Press Freedom Watch

Poynter – An ongoing catalog of federal government actions affecting journalists. “A free press is the bedrock of American democracy, vital enough to be enshrined in the Bill of Rights. It informs citizens, holds leaders accountable and preserves democratic principles. After decades of relative freedom, the press now faces a precarious future. Since January, President …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

What if the Big Law Firms Hadn’t Caved to Trump?

But law firms are in a special position. They don’t just use the legal system; they play a critical role in creating and upholding it. Even more than other private actors, such as universities and media companies, law firms and lawyers have an established duty to uphold the integrity of the system they work in, …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Financial System, Government Documents, Legal Research

Why every website you used to love is getting worse

Vox: “TikTok and airlines have something in common with your search engine, your grocery app, and (increasingly) your car: They start out great, lock you in, and then quietly get worse while you keep using them. That very familiar decline now has a catchy name: “enshittification.” Cory Doctorow has been writing about this for decades …

Subjects: AI, E-Commerce, Internet, Knowledge Management, Privacy, Recommended Books, Search Engines, Social Media

Photo of JPMorgan’s new NYC headquarters mocked for quadruple-monitor setup

Daily Dot: “A lot of fuss has been made in the business world recently about the new $3 billion global headquarters the financial institution built in New York City. The 60-story skyscraper will be the new workplace for 10,000 employees. Publications fawning over it largely stress that it was designed with an eye to sustainability …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Knowledge Management

Case Closed: Why Every Lawyer Needs to Be Listening to Podcasts

Via LLRX – Case Closed: Why Every Lawyer Needs to Be Listening to Podcasts – Jerry Lawson explains why podcasts belong in every lawyer’s toolkit. Lawson states that podcasts have not only helped him professionally but also added some joy to his life. They offer a rare opportunity for busy lawyers the chance to learn and grow …

Subjects: Education, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Marketing

Keeping up with 2025 executive orders and related litigation

Keeping up with 2025 executive orders and related litigation – Michelle M. LaLonde, Michigan Bar Journal, October 2025. “One of the most memorable photographs from the 2025 presidential inauguration showed President Trump at the Resolute Desk with a large pile of binders as he signed new executive orders (EOs) targeting his highest-priority campaign issues. Since then, …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Education, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 25, 2025

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, October 25, 2025 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the increasingly complex and …

Subjects: AI, Copyright, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, E-Government, E-Mail, E-Records, Internet, Privacy

ICE is building a social media panopticon

The Verge – no paywall – “The agency’s latest surveillance contract is an ’assault’ on democracy and free speech. As Immigration and Customs Enforcement carries out raids across the country, the agency is working rapidly to expand an online surveillance system that could potentially track millions of users on the web. Federal records The “real-time …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, E-Records, Free Speech, Government Documents, Internet, Legal Research, Privacy, Social Media

US Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters

Climate Central maintains this comprehensive database tracking U.S. weather and climate disasters since 1980 where overall damages/costs reached or exceeded $1 billion (including Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustment to 2025). As of June 2025, the U.S. has sustained 417 such events, with a total cost exceeding $3.1 trillion.

Subjects: Climate Change, Environmental Law, Internet, Knowledge Management, Search Engines

ICE Buys Powerful AI Software for Social Media Surveillance Scanning 8 Billion Posts Daily

DefectTechTimes – “The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has quietly signed a new $5.7 million deal to use advanced artificial intelligence (AI) software for social media surveillance. Federal records show that ICE will now have access to a system called Zignal Labs, a platform that can analyze more than 8 billion online posts every …

Subjects: AI, Censorship, Civil Liberties, E-Records, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Internet, Legal Research, Privacy, Social Media

Clickbait Gives AI Models ‘Brain Rot,’ Researchers Find

Gizmodo: Clickbait Gives AI Models ‘Brain Rot,’ Researchers Find – “If you think scrolling the internet all day is making you dumber, just imagine what it’s doing to large language models that consume a near-endless stream of absolute trash crawled from the web in the name of “training.” A research team recently proposed and tested a …

Subjects: AI, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Search Engines