ago
You probably already know the benefits of learning a language, so let’s focus on the app. Right off the bat, let’s be clear about one thing: When we say “app” we don’t mean that you’re limited to using Babbel on your phone. You can use Babbel on desktop, too, and your progress is synchronized across […]
Gretchen Heckmann

Ridiculous: Restaurant Named “Bodega” Changes Name Under C&D Threat

1 year 1 month ago
It’s always frustrating to watch a trademark dispute occur when the marks in question are non-distinctive or generic in nature. Now, I want to be careful here, because the trademark in question here is one that has been applied in a way slightly different than the generic use of the term is typically used. An […]
Dark Helmet

Will Augmented Reality Present A Moderation Problem?

1 year 1 month ago
Augmented reality is on its way. The ability to layer media over top of the real world is, for the moment, a hardware problem. Our phones can do it – think Pokémon Go, or Snapchat’s dancing hotdog – but a real-time heads-up display remains out of reach, for the moment. When such technology arrives, it […]
Mike Masnick

Ctrl-Alt-Speech Spotlight: Modulate CEO Mike Pappas On Voice Moderation

1 year 1 month ago
Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast about the latest news in online speech, from Mike Masnick and Everything in Moderation‘s Ben Whitelaw. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Pocket Casts, YouTube, or your podcast app of choice — or go straight to the RSS feed. In this sponsored Spotlight episode of Ctrl-Alt-Speech, host Ben Whitelaw […]
Leigh Beadon

Congress Wants To Let Private Companies Own The Law

1 year 1 month ago
It sounds absolutely batty that there is a strong, bipartisan push to lock up aspects of our law behind copyright. But it’s happening. Even worse, the push is on to include this effort to lock up the law in the “must pass” National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This is the bill that Congress lights up […]
Mike Masnick

DSA Ruling: ExTwitter Must Pay Up For Shadowbanning; Trolls Rejoice

1 year 1 month ago
In a stunning display of technocratic incompetence, the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) has effectively outlawed the very tool that online platforms have relied on for years to combat trolls: shadowbanning. Recent court decisions suggest that the DSA’s (possibly?) well-intentioned but misguided Article 17 has created a troll’s paradise, leaving websites in an impossible position […]
Mike Masnick

FCC’s Carr Wrote A ‘Project 2025’ Chapter On Ruining The FCC And Taxing Tech Giants, Which May Have Violated The Hatch Act

1 year 1 month ago
The leading candidate to head the FCC should Trump win re-election is facing calls for an investigation into Hatch Act violations after he helped co-author the controversial Project 2025. Sixteen House Democrats have sent a letter to government officials arguing that Carr’s involvement in the openly political Project 2025 is a clear violation of the […]
Karl Bode

FTC: Um, That Xbox Game Pass Price Hike Also Contradicts What Microsoft Told The Courts In Activision Blizzard Aquisition

1 year 1 month ago
Late last year, the FTC appealed the decision by the court to allow Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard to go through by denying the FTC’s requested injunction against it. Since then, Microsoft appears to be running some sort of experiment to see just how completely it can prove the FTC’s warning about the deal was […]
Dark Helmet

DOJ Says Kansas School District Routinely Engaged In Biased Enforcement Of Student Policies

1 year 1 month ago
Students have rights. That’s something educators and (especially) administrators seem to forget. Schools also aren’t immune from the same issues that negatively affect the outside world. Adding cops to the school discipline mix definitely hasn’t helped anything. Biased policing is an everyday occurrence pretty much everywhere in the county. Just because the officer patrols halls […]
Tim Cushing

The First Amendment: America’s Secret Sauce For Innovation

1 year 1 month ago
The First Amendment is America’s secret sauce. Far from a relic of the 18th century, the right to speak freely and question authority is a cornerstone of innovation, which thrives on pushing boundaries and challenging the status quo. This freedom is why the United States consistently out-invents and out-performs other societies that do not prioritize […]
Mike Masnick

Daily Deal: StackSkills Unlimited

1 year 1 month ago
StackSkills is the premier online learning platform for mastering today’s most in-demand skills. Now, with this exclusive limited-time offer, you’ll gain access to 1000+ StackSkills courses for life! Whether you’re looking to earn a promotion, make a career change, or pick up a side hustle to make some extra cash, StackSkills delivers engaging online courses […]
Gretchen Heckmann

Fox News’ Desperate Attempts To Link Trump Shooter To Video Games Is Pathetic

1 year 1 month ago
When tragedy strikes, it’s human nature to search for answers. But when you’re Fox News, it seems that the answer is always the same: blame video games, social media, or anything else that fits your preconceived notions, facts be damned. In the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, I idly wondered how long […]
Mike Masnick

Funniest/Most Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt

1 year 1 month ago
This week, our first place winner on the insightful side is That One Guy with a comment about Silicon Valley VCs lining up to back Trump and our supposition that it’s because they cynically welcome chaos: ‘Look, we put BBQ sauce on our faces and everything, so no snacking alright?’ Either that or in the […]
Leigh Beadon

This Week In Techdirt History: July 14th – 20th

1 year 1 month ago
Five Years Ago This week in 2019, an opportunistic IBM sold out Section 230 while the Third Circuit joined the Ninth in denying its protections to e-commerce platforms, soon followed by the Sixth Circuit making a mess of it as well, so we wrote more about how Section 230 is not exceptional and is not […]
Leigh Beadon