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These days, politics and technology are inseparable. The political narratives that affect our daily lives are broadcast online and are shaped, in part, through online discussions (for better or worse). The global economy is reliant on digitized transactions. And a new era of surveillance and spying is being ushered in with the rise of new artificial intelligence tools.
Admittedly, the intersection of politics and tech is a personal obsession of mine. So I’m going to start dropping a weekly rundown of major stories I’m following that relate to the two.
Down the line, I’ll probably think of some punny name. But for now, let’s just stick with something alliterative and to the point.
Here’s your Tuesday Tech Drop!
Chief justice’s crystal ball
In his year-end report, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote about the increased use of artificial intelligence in the legal field, noting its limitations. “I predict that human judges will be around for a while,” he wrote. “But with equal confidence I predict that judicial work — particularly at the trial level — will be significantly affected by AI.” (You can read the report here.)
Cohen’s mea culpa
Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen said in a court filing that he had mistaken Google Bard, a generative AI chatbot similar to ChatGPT, for a “super-charged search engine” — an admission that came after the bot spat out fake legal cases that were submitted to court in Cohen’s bid to end his supervised release early.
Mickey reimagined
The original Mickey Mouse character is now in the public domain, after its copyright protection expired. This has already led to some interesting — and rather horrifying — new takes.
Mo Meta Mo Problems?
The Meta Quest 2 is dropping in price. How fun! And a little frightening? To learn why, read this previous post of mine that noted how a low price point for these virtual reality headsets factors into Mark Zuckerberg’s plans for world domination.
NYT files suit
The New York Times is suing Microsoft, a major investor in OpenAI’s ChatGPT tool, as well as OpenAI itself for alleged copyright infringement, marking a major step in creators’ ongoing fight over intellectual property in the world of rapidly developing AI tools.
Disinformation nation
Kate Starbird, a disinformation expert who has been targeted by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio and other conservatives, spoke to The Guardian about the ways that the GOP has fueled conspiracy theories about anti-disinformation efforts.
Whistleblower opens up
Twitter whistleblower Anika Collier Navaroli, who testified before Congress about internal deliberations at Twitter and the platform’s role in fueling the Jan. 6 attack, wrote a HuffPost op-ed about the right-wing attacks she has faced over her testimony.
Social media divide
The Republican governor of Utah and the Democratic governor of Colorado took part in a “Meet the Press” interview that highlighted the differing views of those who want government-imposed restrictions on children’s social media use and those who don’t.
Elon takes an L
A federal judge batted down X owner Elon Musk’s request for a preliminary injunction halting California’s new law that requires social media companies to reveal content moderation procedures.