Grist: “Today, the recycling icon is omnipresent — found on plastic bottles, cereal boxes, and bins loitering alongside curbs across the country. The chasing arrows, though, are often plastered on products that aren’t recyclable at all, particularly products made of plastic, like dog chew toys and inflatable swim rings. Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency… Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: June 2024
Google’s AI summaries are coming for the news industry
Press Gazette: “The dramatic impact of Google‘s AI-written summaries on search result visibility for publishers has been revealed through exclusive new research.A Press Gazette-led investigation has found that AI-written summaries were returned for nearly a quarter of news-related search queries in mid-May in the US, with the result that organic links to publisher articles were… Continue Reading
ChatGPT vs. Microsoft Copilot vs. Gemini
ZDNet. Which is the best AI chatbot? Artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed how we work and play in the past 18 months, allowing almost anyone to write code, create art, and even make investments. For professional and hobbyist users, generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, offer advanced capabilities to produce decent-quality content from a simple user prompt.… Continue Reading
How YouTube’s recommendations pull you away from news
Huang, S., & Yang, T. (2024). Auditing Entertainment Traps on YouTube: How Do Recommendation Algorithms Pull Users Away from News. Political Communication, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/10584609.2024.2343769 “Recommendation algorithms that customize information feeds for individuals have raised concerns about exacerbating inequalities in news exposure among citizens. In response to these concerns, we conducted an audit study on YouTube… Continue Reading
17 Hidden Facebook Features Only Power Users Know
PC Mag – The world’s largest social network is full of advanced features that you’re probably not using, so we dug deep into the settings menu to find the most useful ones for you. Despite its issues (and there are many), Meta’s Facebook remains today’s foremost digital public square. Politicians and journalists gravitate toward X/Twitter,… Continue Reading
Your employer might be spying on your tech. Here’s how to check.
Washington Post: “Your employer may be able to see everything you’re doing on your phone or computer. They might know you’re reading this article right now. (Hi!) But how can you be sure? Companies have a growing number of ways to keep tabs on workers. They can gather details from common workplace apps and use… Continue Reading
Durbin Reveals Omissions of Gifted Private Travel to Justice Clarence Thomas from Harlan Crow
“In exclusively obtained information from Harlan Crow as a result of Durbin and the Senate Judiciary Committee Majority’s Supreme Court ethics investigation and subpoena authorization, Durbin releases details of gifted private travel to Justice Thomas that Thomas has failed to disclose. WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary… Continue Reading
Build it and they will come? The effects of a new infrastructure on cycling practices and experiences
Patrick Rérat, Aurélie Schmassmann, Build it and they will come? The effects of a new infrastructure on cycling practices and experiences, Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, Volume 25, 2024, 101121, ISSN 2590-1982, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2024.101121. Abstract: What are the effects of cycling infrastructure? This question is crucial as cities begin to give more space to cycling. In this… Continue Reading
So What Is Going On With the Supreme Court in 2024?
Slate [read 5 articles free before paywalled] – “If you’re interested in understanding more about what the high court is, how it functions, and why it seems to have recently lurched to the right, start here…The 5 Circuit Court of Appeals covers Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Trump appointed six judges to this bench, some of… Continue Reading
There’s a Trump Presidential Library at the National Archives and It’s Hiring
No words for this via Washingtonian – “Now here’s a fun job listing: This position is part of the National Archives and Records Administration. Incumbent serves as the Deputy Director of the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library within the National Archives and Records Administration. Serves as a principal advisor to the Library Director. At the… Continue Reading
Platform Response to Disinformation during the EU Election 2024
Fundacion Maladista.es: Analysis of the responses of very large online platforms to debunked disinformation during the EU Election 2024. 1. Executive summary – The goal of this report is to evaluate how five very large online platforms (VLOPs: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X and YouTube) have responded to debunked electoral disinformation about the European Parliamentary elections… Continue Reading
Book bans in political context: Evidence from US schools
Book bans in political context: Evidence from US schools. PNAS Nexus, Volume 3, Issue 6, June 2024, pgae197, https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae197 “In the 2021–2022 school year, more books were banned in US school districts than in any previous year. Book banning and other forms of information censorship have serious implications for democratic processes, and censorship has become… Continue Reading
