- Don Lemon and Press Freedom
- Trump’s Own Tiktok
- Caution vs Candor
- AI Disinfo vs Democracy
- DHS, ICE, CBP Expanding Surveillance
- Spotify Unfair to Musicians
- Tech Workers Stand Against ICE
- Digital Traps When Filming ICE
- Data Centers are Good for You
- CPB CEO Signs Off
Don Lemon and Press Freedom
By David S. Bralow, The Intercept
Looking at video of the protest, it’s clear that these journalists weren’t interfering, obstructing, or intimidating in ways that would violate the FACE Act. Covering a protest — even one inside a church — isn’t a crime. And asking questions — including difficult ones — isn’t a violation of religious freedom. These are things all journalists do, which is precisely what makes this prosecution so chilling.
Trump’s Own Tiktok
By Derek Seidman, Truthout
After years of bipartisan attacks on TikTok and its parent company ByteDance, which for a time included an effort to potentially ban the social media app in the U.S., a new U.S. TikTok spinoff has been announced. The deal puts Trump-aligned tech barons — Oracle’s Larry Ellison, X’s Elon Musk, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg — in firm control of virtually all major U.S. social media platforms.
Caution vs Candor
• Thumb Sucking in the Press Room By Margaret Sullivan, American Crisis
• Indie Media Cuts Through By Janine Jackson, FAIR
AI Disinfo vs Democracy
By David Gilbert, Wired
Advances in artificial intelligence are creating a perfect storm for those seeking to spread disinformation at unprecedented speed and scale. And it’s virtually impossible to detect.
DHS, ICE, CBP Expanding Surveillance
By Jenna Ruddock, Free Press
Videos community observers have captured in Minnesota show agents invoking the fatal ICE shooting of Renee Good in early January as a threat — and photographing ICE observers’ license plates to add to a “nice little database” of “domestic terrorist[s].” At the same time, DHS is busy expanding its own sprawling, invasive web of surveillance.
Spotify Unfair to Musicians
The Tech Buzz
Over 12,500 artists generated $100K+ in royalties from Spotify in 2025, up from 10,000 in 2024, but artists with fewer than 1,000 streams still get nothing. Spotify promises new AI verification tools to combat streaming fraud and 'ghost artists' draining the royalty pool from legitimate creators.
Tech Workers Stand Against ICE
• Speaking Out By Shakeel Hashim, Transformer
• Pressure on CEOs By Stephen Council, SFGATE
Digital Traps When Filming ICE
By Nicole M. Bennett, The Conversation
What’s changed since Minneapolis became a global reference point for bystander video in 2020 in the wake of George Floyd’s murder is how thoroughly camera systems, especially smartphones, are now entangled with the wider surveillance ecosystem. The same technologies that can hold the state accountable can also make ordinary people more visible to the state.
Data Centers are Good for You
By Julia Shapero and Rachel Frazin, The Hill
Rising electricity costs linked to AI infrastructure faces growing local opposition and increasingly become a political liability. Both the White House and tech industry appear keen to limit the fallout from data centers, with initiatives to bring down electricity prices and recast the sprawling facilities as community players willing to pay their fair share.
CPB CEO Signs Off
By Nick Langan, Radio World
Corporation for Public Broadcasting President and CEO Patricia Harrison delivered her final remarks during the organization’s last board meeting. Harrison said that following Congress’ rescission of federal funding for public media, CPB realized it could no longer operate in the manner the American public has come to expect.
