Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery Since 2002

Monthly Archives: January 2021

Cable-bill transparency laws haven’t killed sneaky fees

Tech Hive: “Back in 2019, a notoriously gridlocked Congress managed to agree on at least one thing: Hidden cable TV fees had gotten out of control. They passed a law, called the Television Viewer Protection Act, that requires pay TV services to disclose all of their extra fees before you finish signing up. The law… Continue Reading

Do your neighbors want to get vaccinated?

MIT Technology Review: “As the coronavirus vaccines have rolled out across the US, the process has been confusing and disastrous. States, left by the federal government to fend for themselves, have struggled to get a handle on the logistics of distribution. Many, including Georgia, Virginia, and California, have fallen woefully behind schedule. But even if… Continue Reading

This is how America gets its vaccines

MIT Technology Review: The Biden administration has inherited a web of tech systems and policies that it must navigate to meet its goal of administering 100 million doses in the first 100 days. After just a week in office, the Biden administration is already under immense public pressure to fix America’s mangled vaccine rollout. Operation… Continue Reading

COVID-19 and Publishing

Copyright Clearance Center – “A year ago, the COVID-19 pandemic was an “known unknown”—a potentially life-changing event we knew could happen someday but didn’t foresee on the near horizon. As we discussed the pandemic, we became increasingly curious to learn whether our anecdotal observations were backed up by facts. We started researching. The pandemic is… Continue Reading

Lawmakers are scrambling to figure out how to rein in social media platforms

Fast Company – “In the days after the insurrection at the Capitol building, security was tighter than usual. On the phone with Senator Mark Warner, I could hear his driver trying to explain to a guard that he had the senator with him. Yeah, tell him he’s good, the guard told the driver as he… Continue Reading

American Masters Digital Archive

“Welcome to the PBS American Masters Digital Archive. Explore unreleased interviews filmed for past American Masters documentaries: 1000+ records and counting from more than 40 episodes in the series’ history. Browse now for rare interviews with musicians, filmmakers, artists, historians, writers, comedians, journalists and more. Some figures in the collection include David Bowie, Patti Smith,… Continue Reading

Young people’s mental and emotional health – Trajectories and drivers in childhood and adolescence

Research from the Education Policy Institute and The Prince’s Trust, January 2021: “This report investigates how mental and emotional health (MEH) changes as children move into and through adolescence, as well as the individual-, family-, school-and area-level factors that drive positive and poor MEH. To supplement the quantitative analysis, virtual focus groups were conducted with… Continue Reading

Can academics and journalists collaborate on big data projects?

Journalisr’s Resources – The SilverLining Project wants to find out: “The internet was made for transactions. Whether it’s photos of grandkids or a pallet of toilet paper, the internet connects people who have something with people who want it. That includes illegal goods and services. In hidden corners of the internet called the dark web,… Continue Reading

Democracy cannot be defended by force; it is enforced through accountability

The Center for Systemic Peace: “The USA has dropped below the “democracy threshold” (+6) on the POLITY scale in 2020 and and is now considered an anocracy (+5). It has also lost its designation as the world’s oldest, continuous democracy; that designation now belongs to Switzerland (171 years), followed by New Zealand (142) and the… Continue Reading

DHS bulletin – heightened threat environment across the US

National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin – January 27, 2021 – “The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security has issued a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Bulletin due to a heightened threat environment across the United States, which DHS believes will persist in the weeks following the successful Presidential Inauguration. Information suggests that some ideologically-motivated violent extremists… Continue Reading