Internet

Restricting Speech to Protect It

Attitudes to cyber harassment have changed. Lawmakers, law enforcement officers, and the public recognize that online stalking, threats, and “revenge porn” interferes with victim’s ability to speak and engage online.

More Than Money: Correlation Among Worker Demographics, Motivations, and Participation in Online Labor Market

Demographic factors such as age, gender, education and income sources explain participation in online labor markets such as Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. Men and women feel equal pressure to earn money, but schedule work differently.

Facebook Was Letting Down Users Years Before Cambridge Analytica

In 2011, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found that Facebook had deceived users about how much data it shared with third-party apps, and how that data was used. Facebook was required to ensure that outsiders did not obtain such data, but failed to do so.

Running Out of Time: The Impact and Value of Flexibility in On-Demand Crowdwork

Workers in on-demand digital labor markets often have little control over their schedules. Giving workers more control yields more work product without loss of quality. Workers value control of their pace of work.

Law, Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) will be widely used for social and commercial purposes. AR and VR will sometimes be used to harm others, testing the limits of criminal, civil, and constitutional law.

Fixing Social Media's Grand Bargain

Social media firms like Facebook offer services for free in exchange for data from end users, using the data to sell advertising. This bargain encourages social media firms and advertisers to manipulate users.

Free Speech is a Triangle

Increasingly, nation-states censor speakers by co-opting the expertise of internet-based businesses like Google. Defending free speech means resisting this type of censorship, and protecting users from manipulative uses of data.

AT&T Shellacs the Government in Time Warner Merger Case

In June of 2018, United States District Court Judge Richard Leon ruled that government failed to provide enough evidence to enjoin the merger of AT&T with Time Warner.

Rendering Sensible Salient 

Technological changes threaten democracy, producing polarization and fragmentation. Deliberative conventions of ordinary citizens could help restore a common understanding of issues.

Auctions versus Posted Prices in Online Markets

When eBay first became popular, most sellers listed goods for sale in an auction format. Over time, posted prices began to predominate. Sellers were influenced by two factors, growing competition between sellers, and buyers’ preference for the convenience of posted prices.