Issues

Mark Zuckerberg Just Made the Case for Breaking Up Facebook

“Networked technology is often more prone to concentrate power than it is to diffuse it.”
 — Frank Pasquale, Professor of Law, University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law
Frank Pasquale
Source: Los Angeles Times
June 5, 2020

Trump vs Social Media

“it’s strange that people like Mark (Zuckerberg, chief executive of Facebook) and Jack (Dorsey, chief executive of Twitter) have as much power as they do—whether to promote or squelch speech across billions of posts and users per day, including the power to do nothing.”
 — Jonathan Zittrain, Professor of Law, Harvard University
Jonathan Zittrain
Source: Columbia Journalism Review’s: The Media Today
June 4, 2020

Trump vs Social Media

“Trump’s executive order is a multi-faceted attempt to get around the fact that he can’t actually force anyone to do any of the things he describes in the order.”
 — Eric Goldman, Professor of Law, Santa Clara University
Michael B. Abramowicz
Source: Columbia Journalism Review’s: The Media Today
June 4, 2020

Trump's Antifa Obsession Is an Unconstitutional Distraction

“It’s a crime to burn down a police station, but it cannot be a crime to be opposed to authoritarianism or associate with people who do.”
 — Neil Richards, Professor of Law, Washington University in St. Louis
Neil Richards
Source: Wired
June 2, 2020

Phishing Is Surging. Here's How To Spot Online Scams

“Scammers are acting under the guise of the government, hoping unsuspecting people will give out their bank account information.”
— Lorrie Cranor, Professor of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University
Lorrie Faith Cranor
Source: NPR’s Here and Now
May 22, 2020

Coronavirus Tracing Apps Are Coming. Here’s How They Could Reshape Surveillance as We Know It

“We are repeatedly told that contact tracing apps and COVID-19-related surveillance are temporary measures for use until the pandemic passes. That’s likely to be a fantasy.”
— Woodrow Hartzog, Professor of Law and Computer Science at Northeastern University
Woodrow Hartzog
Source: Los Angeles Times
May 12, 2020

How Will COVID-19 Change the World by 2025? How Remote Learning Changes Education

"To close the digital divide, the federal government needs to view broadband like the US Postal Service when it was first developed, concentrating on connecting all citizens rather than just communities where the service makes economic sense." — Randal Picker, Professor of Law, University of Chicago

Randal Picker
Source: Futurity
May 6, 2020

Be Very Wary of Trump’s Health Surveillance Plans

"This is not the time for technology optimism or pessimism. It’s the time for technology realism, with the full understanding that technology’s promise is as only good as those who control it — and that once the pendulum moves in one direction during a crisis, it is difficult to swing it back." — Danielle Citron, Privacy Law Professor, Boston University

Danielle Citron
Source: The Washington Post
April 16, 2020

Confronting Viral Disinformation

“My worry is that those very important public health officials who have our attention—and should have our attention—will be beset by cyber mobs trying to chase them offline, to discredit them and to silence them.” — Danielle Citron, Privacy Law Professor, Boston University

Danielle Citron
Source: Slate
March 27, 2020

Activate This ‘Bracelet of Silence,’ and Alexa Can’t Eavesdrop

"It creates an arms race, and consumers will lose in that race,” he said. “Any of these things is a half-measure or a stopgap. There will always be a way around it." — Woodrow Hartzog, Professor of Law and Computer Science, Northeastern University

Woodrow Hartzog
Source: The New York Times
February 14, 2020