https://www.techdirt.com/

ID scansione:: a70a1e73-515c-4216-9b5d-f3fc14cba0f7Fatto
URL inviato:: https://techdirt.com/Reindirizzato
Report terminato:: 30 nov 2024, 01:01:51
Link · 77 trovati

I link in uscita identificati dalla pagina
Link	Testo
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mmasnick/one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game?ref=9y44dv	One Billion Users, the social media card game »
https://deals.techdirt.com/	Deals
https://jobs.techdirt.com/	Jobs
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mmasnick/one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game?ref=dvjhok	running a Kickstarter to fund the release ofOne Billion Users
https://automaton-media.com/en/news/nintendo-patent-lawsuit-could-be-tipped-in-palworlds-favor-by-a-gta5-mod-from-8-years-ago-japanese-attorney-suggests/	another potential example of prior art
https://siarasia.jp/	Patent Attorney Corporation Siarasia
https://business.nikkei.com/atcl/seminar/19/00030/111400614/?n_cid=nbponb_twbn	Nikkei Business Online Edition
https://www.gta5-mods.com/scripts/pokemon-go-gta-edition	elaborate mod inspired by Niantic’s Pokémon GO
https://automaton-media.com/en/news/whats-the-killer-patent-nintendo-is-suing-palworld-for-japanese-patent-attorney-offers-in-depth-analysis/	was registered in December 2021
https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/4/24287708/nbc-snl-kamala-harris-equal-time-rule-fcc-brendan-carr-speech-police	weaponize the FCC to assault the press
Variabili JavaScript · 27 trovate

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onscrollend	object
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plausible	function
SCWidget	object
containerId	string
buzzsproutPlayerContainer	object
Messaggi di log della console · 3 trovati

Messaggi registrati nella console Web
Tipo	Categoria	Log
error	network	URL https://techdirt.com/ Testo Failed to load resource: the server responded with a status of 403 ()
log	other	URL https://c0.wp.com/c/6.7.1/wp-includes/js/jquery/jquery-migrate.min.js Testo JQMIGRATE: Migrate is installed, version 3.4.1
log	other	URL https://www.techdirt.com/wp-content/themes/techdirt/assets/js/insider-discord.js?ver=1637002307 Testo connected to server with socket id: 2nyIcVlHnmMOet-OApPZ
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/28/meet-the-influencers-in-one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game/">
	
			Meet The Influencers In One Billion Users, The Social Media Card Game
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				<h3>from the <i>back-us-on-kickstarter</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Thu, Nov 28th 2024 09:00am - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/leigh/" title="Posts by Leigh Beadon" class="author url fn" rel="author">Leigh Beadon</a>
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				<p>As you likely know by now, we are <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mmasnick/one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game?ref=dvjhok">running a Kickstarter to fund the release of <em>One Billion Users</em></a>, our new card game about building the biggest and best social media network. Earlier this week, Mike wrote about <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/if-you-like-mille-bornes-youll-love-one-billion-users/">the game’s roots in <em>Touring </em>and <em>Mille Bornes</em></a> and explained some of the new mechanics we’ve added, including the concept of Influencers who move around between the competing social networks and bring their audiences with them. Today, I want to introduce you to just a few of them.</p>
<hr style="clear:both;">
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright size-full"><img data-recalc-dims="1" fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" width="280" height="392" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card.png?resize=280%2C392&amp;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-455336" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card.png?w=280&amp;ssl=1 280w, https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card.png?resize=214%2C300&amp;ssl=1 214w" sizes="(max-width: 280px) 100vw, 280px"></figure>
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<p><strong>The Investor</strong></p>
<p>Some Influencers just want to chase the biggest possible audience, and The Investor is one of them. You know the type: brimming with advice on how to get rich, and often a lot of other opinions too, which attracts followers who aren’t the <em>most</em> toxic in the world of social media, but hardly the least toxic either.</p>
<hr style="clear:both;">
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<figure class="alignright size-full"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" width="280" height="392" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card2.png?resize=280%2C392&amp;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-455343" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card2.png?w=280&amp;ssl=1 280w, https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card2.png?resize=214%2C300&amp;ssl=1 214w" sizes="(max-width: 280px) 100vw, 280px"></figure>
</div>
<p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>The Trendsetter</strong></p>
<p>Other Influencers go in the opposite direction, like The Trendsetter, who likes to stay fresh by joining the platform that has the <em>fewest</em> users — with a large and unproblematic following in tow. In the game, this card can serve as a catch-up mechanic when a player is falling behind, but is also a prime target for a well-timed Push card (which allows a player to steal an Influencer).</p>
<hr style="clear:both;">
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<figure class="alignright size-full"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" width="280" height="392" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card3.png?resize=280%2C392&amp;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-455345" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card3.png?w=280&amp;ssl=1 280w, https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card3.png?resize=214%2C300&amp;ssl=1 214w" sizes="(max-width: 280px) 100vw, 280px"></figure>
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<p><strong>The Contrarian</strong></p>
<p>Not all Influencers make their decision based on audience size. Some are interested in other things, like The Contrarian, who loves to debate (productively or… otherwise) and thus prefers the network with the most toxic, combative environment. Since The Contrarian’s loyal fanbase is itself pretty toxic, this card threatens to make things worse for players who let their platform’s toxicity get out of hand.</p>
<hr style="clear:both;">
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright size-full"><img data-recalc-dims="1" loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="280" height="392" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card4.png?resize=280%2C392&amp;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-455346" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card4.png?w=280&amp;ssl=1 280w, https://i0.wp.com/www.techdirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2029/12/Card4.png?resize=214%2C300&amp;ssl=1 214w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 280px) 100vw, 280px"></figure>
</div>
<p><strong>The Troll</strong></p>
<p>And then there’s The Troll, who is a different kind of “influencer”. Rather than bringing a following, The Troll operates alone, counting as only one user (which can do nothing more than break certain rare ties) and yet massively increasing the toxicity of a platform. And since they like to cause as much trouble as possible, they always target the biggest network. A player who is ahead in the race for Users, but struggling to keep Toxicity under control, might find themselves constantly trying to swat away The Troll.</p>
<hr style="clear:both;">
<p>These are only half of the Influencers — in the game you’ll also find <strong>The Explainer, The Star, The Foodie</strong> and <strong>The Comedian</strong>. If you want to meet them all, be sure to <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mmasnick/one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game?ref=dvjhok">back our campaign on Kickstarter and secure your copy of <em>One Billion Users</em></a>.</p>

				
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/27/nintendo-palworld-a-gta-5-mod-and-an-injunction-for-the-japanese-market/">
	
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				<h3>from the <i>uh-oh</i> dept</h3>
				
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		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 07:39pm - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/ronalddumsfeld/" title="Posts by Timothy Geigner" class="author url fn" rel="author">Timothy Geigner</a>
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				<p>We’re waiting for the lawsuit in Japan between Nintendo, The Pokémon Co., and Pocketpair, the developers of the hit game <em>Palworld</em> to really get going. In the meantime, the public commentary is filling the information void, including commentary from IP experts. The suit revolves around a series of patents the plaintiffs hold that cover a variety of gameplay elements. I very much question whether those gameplay elements should ever have been patentable to begin with, with the <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/08/patents-nintendo-suing-palworld-over-confirmed-but-damn-this-suit-is-weird/">two main elements</a> being the process for throwing a virtual object at a creature to capture it and the “invention” of riding a creature in an open world and the transition between riding them and not riding them. The patents covering these mechanics mostly come from several divisional patents and their parent patent, which was registered in late 2021.</p>
<p>For all of this, the plaintiffs are seeking $66,000 (yes, that’s the correct number), while also seeking an injunction prohibiting the sale of <em>Palworld</em> in Japan. That latter request, missed by me in my last post on this subject, is by far the more important aspect of the lawsuit. The monetary request is a rounding error for such a successful game, but shutting down sales in even just this one country would be far more devastating.</p>
<p>Again, should any of these patents have been granted to begin with? I certainly don’t think so. And for a variety of reasons. I very much question whether any of these gameplay mechanics are novel enough to warrant a patent to start with. Transitioning between riding creatures and not in an open world game? That’s been going on for a long, long time. Hell, I was doing something like this in 1997 when I was hopping on and off chocobos in <em>Final Fantasy 7</em>. </p>
<p>Which brings us to the subject of prior art. The other game mechanic in question here, throwing an object to capture a creature, has arguably been done prior to this 2021 parent patent’s registration as well. I mentioned in a previous post that the <em>Ghostbusters</em> game that came out in 2009 did this essentially the same way, swapping in capture devices and ghosts for pokeballs and pokemon.</p>
<p>But one IP expert in Japan is highlighting <a href="https://automaton-media.com/en/news/nintendo-patent-lawsuit-could-be-tipped-in-palworlds-favor-by-a-gta5-mod-from-8-years-ago-japanese-attorney-suggests/">another potential example of prior art</a> from a very ironic and unlikely source: a <em>GTA V</em> modder.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Ryo Arashida, representative patent attorney from the Japan-based&nbsp;<a href="https://siarasia.jp/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Patent Attorney Corporation Siarasia</a>&nbsp;is quoted by the&nbsp;<a href="https://business.nikkei.com/atcl/seminar/19/00030/111400614/?n_cid=nbponb_twbn" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nikkei Business Online Edition</a>&nbsp;as saying that while the outcome of the lawsuit is unclear, there’s a certain game mod out there that could work in Palworld’s favor.&nbsp;&nbsp;</em></p>
<p><em>The mod in question is a fan-made one, designed to be a crossover between Pokémon and Rockstar Games’s Grand Theft Auto V (GTA5). Arashida does not specify the exact mod, but mentions that it was released publicly around 2016 and includes the mechanic of throwing Poke Ball-like objects at characters on the game field to capture them. Given the description, it is likely that he is referring to this&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gta5-mods.com/scripts/pokemon-go-gta-edition" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">elaborate mod inspired by Niantic’s Pokémon GO</a>&nbsp;from August 2016.&nbsp;</em></p>
<p><em>According to Arashida, the Pokémon capturing sequence used in this mod is similar to the one described in one of the divisional patents (Patent No. 7545191) Nintendo is suing Palworld over. Moreover, the parent patent that this divisional patent belongs to&nbsp;<a href="https://automaton-media.com/en/news/whats-the-killer-patent-nintendo-is-suing-palworld-for-japanese-patent-attorney-offers-in-depth-analysis/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">was registered in December 2021</a>, meaning the GTA5 mod came out several years earlier. Arashida believes that “there is a possibility that the GTA5 Pokémon mod will be recognized as a precedent by the court.” If this were to happen, one of the patents Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are using in litigation against Pocketpair would be deemed invalid.&nbsp;</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Now, I won’t claim to be an expert in Japanese patent law, but Arashida <em>does</em> make that claim. It would be quite interesting if a mod for a third-party game, which itself was built on the IP of a plaintiff, could also be used to both defend another third-party from a patent infringement claim <em>and</em> invalidate that patent entirely. The irony there would be sweet enough to warrant a trip to the dentist, methinks.</p>
<p>But all of that intersecting may not really matter when it comes to the validity of a patent. Either Nintendo and The Pokémon Co. actually invented the mechanics in their patents… or they didn’t. In the United States, at least, the use of an invention can serve as prior art for the purposes of patent law.</p>
<p>Whether the same is true in Japan will be seen as this trial progresses.</p>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/gta-v/" rel="tag">gta v</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/japan/" rel="tag">japan</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/palworld/" rel="tag">palworld</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/patents/" rel="tag">patents</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/prior-art/" rel="tag">prior art</a>
	<br>

	Companies: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/nintendo/" rel="category tag">nintendo</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/pocketpair/" rel="category tag">pocketpair</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/pokemon-company/" rel="category tag">pokemon company</a>
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/27/biden-fcc-boss-rosenworcel-to-step-down-cant-be-bothered-to-express-alarm-at-what-comes-next/">
	
			Biden FCC Boss Rosenworcel To Step Down, Can’t Be Bothered To Express Alarm At What Comes Next
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				<h3>from the <i>nothing-to-see-here</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 03:42pm - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/kbode/" title="Posts by Karl Bode" class="author url fn" rel="author">Karl Bode</a>
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				<p>We’ve noted how Trump’s win means that Brendan Carr (R, AT&amp;T) will <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/18/trump-tags-brendan-carr-to-dismantle-whats-left-of-broadband-consumer-protection-at-fcc/">now be in charge of the nation’s top telecom and media regulator</a>. We’ve also <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/18/trump-tags-brendan-carr-to-dismantle-whats-left-of-broadband-consumer-protection-at-fcc/">made it very clear</a> his tenure will involve dismantling whatever’s left of FCC broadband consumer protection, killing remaining media consolidation limits, and threatening to <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/4/24287708/nbc-snl-kamala-harris-equal-time-rule-fcc-brendan-carr-speech-police">pull the broadcast licenses of any media companies</a> critical of King Trump. </p>
<p>If you hate free speech, enjoy <a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/11/cable-companies-and-trumps-fcc-chair-agree-data-caps-are-good-for-you/">being ripped off by Comcast</a>, love feckless consolidated corporate media that <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2018/05/31/fcc-claims-perfectly-timed-regulatory-handout-to-sinclair-is-just-quirky-happenstance/">kisses authoritarian ass</a>, and enjoy <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/06/14/big-telecom-still-pushing-hard-for-broadband-tax-on-big-tech/">weird new taxes on your Netflix bill</a> going right into AT&amp;T’s pocket, the next four years at the FCC should be your cup of tea.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, Carr’s FCC appointment means that the existing boss, Jessica Rosenworcel, will be stepping down in January. In <a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-407643A1.pdf">a statement on her departure</a>, Rosenworcel praises her fellow staffers and the work they did getting a COVID-era broadband discount for poor people off the ground:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>“I am proud to have served at the FCC alongside some of the hardest working and dedicated public servants I have ever known. Together, we accomplished seemingly impossible feats like setting up the largest broadband affordability program in history—which led to us connecting more than 23 million households to high-speed internet, connecting more than 17 million students caught in the homework gap to hotspots and other devices as learning moved online.”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>In a <a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-407496A1.pdf">separate statement</a> she Congratulates Carr on his appointment:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>“I want to congratulate Commissioner Carr on the announcement by the President-elect that he will serve as the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. This agency has responsibility for communications technology that is vital for everything in modern civic and commercial life. It is also fortunate to have extraordinary expertise thanks to the hardworking public servants who labor faithfully to implement the law and help build a digital future that works for everyone”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>How nice.</p>
<p>Lacking from either statement is <strong>absolutely any acknowledgement whatsoever</strong> that the entirety of her work at the agency is about to be dismantled by a collection of authoritarians that have publicly announced their intent to destroy consumer protection, dismantle the entirety of corporate oversight and the public safety net, and <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/4/24287708/nbc-snl-kamala-harris-equal-time-rule-fcc-brendan-carr-speech-police">weaponize the FCC to assault the press</a>. </p>
<p>Now, I’m not saying that Rosenworcel should have told the Trump administration to go fuck itself on her way out the door using large fonts and animated gifs. Nor do I think it was necessary for her to even be particularly hostile (especially given the personal safety dangers female public officials face in the fashy broligarch era). Nor was it even probably necessary to mention Trump by name. </p>
<p>But I <strong>do</strong> think it might be nice if Democratic officials signaled the <em>slightest fleeting acknowledgement in public facing statements</em> that the incoming administration intends to do very obvious harm to vulnerable communities, corporate accountability, journalistic freedom, the entirety of consumer protection, and the rule of law. </p>
<p>Everything Rosenworcel has worked on is poised to be destroyed. That popular Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) Rosenworcel mentions in her statement, which provided a $30 discount off the broadband bills of poor people? Trump <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/03/06/republicans-kill-popular-fcc-program-that-made-broadband-affordable-for-the-poor/">Republicans have already killed it</a>, resulting in 23 million struggling Americans suddenly forced to pay higher prices than ever for broadband. </p>
<p>Rosenworcel’s efforts to restore net neutrality? <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/net-neutrality-is-dead-as-a-doornail-under-trump-2-0/">Dead</a>. Her planned inquiry into the nature of anticompetitive broadband caps? <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/10/21/trump-fcc-pick-thinks-broadband-caps-are-great-likens-them-to-coffee-refills/">Dead</a>. Her agency’s attempt to acknowledge racism in broadband deployment for the first time in history? <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/11/17/the-fcc-is-trying-to-stop-discrimination-in-broadband-deployment-telecoms-and-republicans-are-big-mad-about-it/">Dead</a>. Efforts to hold wireless companies accountable for spying on their users location data? <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/14/trump-supreme-court-helps-att-verizon-avoid-accountability-for-spying-on-your-every-movement/">Dead</a>. Efforts to combat <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/03/22/fcc-outlaws-sleazy-and-misleading-cable-tv-fees/">sleazy cable TV fees</a>? Dead as a doornail. </p>
<p>All of these efforts are poised to be either dismantled by a corrupt court or <strong>at best</strong> never see enforcement by corrupt Trump officials. The entirety of your public-facing legacy as a public servant is about to be dismantled by a rotating array of some of the biggest authoritarian sycophants to ever hold public office and <strong>that’s not mentioned at all</strong>? Not even a vague and clever nod in the direction of alarm?</p>
<p>Now again, I appreciate that Rosenworcel wants to maintain civility as she eyes post-FCC political or professional opportunities. But the complete and total lack of any ideological alarm whatsoever in her exit statements (pretty common among Democrats at the moment) sends a very clear message to the public and press <em>that this is all business as usual and there’s nothing to see here</em>. </p>
<p>I saw the same thing <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/20/press-glosses-over-fact-trumps-fcc-pick-will-decimate-consumer-protection-media-consolidation-limits/">by several prominent broadband and media experts</a> when they gave quotes to the New York Times, CNN, and the Washington Post on Carr’s appointment. Lots of talk about what a “nice and qualified guy” Brendan Carr is, but very little alarm about his looming plans to take a hatchet to decades of broadband end media reform and journalistic freedom. </p>
<p>The second Trump term is guaranteed to set new high water marks for corruption, the assault on federal consumer protection, the erosion of media consolidation limits, and the use of government power to stifle journalism, education, female reproductive rights, civil rights, and anything else this collection of bobbleheaded authoritarian shitgibbons view as a threat to unlimited wealth and power. </p>
<p>The <strong>very least</strong> Democratic officials can do is <em>simply acknowledge</em> the extensive harms barreling down on the nation’s most vulnerable. But even that seems to consistently be a bridge too far. This era’s going to be uniquely ugly, requiring a new breed of leadership, journalism, and activism that isn’t afraid to, at the very, very least, acknowledge objective reality.</p>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/brendan-carr/" rel="tag">brendan carr</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/broadband/" rel="tag">broadband</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/consumer-protection/" rel="tag">consumer protection</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/fcc/" rel="tag">fcc</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/jessica-rosenworcel/" rel="tag">jessica rosenworcel</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/media-consolidation/" rel="tag">media consolidation</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/telecom/" rel="tag">telecom</a>
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/27/brendan-carr-makes-it-clear-that-hes-eager-to-be-americas-top-censor/">
	
			Brendan Carr Makes It Clear That He’s Eager To Be America’s Top Censor
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				<h3>from the <i>not-how-any-of-this-works</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 01:09pm - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/mmasnick/" title="Posts by Mike Masnick" class="author url fn" rel="author">Mike Masnick</a>
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				<p>When Donald Trump <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/18/trump-tags-brendan-carr-to-dismantle-whats-left-of-broadband-consumer-protection-at-fcc/">announced</a> that he was appointing current FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr to be the next chair of the FCC, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/10/18/trumps-likely-fcc-boss-brendan-carr-tries-to-undermine-popular-infrastructure-bill-broadband-improvements/">it was no surprise</a>. Nor was it a surprise that Trump tried to play up that Carr was a “warrior for free speech.”</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Commissioner Carr is a warrior for Free Speech, and has fought against the regulatory Lawfare that has stifled Americans’ Freedoms, and held back our Economy.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, this is all projection, as with so much in the upcoming Trump administration. In reality, Brendan Carr may be the biggest threat to free speech in our government in a long while. And he’s not being shy about it.</p>
<p>Carr is abusing the power of his position to pressure companies to censor speech he disagrees with, all while cloaking it in the language of “free speech.” As an FCC commissioner, he has significant regulatory authority over broadcasters, and he’s wielding that power to push his preferred political agenda. He has no real authority over internet companies, but he’s pretending he does. He’s threatening broadcasters and social media companies alike, telling them there will be consequences if they don’t toe his line.</p>
<p>In this post, we’ll expose the details of Carr’s censorial agenda and the deceptive tactics he’s using to achieve it. Carr may claim to be a “free speech warrior,” but his actions show him to be the exact opposite. He is, as the Verge’s Nilay Patel <a href="https://www.status.news/p/nilay-patel-donald-trump-big-tech-interview">aptly put it</a>, “the most direct and sustained threat to the First Amendment and the freedom of the press any of us will ever experience.”</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Threats to pull licenses and the “equal time rule”</h2>
<p>First, we’ll detail an “easy” example around broadcast licenses, before getting into the much more thorny areas around content moderation and fact-checking. Carr has repeatedly claimed that <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/4/24287708/nbc-snl-kamala-harris-equal-time-rule-fcc-brendan-carr-speech-police">he supports investigating and potentially pulling NBC’s “license”</a> for having Kamala Harris show up on Saturday Night Live the weekend before the election. He claims that this violates the FCC’s “<a href="https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/political_programming_fact_sheet.pdf">equal time rule</a>.”</p>
<p><strong>What he’s really doing:</strong> Telling broadcast channels not to platform candidates he doesn’t like or they will face expensive “investigations” and threats.</p>
<p><strong>What things are factually wrong:</strong> NBC has no broadcast license to pull. Broadcast licenses are held by local affiliates who contract with NBC. NBC does own twelve affiliates, but the vast majority of NBC affiliates (223 of them) are not owned by NBC. Carr knows this. But he’s seen Donald Trump argue that NBC, CBS, and ABC should all have their (non-existent) licenses pulled at various times, and so he’s claiming the same thing.</p>
<p>Also, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/04/election-snl-nbc-harris-trump">NBC did not violate the equal time rule</a>, because it gave Donald Trump an equivalent amount of free time on its affiliates following a NASCAR race the next day. It also <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/nov/4/hung-cao-strikes-deal-nbc-air-political-ads-key-ti/">gave free time</a> to Virginia Senate candidate Hung Cao, because his opponent Tim Kaine also appeared on SNL that night (though only to mock how forgettable Tim Kaine is).</p>
<p>Notably, in both cases, Trump and Cao got to deliver their own words in the form of ads to audiences. In contrast, both Harris and Kaine delivered lines scripted for them by SNL’s writers to be a part of a joke. So even if you want to be specific, it sounds like the GOP candidates got a much better deal.</p>
<p><strong>Why this is all nonsense:</strong> First off, Republicans like Carr historically have <em>loathed</em> the equal time rule. It’s an offshoot of the Fairness Doctrine, a problematic concept that Republicans have long complained was unconstitutional, and which they supported killing when President Reagan effectively did so.</p>
<p>The equal time rule was created to ensure fair treatment of political candidates, not as a tool for government officials to bully the media. Carr is twisting a narrow regulation far beyond its intended purpose.</p>
<p>There is a strong belief, most strongly pushed in the GOP circles Carr inhabits, that the equal time rule would be found unconstitutional should it be challenged again and reach the Supreme Court. Under the decision in <a href="https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/usrep/usrep395/usrep395367/usrep395367.pdf#page=22">the Red Lion case</a>, the Supreme Court blessed such restrictions only on broadcast spectrum, solely because of its scarcity.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Where there are substantially more individuals who want to broadcast than there are frequencies to allocate, it is idle to posit an unabridgeable First Amendment right to broadcast comparable to the right of every individual to speak, write, or publish. If 100 persons want broad cast licenses but there are only 10 frequencies to allocate, all of them may have the same “right” to a license; but if there is to be any effective communication by radio, only a few can be licensed and the rest must be barred from the airwaves. It would be strange if the First Amendment, aimed at protecting and furthering communications, prevented the Government from making radio communication possible by requiring licenses to broadcast and by limiting the number of licenses so as not to overcrowd the spectrum</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>But in a world where everyone can reach anyone via the internet, this argument is likely to hold a lot less weight.</p>
<p>Also, historically, candidates have appeared on SNL and elsewhere without a peep. In 2008, <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/john-mccain-appears-saturday-night-50897/?ueid=3a56470da26246252c5ef88fab728330&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Buffering%20-%20November%207%2C%202024%20-%20TEST&amp;utm_term=Buffering%20Test%20List">John McCain appeared on SNL twice</a> and the only comment from the Obama side was to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-mccain-was-funny-on-snl/?ueid=3a56470da26246252c5ef88fab728330&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Buffering%20-%20November%207%2C%202024%20-%20TEST&amp;utm_term=Buffering%20Test%20List">praise McCain’s comedic skills</a>.</p>
<p>Threatening to revoke broadcast licenses over unfavorable coverage is a blatant First Amendment violation. The government cannot use its licensing power to control or punish the speech of private actors. Carr surely knows this but doesn’t seem to care.</p>
<p>His threats are likely to have a chilling effect, with broadcasters self-censoring to avoid his ire. This is textbook government overreach and abuse of power to restrict free speech.</p>
<p><strong>The bottom line:</strong> The clear message from Carr here is that if any TV station platforms speech he disagrees with, he will abuse his power as FCC chair to demand costly concessions from them in order to help those he supports. What this will likely mean in reality is self-censorship by broadcasters, avoiding platforming anyone Carr deems to be a problem to avoid having to deal with threats.</p>
<p>So, without doing anything directly (and he has little real power here at all), Carr gets to use a rule at the FCC which he knows is likely unconstitutional to get broadcast TV networks to choose to avoid platforming Democrats.</p>
<p>It’s pure censorship.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Threats to social media companies for fact-checking and attacks on Section 230</h2>
<p>This one is even more complicated, but also even more dangerous. Right around the time when Trump announced Carr, Carr was crowing about <a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-407732A1.pdf">a letter he had sent to Meta, Google, Apple, and Microsoft</a> accusing them of “censorship” for partnering with NewsGuard, a company that gives its opinion about the trustworthiness of various news organizations.</p>
<p>In the letter, he argues that any content moderation is a form of “censorship” that violates the First Amendment rights of Americans. He claims that partnering with NewsGuard is evidence of such censorship, that Section 230 requires moderation be “in good faith” and that using NewsGuard somehow removes that good faith requirement.</p>
<p>Recently, he resummarized these points (in an even more misleading fashion) in a reply tweet to RFK Jr’s former running mate, Nicole Shanahan.</p>
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<figure class="aligncenter"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/lex-img-p.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/img/6cc32ecc-ebfa-46f5-ac47-112717df330d-RackMultipart20241127-193-usmhrk.png?ssl=1" alt=""></figure>
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<p><strong>What he’s really doing:</strong> Telling internet companies that if they moderate things in a way he doesn’t like, he will use the power of the state to punish them. This includes <em>fact-checking</em> things in a way he dislikes, or calling out problematic sources in a way he dislikes.</p>
<p><strong>What things are factually wrong:</strong> Oh so much. First off, the FCC has no authority over Section 230. He is pretending it does because one of his staffers during the last Trump administration conspired with some other Section 230 haters to get the admin to “ask” the FCC to see if it could <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/07/28/ntia-follows-trumps-unconstitutional-order-to-request-fcc-review-section-230/">do a rulemaking on 230</a>.</p>
<p>Congress was pretty clear when it passed Section 230 that its direct intent was that the FCC not have authority over internet companies. Indeed, when Rep. Chris Cox introduced what became Section 230, <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/104th-congress/house-bill/1978">it explicitly called out</a> that the FCC shall not be authorized to regulate internet content services:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize Federal Communications Commission regulation of the content of such services.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Cox made this <a href="https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-141/issue-129/house-section/article/H8460-1">even clearer</a> during the floor debate on the bill, saying:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>It will establish as the policy of the United States that we do not wish to have content regulation by the Federal Government of what is on the Internet, that we do not wish to have a Federal Computer Commission with an army of bureaucrats regulating the Internet because frankly the Internet has grown up to be what it is without that kind of help from the Government</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>The legislative history makes Congress’ intent crystal clear — they did not want the government regulating online speech. Yet that’s exactly what Carr is trying to do, in direct contradiction of the law.</p>
<p>Second, Section 230 does not require “good faith,” as Carr claims. The important parts of Section 230 are sections (c)(1) establishing that no internet service or user of a service can be held liable as the publisher and (c)(2) which talks about no liability for good faith moderation on content that the sites (not the government) find “otherwise objectionable.”</p>
<p>Courts have long established that (c)(1), which has no “good faith” claim, is actually the operative clause for protecting moderation decisions. Carr’s misleading quoting of (c)(2) ignores that (c)(1) already protects most moderation and does not require “good faith.”</p>
<p>And, even if “good faith” did somehow apply to moderation efforts, the only cases where that’s actually become an issue were in rare cases like the <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2019/09/13/ninth-circuit-reverses-course-while-quoting-own-precedent-saying-otherwise-says-section-230-doesnt-cover-anti-competitive/">Malwarebytes case</a>, where a court said that if moderation was done <em>for anti-competitive purposes</em>, it might not be in “good faith.”</p>
<p>Also, the idea that relying on NewsGuard “puts your 230 protections in jeopardy” is nonsense. Again, even ignoring everything above, there is no transitive property here where even if you could argue (and you really can’t) that NewsGuard’s opinions are “in bad faith” that this then transitions to social media moderation, and then on top of that “removes” 230. That’s literally not how any of this works.</p>
<p>Finally, and perhaps most importantly, private companies making editorial decisions about what content they allow on their own private property is not (and cannot be!) taking away First Amendment rights. The First Amendment restricts the government, not private property owners from making their own editorial decisions.</p>
<p><strong>Why this is all nonsense:</strong> Earlier this year, we discussed the <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/07/03/gop-really-committed-to-the-bit-that-speech-they-dont-like-is-censorship/">GOP’s weird infatuation with NewsGuard</a>. Remember, NewsGuard was started by former Wall Street Journal publisher L. Gordon Crovitz, who is a well-known <em>conservative</em> voice. I repeat: he was the WSJ’s publisher for many years and wrote column after column in support of standard GOP talking points.</p>
<p>But, more importantly, all that NewsGuard does is <em>give its opinion</em>. It is <strong>literally using its free speech rights</strong> to express an opinion on the quality and trustworthiness of various news organizations. What the GOP is mad about is that <em>sometimes</em> (though not always!) it has rated some of the GOP’s preferred news sources as untrustworthy.</p>
<p>And apparently that kind of speech must be punished.</p>
<p>But anyone is free to agree or disagree with NewsGuard’s ranking system (I did so quite a lot in my last post on them, and some people at NewsGuard got upset with me about it, but that’s just everyone expressing their opinions).</p>
<p>You know? The marketplace of ideas.</p>
<p>What Carr is arguing here is (1) that NewsGuard’s opinions are somehow illegal, (2) that relying on them violates the free speech of Americans and (3) that companies that do so could then lose their Section 230 protections.</p>
<p>All of that is bullshit. NewsGuard’s opinions are opinions. They are speech. Whether or not social media companies (or anyone else) rely on them is also their free speech. I think Carr’s opinions are utter nonsense, and I can back that up with an explanation of why. And that’s all free speech.</p>
<p>But Carr is the one arguing that NewsGuard’s speech is somehow illegal because it sometimes calls out news orgs he likes as being full of shit. He’s literally trying to either destroy NewsGuard for expressing an opinion (which raises First Amendment questions on its own) or pressuring big tech companies to stop using NewsGuard as part of their processes for determining how trustworthy certain news is.</p>
<p>But, again, companies get to use their own First Amendment rights of association to determine if they wish to use NewsGuard as part of their editorial discretion or not.</p>
<p>Threatening to <em>punish</em> tech companies by somehow removing their Section 230 protections for using NewsGuard is an attempt to step in and remove their rights to punish them for expressing their own editorial discretion.</p>
<p>Indeed, in the Murthy v. Missouri case (where Carr was very much on the side of Missouri), the states directly claimed that President Biden threatening to remove Section 230 protections was evidence of government coercion which violated the First Amendment. Yet, here, Carr sees no problem doing the exact same thing.</p>
<p>And that’s not even getting into how little authority the FCC actually has here. I pointed out above that with the history of 230, it was clear that it was intended to make sure the FCC had no authority over the internet (which is also supported by the Supreme Court’s Red Lion ruling regarding scarcity and abundance). But <strong>also</strong> just this year, the Supreme Court’s decision in Loper Bright made it even more abundantly clear that the FCC has no authority to issue rulemakings on things not explicitly given to them by Congress.</p>
<p>Last week, even the folks at the Federalist Society <a href="https://fedsoc.org/commentary/fedsoc-blog/sauce-for-the-goose-the-fcc-lacks-authority-to-interpret-section-230-post-loper-bright">called out Carr’s nonsense</a> on this point. In a piece by Lawrence Spiwak, he explains that after the Loper Bright ruling (that took away Chevron Deference) the FCC clearly has no authority at all to rule on Section 230.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Perhaps the biggest impediment to any effort to have the FCC write definitive rules about the meaning of Section 230 is the Supreme Court’s rejection of Chevron last term in</em> <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/22-451_7m58.pdf"><em>Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo</em></a><em>. There, the Court made it crystal clear that it is the exclusive role of the courts—and not the administrative state—to interpret statutes. As the Court observed, “even when an ambiguity happens to implicate a technical matter, it does not follow that Congress has taken the power to authoritatively interpret the statute from the courts and given it to [an administrative] agency. Congress expects courts to handle technical statutory questions . . . .” The Court’s rationale was straightforward:</em></p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Courts interpret statutes, no matter the context, based on the traditional tools of statutory construction, not individual policy preferences. Indeed, the Framers crafted the Constitution to ensure that federal judges could exercise judgment free from the influence of the political branches. They were to construe the law with “[c]lear heads . . . and honest hearts,” not with an eye to policy preferences that had not made it into the statute.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p><em>Thus, the message of Loper Bright to the FCC is clear: regardless of your political desires, interpreting Section 230 is not your job. Loper Bright, in plain terms, put the kibosh on Johnson’s argument that it is the FCC’s job “to determine whether courts have appropriately interpreted its proper scope.”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>There’s even more here, but this piece is getting long enough.</p>
<p><strong>The bottom line:</strong> Again, Carr is misleading people with layer upon layer of nonsense. But all he’s really doing is threatening to use the power of the government to punish companies for First Amendment-protected expression he dislikes.</p>
<p>The goal, again, is to get these companies to censor in advance. It’s to get them to agree not to moderate or even fact-check content he supports, taking away the free speech rights of those who would do so.</p>
<p>Carr is smart and he knows exactly what he’s doing here. He is couching his extreme censorial desires in the language of free speech, knowing that most people won’t know enough or understand the details and nuances to recognize what he’s doing.</p>
<p>But he is rushing in to be America’s top censor, and he’s the biggest threat to the First Amendment we’ve seen in quite a long time.</p>

				
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				<h3>from the <i>new-breed-of-surveillance-statists</i> dept</h3>
				
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		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 11:16am - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/capitalisliontamer/" title="Posts by Tim Cushing" class="author url fn" rel="author">Tim Cushing</a>
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				<p><a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/09/25/ice-is-hauling-more-data-than-ever-palantir-is-helping-it-turn-data-into-detainments/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/09/25/ice-is-hauling-more-data-than-ever-palantir-is-helping-it-turn-data-into-detainments/">ICE</a> has never been opposed <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2022/05/20/report-shows-ices-massive-surveillance-apparatus-is-all-up-in-americans-everything/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2022/05/20/report-shows-ices-massive-surveillance-apparatus-is-all-up-in-americans-everything/">to mass surveillance</a>. It has <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2019/02/14/ice-set-up-fake-college-to-bust-immigrants-trying-to-legally-stay-country-while-they-earned-degrees/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2019/02/14/ice-set-up-fake-college-to-bust-immigrants-trying-to-legally-stay-country-while-they-earned-degrees/">used everything</a> it possibly can <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/09/25/ice-is-hauling-more-data-than-ever-palantir-is-helping-it-turn-data-into-detainments/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/09/25/ice-is-hauling-more-data-than-ever-palantir-is-helping-it-turn-data-into-detainments/">to locate</a> Trump’s so-called “bad hombres” and subject them to family separation and a detainment infrastructure incapable of handling the former president’s (and now President-elect) <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2017/01/30/our-humanity/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2017/01/30/our-humanity/">masturbatorial fantasies</a> about “border invasions.” </p>
<p>ICE buys location info <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/12/dhs-releases-previously-withheld-report-detailing-agencies-abuse-of-location-data-purchased-from-data-brokers/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/10/12/dhs-releases-previously-withheld-report-detailing-agencies-abuse-of-location-data-purchased-from-data-brokers/">from data brokers</a> to evade warrant requirements. It slurps data from <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2021/03/02/ice-is-also-using-utility-databases-run-private-companies-to-hunt-down-undocumented-immigrants/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2021/03/02/ice-is-also-using-utility-databases-run-private-companies-to-hunt-down-undocumented-immigrants/">utility companies</a> to locate immigrants who need electricity, heat, and internet connections but would rather not be hassled for trying to exist and earn a living by providing this same information directly to the US government. </p>
<p>The operative theory appears to be that immigrants here illegally <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/04/06/database-shows-ice-is-bypassing-courts-and-sending-subpoenas-to-schools-charitable-organizations-and-abortion-clinics/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/04/06/database-shows-ice-is-bypassing-courts-and-sending-subpoenas-to-schools-charitable-organizations-and-abortion-clinics/">aren’t protected by the US Constitution</a>. But that’s simply not true. Rights are extended to people living in our borders, whether or not they’re US citizens. However, none of that is going to matter if Trump succeeds in deploying his mass deportation plans — ones that are long on rhetoric and short on actual planning at the moment.</p>
<p>Rest assured, the round-ups will outpace the planning following Trump’s re-ascension. ICE tends to be very proactive when it feels the person in the Oval Office has its back. “Going forward” means “starting now,” as <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-technology-the-trump-administration-could-use-to-hack-your-phone" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-technology-the-trump-administration-could-use-to-hack-your-phone">this New Yorker article written by Ronan Farrow points out</a>. Be sure you don’t overlook what’s being said in the last sentence of the article’s opening paragraph. </p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>In September, the Department of Homeland Security (D.H.S.) signed a two-million-dollar contract with Paragon, an Israeli firm whose spyware product Graphite focusses on breaching encrypted-messaging applications such as Telegram and Signal.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/ice-paragon-solutions-contract/">Wired</a>&nbsp;first reported that the technology was acquired by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—an agency within D.H.S. that will soon be involved in executing the Trump Administration’s promises of mass deportations and crackdowns on border crossings. A source at Paragon told me that the deal followed a vetting process, during which the company was able to demonstrate that it had robust tools to prevent other countries that purchase its spyware from hacking Americans—but that wouldn’t limit the U.S. government’s ability to target its own citizens.&nbsp;</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Nice. So, we’re doing business with a company that will only allow the US government to target US citizens. While it’s great that it’s preventing outside countries from doing this (which is a claim I’m not inclined to believe), it’s definitely shitty that it’s offering a bespoke version to the DHS and ICE for the express purpose of plug-and-play domestic surveillance.</p>
<p>Then there’s the first sentence of the paragraph, which indicates this was in motion two months ahead of the election, which suggests two equally disturbing things. Either the outgoing administration was fine with expanded domestic surveillance or DHS felt it should get the ball rolling because the victor of the 2024 election was likely to be supportive of expanded domestic surveillance. Perhaps the purchasing department was just running a Trump re-election parlay. Or maybe the DHS felt pretty confident Kamala Harris wouldn’t object to mass surveillance, even while she argued against mass deportations. Not great!</p>
<p>The DHS may have handled the macro, but ICE jumped on the micro as soon as it became clear who was headed to the Oval Office in January.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Within hours of Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/dispatches/2024-trump-beats-harris-writers-reflect">election to a second term</a>,&nbsp;ICE—which is still under the authority of President Biden, but which has often seemed sympathetic to Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric—put out a new call for private companies to submit plans for augmenting the agency’s surveillance infrastructure, including ankle monitors, and software and hardware used for tracking targets’ biometrics.&nbsp;</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>More surveillance and a shit-ton of more money for the private companies handling federal prisoners and federal detainees, some of which have already expressed their pleasure over this year’s presidential election during earnings calls. </p>
<p>As Farrow’s article points out, the federal government has “struggled” both in terms of oversight and accountability when it comes to expanded surveillance powers and surveillance tech rollouts. One could credibly argue you can’t call a terminal lack of interest in oversight and accountability a “struggle.” But no one can argue this turn of events — one that aligns government agencies’ thirst for expanded power with technical advances that make this sort of thing cheaper and easier than it’s ever been — is going to make America great again. It’s just going to make America something it’s really never been: you know, East Germany, the USSR, China, etc. </p>
<p>And we’re all going to pay the price, and not just in terms of the additional taxes that will be needed to gird the infrastructional loins of Trump’s mass deportation plans. If this moves forward, America will be the worst it’s ever been — a nation hollowed out deliberately by bigots who think the nation can only be great if nearly half of its population lives in fear of being forcibly ejected. And while that happens, tech companies that aid and abet this atrocity will make billions off the misery of millions. </p>

				
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	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/4th-amendment/" rel="tag">4th amendment</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/dhs/" rel="tag">dhs</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/donald-trump/" rel="tag">donald trump</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/ice/" rel="tag">ice</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/immigration/" rel="tag">immigration</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/mass-surveillance/" rel="tag">mass surveillance</a>
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	Companies: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/paragon/" rel="category tag">paragon</a>
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			Daily Deal: The 2024 Microsoft Essential Tools Training Bundle
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				<h3>from the <i>good-deals-on-cool-stuff</i> dept</h3>
				
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		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 11:11am - 	</span>

	<a href="https://deals.techdirt.com/" title="Posts by Daily Deal" class="author url fn" rel="author">Daily Deal</a>
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				<p>The <a href="https://deals.techdirt.com/sales/the-2024-microsoft-tools-essentials-bundle?utm_campaign=affiliaterundown">2024 Microsoft Essential Tools Training Bundle</a> will help you become a Microsoft expert in no time. Courses cover Microsoft 365, Excel, Word for beginners, and Word advanced. It’s on sale for $30.</p>
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<p><em>Note: The Techdirt Deals Store is powered and curated by StackCommerce. A portion of all sales from Techdirt Deals helps support Techdirt. The products featured do not reflect endorsements by our editorial team.</em></p>

				
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				<h3>from the <i>not-like-us</i> dept</h3>
				
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		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 09:26am - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/mmasnick/" title="Posts by Mike Masnick" class="author url fn" rel="author">Mike Masnick</a>
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				<p>When your rap track diss battle ends in whiny proto-SLAPP suits, I’m going to suggest you’ve officially lost.</p>
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/lex-img-p.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/img/e17e3a57-511e-4c51-806d-bab4501e4c8d-RackMultipart20241127-209-w9fgnc.png?ssl=1" alt="dril tweet: and another thing: i'm not mad. please don't put in the newspaper that i got mad."></figure>
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<p>If you ever want to see this dril tweet as a legal filing (two actually), I think it’s in Drake’s semi-SLAPPy demands for discovery and depositions from Universal Music, Spotify, and iHeartRadio for having the temerity to… promote a song from Kendrick Lamar that is the culmination of a back and forth diss track battle between the two.</p>
<p>While most news orgs haven’t provided the actual filings, fear not, Techdirt delivers: here is the <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/25418447/drake.pdf">pre-action discovery attempt in New York</a> and <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/25418448/20241126drake-umg2.pdf">the defamation lawsuit in Texas</a>.</p>
<p>Both are incredibly stupid, but we’ll get to that.</p>
<p>If you haven’t been living under a rock for the past year, you may be aware that the Canadian rapper/actor Drake and American rapper Kendrick Lamar <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake%E2%80%93Kendrick_Lamar_feud">have been, well, fighting</a>. While it goes back a while, earlier this year it blew up in a series of back and forth diss tracks, with the general consensus being that Kendrick came out of the battle as the clear winner.</p>
<p>We had mentioned that battle twice. Once, to discuss how both sides actually <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/05/13/drake-kendrick-lamar-feud-spurred-on-as-both-drop-copyright-restrictions-for-reaction-videos/">dropped copyright claims and restrictions</a> to ensure the songs traveled far and wide. And another time, to talk about how existing laws <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/06/05/drake-vs-kendrick-lamar-proves-ai-music-is-regulated/">already regulated</a> some aspects of AI-generated music.</p>
<p>But this week, Drake took things to a whole new level of stupid.</p>
<p>On Monday, he first filed <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/25418447/drake.pdf">a pre-litigation discovery motion</a> in New York accusing Universal Music/Interscope and Spotify of doing the RICO in… um… promoting Kendrick’s song. Almost everything about this is ridiculous. Contrary to what some people have said, this isn’t actually a lawsuit. It’s a weird procedure available in New York that allows you to seek discovery before filing the actual lawsuit. As New York-based lawyer Akiva Cohen <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/akivamcohen.bsky.social/post/3lbsyimlpck2p">noted on Bluesky</a>, this is really only supposed to apply to a situation where you need some amount of discovery to find out who a defendant actually is or something like that.</p>
<p>Drake is essentially arguing that Universal Music Group and Spotify engaged in racketeering by… promoting a song. That’s not how any of this works. Heavily promoting a track that’s performing well is standard practice for labels and streaming platforms, not some nefarious scheme. And Drake hired some big-name, high hourly rate lawyers to basically file legal documents that say “the fact that music companies promoted a killer diss track harmed me and should be considered a conspiracy.”</p>
<p>Really.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>UMG’s schemes to artificially inflate the popularity of “Not Like Us” were motivated, at least in part, by the desire of executives at Interscope to maximize their own profits. UMG executives have an annual incentive program pursuant to which they are rewarded for meeting and surpassing sales and profits projections, among other metrics. The incentives are largely based on the specific UMG division, rather than the performance of UMG more generally. For example, the annual incentive or bonus of Interscope’s CEO, John Janick, is based 90 percent on the financial success of Interscope and only 10 percent on the financial success of UMG generally. Thus, on information and belief, Mr. Janick and other executives at Interscope have been incentivized to maximize the financial success of Interscope through the promotion of “Not Like Us” and its revitalizing impact on the artist’s prior recording catalog, including his first five studio albums, which are owned by Interscope.</em></p>
<p><em>Petitioner has received information that UMG has been taking steps in an apparent effort to conceal its schemes, including, but not limited to, by terminating employees associated with or perceived as having loyalty to Drake. Indeed, UMG has demonstrated that it has no interest in taking responsibility for its misconduct, Over the past several months, Drake has repeatedly sought to engage UMG in discussions to resolve the ongoing harm he has suffered as a result of UMG’s actions. UMG refused to engage in negotiations, and insisted that UMG is not responsible for its own actions. Instead, UMG has pointed the finger at Mr. Duckworth, insisted that Drake should initiate legal action against Mr. Duckworth rather than UMG, and even threatened to bring its own legal claims against Mr. Duckworth if Drake were to pursue claims against UMG.</em></p>
<p><em>Streaming and licensing is a zero-sum game. Every time a song “breaks through,” it means another artist does not. UMG’s choice to saturate the music market with “Not Like Us” comes at the expense of its other artists, like Drake. As Drake is Petitioner’s sole owner, and Petitioner owns the copyright to Drake’ entire catalogue, Petitioner suffered economic harm as a result of UMG’s scheme.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Duckworth, by the way, is Kendrick Lamar’s real last name, in case you’re wondering to whom “Mr. Duckworth” refers to here. But, yeah, this all boils down to: UMG promoted the hell out of Kendrick’s song, and it got a ton of engagement and (oh wow!) that was good for Universal and Spotify’s bottom line.</p>
<p>So fucking what? That’s capitalism and marketing, Drake. That’s how it works.</p>
<p>And that last paragraph is particularly stupid. Does this mean that other artists can sue Drake for the times that UMG (yes, also Drake’s label) promoted his music instead of other artists?</p>
<p>The whole thing is garbage.</p>
<p>There are a few arguments in there about some potentially sketchy behavior on the part of UMG in engaging in some payola, but that’s not something where Drake really has much of a leg to stand on. Payola has been happening in the music industry for decades, and every time some piece of it is outlawed, the big labels figure out crafty ways to sidestep the new laws.</p>
<p>Drake also complains about the point we had <em>praised</em> earlier this year, where the copyright restrictions were lifted by UMG:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>And in a sea-change for UMG’s internal policy, UMG removed the Song’s copyright restrictions on YouTube and Twitch, thereby “whitelisting” the Song (for the first time in UMG history), which further incentivized influencers to spread the Song</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Except that it was reported at the time that the copyright restrictions were <em>also</em> lifted on Drake’s tracks:</p>
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/lex-img-p.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/img/3a3718dc-84b9-4bbf-846c-df85665e3776-RackMultipart20241127-203-920b77.png?ssl=1" alt=""></figure>
</div>
<p>But even dumber than all of that is the claim that UMG and Spotify promoting a popular song is “RICO.” You know the Popehat drill: “<a href="https://archive.is/Nl3WY">It’s not RICO dammit</a>.” It’s not. There are a big list of almost impossible to meet conditions to make it RICO and this ain’t it, chief:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Petitioner has a viable cause of action for civil RICO, with predicate acts of wire fraud, mail fraud, and/or bribery for UMG’s payments to unknown third parties in the form of reduced licensing fees to Spotify.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>It seems most likely that this lawsuit is “client service.” It is making an angry rich client happy by filing <em>something</em> even if that something is likely to get tossed out of court quickly.</p>
<p>Then, on Tuesday, Drake took things up a notch by <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/25418448/20241126drake-umg2.pdf">seeking a similar kind of pre-complaint discovery against iHeartRadio</a> and UMG in Texas state court. This is using the same big shot lawyers (plus some local counsel). Texas has a rule of civil procedure, <a href="https://casetext.com/rule/texas-court-rules/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure/part-ii-rules-of-practice-in-district-and-county-courts/section-9-evidence-and-discovery/discovery/rule-202-depositions-before-suit-or-to-investigate-claims">202</a>, that allows for a deposition prior to filing a lawsuit. It’s effectively the same kind of deal as the pre-litigation discovery in New York: in some cases, it may be necessary to use the power of the courts to seek extra info before filing the actual lawsuit.</p>
<p>While Rule 202 is considered pretty broad, it <a href="https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/texas-rule-202-the-advantages-of-pre-3591627/">does have limits</a> and I have difficulty seeing how this meets any of the criteria to get such depositions. This time around, it’s basically the same issue as the New York pre-litigation effort, but how iHeartRadio was also… um… helping to get Kendrick’s song listened to:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Here, the limited Rule 202 depositions Petitioner proposes are the most efficient method for him to understand the role of iHeartMedia in UMG’s scheme to unlawfully promote “Not Like Us.” Based on the minimal information already available to Petitioner, the testimony sought is necessary for Petitioner to understand and evaluate his potential claims.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Listen to yourself, man. “Unlawfully promote”? Come on. It’s just promotion, dude. This is pathetic.</p>
<p>And just like the NY filing tried to just throw in a “RICO” like it was an exclamation point, in this Texas filing, Drake throws in a similar “maybe it’s defamation and racketeering” argument with nothing to back it up:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Petitioner has amassed sufficient facts to pursue certain tortious claims against UMG, including, but not limited to, a claim for defamation, but currently lacks factual support necessary to determine whether he may bring claims of civil fraud and racketeering against UMG and its many (as of yet) unidentified co-conspirators who violated payola laws and accepted illicit payments, and other things of value, from UMG without disclosure</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>At best, this is fishing, and at worst, it’s just a straight up abuse of the courts to scream about how not mad you are that people feel like Kendrick completely destroyed you.</p>
<p>Imagine being such a sore loser in a rap battle that you have to go to court to demand to find out who promoted the song that destroyed you. Imagine being such a sore loser in a rap battle that you had to go to court <em>twice</em> to claim that the song couldn’t possibly be that popular, and it must be a conspiracy against you.</p>
<p>Get a fucking grip.</p>
<p>Perhaps Drake should consider dropping a duet featuring Barbra Streisand, because the Kendrick master diss track is getting a ton of renewed attention, <a href="https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/kendrick-lamar-not-like-us-number-1-record-rap-songs-chart-1235794635/">even after breaking records</a> earlier this year. This week, Kendrick was already topping the broader music charts after releasing a surprise album, GNX, a few days ago, but the “Not Like Us” diss track has bounced back up the charts as well.</p>
<p>As I type this, it’s #25 on Apple Music (though there were reports it broke into the top 20 earlier), #42 on Spotify, and #18 on YouTube, and for just Tuesday it was the 8th most watched music video:</p>
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/lex-img-p.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/img/64e1ad0e-fa35-4f45-834e-b39e455d467e-RackMultipart20241127-120-cqcps6.png?ssl=1" alt=""></figure>
</div>
<p>Drake’s lawsuits have only served to further humiliate himself. In trying to get revenge on Kendrick through frivolous legal filings, he’s amplified the diss track to a whole new audience, while publicly admitting how much it hurt his feelings. Even worse, you had to legally state, under penalty of perjury, that “Not Like Us” harmed you so much that you could bring two lawsuits about it.</p>
<p>I think that’s one hell of an admission of how much you lost this battle.</p>
<p>Or, as <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/alexjaffe.bsky.social/post/3lbsxvig2622l">Alex Jaffe hilariously called</a> it on Bluesky: “You used to call me on my self-own.”</p>
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/lex-img-p.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/img/ecd3e8ef-602c-4535-b7e5-e7030e0083a5-RackMultipart20241127-209-2e4gl0.png?ssl=1" alt=""></figure>
</div>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/defamation/" rel="tag">defamation</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/depositions/" rel="tag">depositions</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/discovery/" rel="tag">discovery</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/diss-tracks/" rel="tag">diss tracks</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/drake/" rel="tag">drake</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/illegal-promotions/" rel="tag">illegal promotions</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/kendrick-lamar/" rel="tag">kendrick lamar</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/not-like-us/" rel="tag">not like us</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/payola/" rel="tag">payola</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/rico/" rel="tag">rico</a>
	<br>

	Companies: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/frozen-moments/" rel="category tag">frozen moments</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/iheartradio/" rel="category tag">iheartradio</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/spotify/" rel="category tag">spotify</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/umg/" rel="category tag">umg</a>
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/27/dish-directv-merger-dead-before-it-even-has-the-chance-to-disappoint/">
	
			Dish, DirecTV Merger Dead Before It Even Has The Chance To Disappoint
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				<h3>from the <i>too-bad-so-sad</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Wed, Nov 27th 2024 05:27am - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/kbode/" title="Posts by Karl Bode" class="author url fn" rel="author">Karl Bode</a>
</div>

				<p>After literally <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2008/08/06/dish-and-directv-figure-if-xm-and-sirius-can-merge/">decades of rumor and speculation</a>, fading satellite TV companies Dish and DirecTV finally recently announced <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/10/01/directv-dish-strike-pointless-merger-in-last-gasp-effort-to-stay-relevant/">they had proposed a pointless merger</a> in a last gasp for relevance. Once blocked by regulatory worries about competitive impact, executives at both companies had long dreamed of combining the two companies into one, still broadly unremarkable company. </p>
<p>The deal proposed last month involved DirecTV acquiring Dish for&nbsp;<strong>one dollar</strong>, in addition to $9.75 billion in Dish’s debt. The deal was poised to combine Dish’s 8.1 million (and shrinking) subscriber base with DirecTV’s 11 million (and shrinking) subscriber base in the hopes of creating something semi-interesting.</p>
<p>But, alas, it was never meant to be. DirecTV late last week <a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/11/directv-plan-to-buy-dish-for-1-is-off-as-satellite-rivals-remain-separate/">announced it would be terminating the deal</a> after Dish bondholders refused to accept what they insisted was a loss on the value of the debt:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>“Dish bondholders&nbsp;<a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/10/dish-creditors-revolt-over-directv-merger-try-to-block-loss-making-deal/">quickly objected</a>&nbsp;to terms requiring them to take a loss on the value of their debt. DirecTV had said Dish notes would be exchanged with “a reduced principal amount of DirecTV debt which will have terms and collateral that mirror DirecTV’s existing secured debt.” The principal amount would have been reduced by at least $1.568 billion.”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Now both companies can slowly die a natural death as nature intended, never even getting to the most exciting part of pointless U.S. consolidation: the bit where companies lie and promise untold new synergies and job creation before laying off thousands of employees, raising consumer prices to recoup debt, and ultimately fielding an even worse product than either company was capable of individually.</p>
<p>Dish is still hoping to pivot into a streaming video and wireless phone company, but neither effort has proven to be all that fruitful, and bankruptcy <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/06/20/dish-network-and-its-new-5g-network-is-probably-doomed/">remains a very real possibility</a> without a fair amount of luck.  </p>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/broadcast/" rel="tag">broadcast</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/consolidation/" rel="tag">consolidation</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/media/" rel="tag">media</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/mergers/" rel="tag">mergers</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/satellite/" rel="tag">satellite</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/telecom/" rel="tag">telecom</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/tv/" rel="tag">tv</a>
	<br>

	Companies: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/directv/" rel="category tag">directv</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/dish/" rel="category tag">dish</a>
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/katy-perry-wins-trademark-suit-brought-by-katie-perry-in-australia/">
	
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				<h3>from the <i>a-perry-by-any-other-name</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Tue, Nov 26th 2024 07:57pm - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/ronalddumsfeld/" title="Posts by Timothy Geigner" class="author url fn" rel="author">Timothy Geigner</a>
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				<p>It’s been over a year since we last <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2023/06/20/australian-designer-who-sued-katy-perry-feels-personally-attacked-over-appeal-of-trademark-ruling/">talked about</a> the trademark dispute between Katy Perry, the American pop star, and Katie Perry, an Australian woman with a fashion line. To bring you up to speed, and I’ll use first names here to keep the confusion at a minimum, Katy sold merchandise for her 2014 tour in Australia, which led Katie to sue the singer in 2023, nine years later, because Katie had a trademark for the name of her business. There had apparently been some back and forth between both women going as far back as 2009, with Katy offering to share the trademark with Katie so they could coexist, which Katie refused. The court sided with Katie in a rather insane ruling, given the complete lack of any customer confusion demonstrated in the case, and also ruled against Katy’s attempt to cancel Katie’s trademark.</p>
<p>(I’m so, so sorry for all the Katys/Katies, trust me.)</p>
<p>Well, Katy appealed the ruling, which led to a full on meltdown by Katie. She claimed the appeal was a “personal attack” against her. It takes a healthy does of chutzpah to sue someone and claim their appeal of that suit is somehow an attack on the <em>person who initiated the lawsuit to begin with</em>.</p>
<p>And now, a year later, the courts have <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/11/22/katy-perry-trademark-lawsuit-win/76493815007/">sided with Katy Perry over Katie Perry</a>, overturning the trademark infringement judgement and canceled Katie’s trademark registration to boot.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Three judges ruled that a 2023 decision involving alleged trademark infringement that favored Taylor should be overturned. In short,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/07/15/katy-perry-womans-world-video-controversy/74408007007/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Katy Perry</a>&nbsp;(the singer) − born Katheryn Hudson − can use her stage name to sell merchandise in the country, despite the clothing designer’s claim over the trademark. Since&nbsp;<a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2024/09/30/katy-perry-balenciaga-bag-dress-paris-fashion-week/75457528007/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Perry</a>&nbsp;had been using her name as a trademark five years before Taylor began selling clothes, and already had an “international reputation in her name in music and entertainment if not more broadly,” she was entitled to the use of her own name in Australia, the judges ruled.</em></p>
<p><em>The judges canceled Taylor’s trademark registration as well.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>In addition, the court stated that Katie had attempted to associate herself in various ways with Katy, increasing the chances for confusion herself.</p>
<p>And if you were hoping that Katie Perry, who’s real name is actually Katie Taylor, was taking all of this in a more mature fashion than she did the initial appeal of the case, well, sorry to disappoint you, but:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Taylor was disappointed with the decision, telling&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/nov/22/katy-perry-appeal-legal-case-sydney-fashion-label-katie-perry" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Guardian</a>&nbsp;in a statement, “This case proves a trademark isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on.”</em></p>
<p><em>She went on to say: “My fashion label has been a dream of mine since I was 11 years old and now that dream that I have worked so hard for, since 2006, has been taken away.”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Nope, that’s not what happened at all. Trademarks are worth plenty, when you don’t attempt to over-enforce them. They’re especially worth the value of preventing confusion in the public as to the source of affiliation of goods. Confusion that simply did not exist here.</p>
<p>And nobody stole her fashion label. The label can carry on as though nothing happened. It just can’t wield its trademark any longer, given the bad behavior in which Katie partook.</p>
<p>And so the pop singer can sell her stuff under her name down under once more, having successfully Katy-parried Katie Perry’s lawsuit. I’ll show myself out.</p>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/australia/" rel="tag">australia</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/katie-perry/" rel="tag">katie perry</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/katy-perry/" rel="tag">katy perry</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/trademark/" rel="tag">trademark</a>
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			<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/nj-cops-are-suing-to-protect-their-exclusive-right-to-keep-their-data-out-of-data-brokers-databases/">
	
			NJ Cops Are Suing To Protect Their Exclusive Right To Keep Their Data Out Of Data Brokers’ Databases
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				<h3>from the <i>only-cops-get-privacy?</i> dept</h3>
				
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	<span class="pub_date">
		Tue, Nov 26th 2024 03:57pm - 	</span>

	<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/user/capitalisliontamer/" title="Posts by Tim Cushing" class="author url fn" rel="author">Tim Cushing</a>
</div>

				<p>I come here not to bury this Wired article, nor to damn it with faint praise. I come to critique it, while realizing the framing and (especially!) the headline may not be the direct responsibility of its author, Paresh Dave.</p>
<p>Privacy laws <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/02/03/facebook-pays-550-million-settlement-illinois-facial-recognition-lawsuit-which-could-pose-problems-clearview/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2020/02/03/facebook-pays-550-million-settlement-illinois-facial-recognition-lawsuit-which-could-pose-problems-clearview/">are hit and miss</a> in the United States. Mostly miss. There’s not a lot of privacy to be had. But when privacy laws get enacted, they tend to benefit the most powerful people first. Even victims’ rights laws — which are supposed to protect crime victims — are <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2018/10/25/victims-rights-laws-being-abused-to-hide-identities-cops-involved-use-force-incidents/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2018/10/25/victims-rights-laws-being-abused-to-hide-identities-cops-involved-use-force-incidents/">most often abused</a> to keep abusive cops’ names <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2022/06/27/victims-rights-laws-abused-again-to-hide-identities-of-officers-who-killed-someone/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2022/06/27/victims-rights-laws-abused-again-to-hide-identities-of-officers-who-killed-someone/">out of the headlines</a> because they are supposedly the “victims” of crimes committed by the people they’ve brutalized/killed. </p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, “<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2019/12/24/alabama-lawmakers-think-time-is-right-to-make-assaulting-cop-hate-crime/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2019/12/24/alabama-lawmakers-think-time-is-right-to-make-assaulting-cop-hate-crime/">assaulting an officer</a>” is the most used, with “<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2015/02/11/more-power-bad-cops-nypd-head-supports-raising-resisting-arrest-to-felony/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2015/02/11/more-power-bad-cops-nypd-head-supports-raising-resisting-arrest-to-felony/">resisting arrest</a>” following close behind it. As “victims” of these entirely arrest-related crimes, cops have used these laws to make sure the public doesn’t know which officers are engaging in excessive force when effecting arrests.</p>
<p>That leads us to a New Jersey privacy law, one that was enacted after a <em>government</em> employee experienced some of the day-to-day violence we the people are just expected to handle without additional legal protections.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.wired.com/story/daniels-law-new-jersey-online-privacy-matt-adkisson-atlas-lawsuits/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.wired.com/story/daniels-law-new-jersey-online-privacy-matt-adkisson-atlas-lawsuits/">This is from Paresh Dave’s article</a>, which is (unfortunately) sporting this headline:</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>The Future of Online Privacy Hinges on Thousands of New Jersey Cops</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>First of all, fuck all that. This case does not have those sorts of implications. Second, this is all about cops ensuring their protections are better than those given to the people they serve. All of that is spelled out in the first two paragraphs: </p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>In July 2020, a 72-year-old attorney posing as a delivery person rang the doorbell at US district judge Esther Salas’ house in North Brunswick, New Jersey. When the door opened, the attorney fired a gun, wounding the judge’s husband—<a href="https://archive.ph/o/rCXEa/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/esther-salas-son-murder-roy-den-hollander-48-hours/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">and killing</a>&nbsp;her only child, 20-year-old Daniel Mark Anderl.</em></p>
<p><em>The murderer, Salas said, had found her address online and was outraged because she hadn’t handled a case of his client fast enough. In her despair, Salas&nbsp;<a href="https://archive.ph/o/rCXEa/https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&amp;v=sLWJPlAIPvE&amp;feature=emb" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">publicly pleaded</a>, “We can make it hard for those who target us to track us down … We can’t just sit back and wait for another tragedy to strike.”</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>If everyone had been thinking rationally, the response would have been a law that protected <em>every</em> New Jersey citizen from the indiscriminate harvesting, sale, and access of their personal data. But legislation <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/09/20/ex-cop-wields-law-that-only-protects-cops-to-sue-data-broker-for-selling-his-personal-data/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/09/20/ex-cop-wields-law-that-only-protects-cops-to-sue-data-broker-for-selling-his-personal-data/">is rarely rational</a>, and it’s especially <em>irrational</em> when the resulting law is named after the victim. </p>
<p>In New Jersey, it ended with “Daniel’s Law,” which <em>only</em> provides privacy protections for certain <em>public</em> employees.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Today, current and former judges, cops, prosecutors, and others working in criminal justice can have their household’s address and phone numbers withheld from government records in the state. They also can demand that the data be removed from any website, including popular tools for researching people such as Whitepages, Spokeo, Equifax, and RocketReach.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>And that’s how that works. <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/04/03/new-jersey-sued-again-for-giving-cops-access-to-newborn-babies-dna/" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/04/03/new-jersey-sued-again-for-giving-cops-access-to-newborn-babies-dna/">Render unto Caesar</a>… and then shut the fuck up. <em>Some</em> defense attorneys <em>might</em> be covered by this law, but presumably only if they’re court-appointed. As for the rest of New Jersey — residents who might not want anyone to access their data and/or have already been subjected to harassment, stalking, etc. — there’s nothing in it for them.</p>
<p>This case — which the headline (and even some of the body of the article) argues might protect the rest of New Jersey residents — is being spearheaded by a lawyer who actually seems to care a bit about personal privacy. Matt Adkisson runs five law firms and is suing 150 companies for exposing cops’ personal data. Prior to that, he turned down multiple millions during an acquisition offer that would have required him to provide access to share tons of personal data his own company… had apparently already harvested.</p>
<p>Never mind. Maybe there’s no true hero here. It certainly isn’t the cops that are advocating for their own personal interest. And the anecdotal evidence doesn’t quite build the case Adkisson is pushing, much less the over-arching narrative the headline of this article is trying to sell. </p>
<p>Like this part of the article, which shows cops love using the same services that sell access to cops’ info. And the only reason the cops care is because it’s <em>their</em> info being sold.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>Akisson says the most retaliatory response came from LexisNexis, which lets police and businesses search for people’s contact information and life history, typically for investigations and background checks. He alleges that instead of removing Atlas clients’ phone numbers and addresses from view, LexisNexis needlessly froze their entire files in its system, impeding credit checks some were undergoing for loan applications.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Adkisson and his clients apparently have no problem allowing cops to access this trove of data. And then they have the gall to claim it’s “retaliatory” when a company blocks third-party access to data this lawyer and his clients <em>specifically</em> told them to limit access to. Adkisson knows a thing or two about data collection and access. Perhaps he should have warned his cop clients that going off the grid (by enforcing Daniel’s Law) creates this entirely foreseeable consequence.</p>
<p>I mean, I’m not a lawyer or a cop, but realized that instituting a freeze on credit checks following the Equifax breach would result in credit checks failing to go through and any that did would require my direct interaction. Claiming this is “retaliatory” is like claiming civil rights lawsuits are “retaliatory” when cops deliberately violate rights, to use an analogy his clients might understand.</p>
<p>Then there’s this supposedly illustrative anecdote — something that proves nothing else than that GPS/mapping software works the way people expect it to. Well, people <em>other</em> than this attorney and his cop union client.</p>
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p><em>He was reminded of that this past May when he took WIRED in his Jeep to meet with Peter Andreyev, a cop in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, and president of the statewide Policemen’s Benevolent Association. Around dusk that day, Adkisson handed Andreyev a search result for his name on DataTree.com, a website that sells property records. Andreyev slipped on his black-rimmed glasses and brought his linebacker figure toward a conference table to review the page. It took him just two seconds to tense up. “Oh shit,” he said.</em></p>
<p><em>He stared at a street-view image of his home, and a birds-eye shot with his address overlaid. The square footage was in there too, for good measure. His head visibly rattling and legs restless, Andreyev pounded the table. “I—I’m pretty infuriated by this.”</em></p>
<p><em>Like many law enforcement officers, the 51-year-old rarely goes a day without nightmares about some known thug or detractor attacking him and his family. The DataTree printout reinforced for him that it would take just a few clicks for anyone to target him in the vulnerability of his own home. WIRED pulled up Andreyev’s report from DataTree with just a free trial.</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>To be surprised by this is to be surprised that people show up at your house after you drop a pin on Google Maps. To be “infuriated” is to be performative — someone who somehow believes their public residence in a house visible from public roads is somehow the equivalent of Area 51: something that only extremely powerful people should have access to, rather than the pitiful peons the cops the PBA president represents pretend to protect and service. </p>
<p>Now, don’t take this critique as an argument <em>against</em> better protections from data harvesters and data brokers. We should <em>all</em> have access to better privacy protections. But what’s happening here ain’t it. This is just a law protecting the most powerful people in our society: judges, prosecutors, and cops. The law doesn’t care about the rest of us. And neither do the people it protects. Further, I would argue, neither does this attorney. If he truly cared, he’d be trying to expand the law to cover the rest of the state’s residents, rather than just collecting checks helping cops expand their extra rights. </p>
<p>And for damn sure the <em>cops</em> don’t care. The last thing they want is limits on data harvesting because it might make their jobs a little more difficult. Whatever’s happening here will — at best — help only these cops who think an operation satellite map is a privacy violation. As for the rest of us, the government still expects us to be an open book that can be browsed at will by anyone with access, even if they mean us harm.</p>

				
<p class="filed">

	Filed Under: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/1st-amendment/" rel="tag">1st amendment</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/data-brokers/" rel="tag">data brokers</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/extra-rights/" rel="tag">extra rights</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/matt-adkisson/" rel="tag">matt adkisson</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/new-jersey/" rel="tag">new jersey</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/police-union/" rel="tag">police union</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/tag/privacy/" rel="tag">privacy</a>
	<br>

	Companies: <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/atlas-law/" rel="category tag">atlas law</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/equifax/" rel="category tag">equifax</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/lexisnexis/" rel="category tag">lexisnexis</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/rocketreach/" rel="category tag">rocketreach</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/roundrobin/" rel="category tag">roundrobin</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/spokeo/" rel="category tag">spokeo</a>, <a href="https://www.techdirt.com/company/whitepages/" rel="category tag">whitepages</a>
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	<ul id="messages"><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/30/2024, 6:39:54 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">Was this a cached message that was stuck in an old Discord client from 2019 and only sent now?</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/30/2024, 6:51:05 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">I'm not going to accuse Ubisoft of making good decisions</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/30/2024, 11:27:14 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">ATTN: <span class="mention">@timothygeigner</span> : <a href="https://x.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1851747457853440212" target="_blank"> https://x.com/NintendoAmerica/st...<div class="msg-link">https://x.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1851747457853440212</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="10/30/2024, 11:27:40 PM"><span class="msg-text">This is very much worthy of a story!</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/31/2024, 12:07:38 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">Apparently it's a pretty decent app? But yeah not sure why they felt the need to make an entire app for this</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/31/2024, 10:50:59 AM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">Because Nintendo are Draconian Thugs who want control more than anything</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="10/31/2024, 2:47:47 PM"><span class="handle">deadspatula:</span> <span class="msg-text">This isn't one question. Its two - why have a nintendo-only music player, and why have it be its own app.  The first is as Leah puts it.  Control. The second? I suspect a point I like to make applies here.

Nintendo is a toy company and thinks in toys.  Always have.  There is no reason for there to be seperate switch applications for a sega emulator, and a NEs emulator, and an snes emulator, a GBA emulator, an n64 emulator, ect.  But Executives need a new thing to show.  The same virtual console with new features might work for other companies, see both sony &amp; microsoft's subscription catalogs, but nintendo needs a whole thing, not just a plug in on an existing thing.  So each emulator is a new app.  The music player could be an add-on to the existing Nintendo Switch Online app, but the execs need a widget, this years new toy. Its a surprising amount of work to spin up a music player and if its not stand-alone, its not that new toy deliverable.  THis isn't too far seperate from the reason apps have to completely change their look and layout every few years to justify the cost of overhauling backend.

And of course, a generic market concern - the nintendo switch online app probably isn't too popular, so they don't want to tie the music app to something that may have to get re-worked.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 1:30:00 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">Reddit apparently caves to China pressure:</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 1:30:02 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://hrichina.substack.com/p/reddit-bans-forum-for-chinese-dissidents" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://hrichina.substack.com/p/reddit-bans-forum-for-chinese-dissidents</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 3:47:57 PM"><span class="msg-text">Someone threatened the life of an immediate family member of a former US Vice President.  How do I contact the Secret Service?</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 3:47:58 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.bsky.social/post/3l7ueqdrztu2z" target="_blank">[link]<div class="msg-link">https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.bsky.social/post/3l7ueqdrztu2z</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 4:08:36 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">I'm sure the New York Times was very clear in condemning this.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 4:50:07 PM"><span class="msg-text">Open calls for CNN to lose their "license" again.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 6:01:05 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">License to kill?</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 7:54:31 PM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">Do you have a link on that? I'm writing something where that might be useful</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 7:58:33 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">Pick any given reply. Good luck preserving brain cells
<a href="https://x.com/CollinRugg/status/1852365608790249678?t=S126qKZnZUUM3y7un4U7sA&amp;s=19" target="_blank"> https://x.com/CollinRugg/status/...<div class="msg-link">https://x.com/CollinRugg/status/1852365608790249678?t=S126qKZnZUUM3y7un4U7sA&amp;s=19</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 8:26:04 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">I called this in to the FBI.  They took the complaint then hung up real fast.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 8:29:25 PM"><span class="msg-text">Let's see what appeasement gets you:</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/1/2024, 8:29:26 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/11/01/trump-washington-post-fec-complaint-campaign-contributions" target="_blank"> https://www.axios.com/2024/11/01...<div class="msg-link">https://www.axios.com/2024/11/01/trump-washington-post-fec-complaint-campaign-contributions</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 9:58:24 PM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">As Ken White noted on Bluesky, it does not appear that Trump's words about Liz Cheney meet the definition of a true threat</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/1/2024, 10:05:15 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">It absolutely doesn't. Not even close.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/2/2024, 6:38:07 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">well, arguably it's closer than most statements</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/2/2024, 6:38:11 PM"><span class="msg-text">but yeah, not past the threshold.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 2:35:40 AM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text"><a href="https://x.com/BrendanCarrFCC/status/1852887210330341693?t=M8lKMQoLV4d64J5uXq2ojw&amp;s=19" target="_blank"> https://x.com/BrendanCarrFCC/sta...<div class="msg-link">https://x.com/BrendanCarrFCC/status/1852887210330341693?t=M8lKMQoLV4d64J5uXq2ojw&amp;s=19</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/3/2024, 2:35:55 AM"><span class="msg-text">Ell, Oh, and furthermore, Ell</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 2:43:23 AM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">Charge it against the backlog of Apprentice episodes</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 2:44:39 AM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">He is literally in a position to try enforcing this.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/3/2024, 2:44:50 AM"><span class="msg-text">And I encourage him to try</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 2:50:35 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">So the 3G shutdown over here in Australia has been a shitshow: <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-03/brand-new-phones-unable-to-make-calls-3g-shutdown/104541440" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-03/brand-new-phones-unable-to-make-calls-3g-shutdown/104541440</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/3/2024, 2:50:56 AM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://medium.com/@jamesdwho/australias-3g-shutdown-telcos-to-block-working-4g-5g-phones-2bf41e95de8a" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://medium.com/@jamesdwho/australias-3g-shutdown-telcos-to-block-working-4g-5g-phones-2bf41e95de8a</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 4:55:25 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">Soooo, Acerthorn has decided to cite Anderson v Tiktok as precedent that he can hold Rumble liable for defamation over one of his many copyright lawsuits.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 11:38:25 PM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">Link?</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/3/2024, 11:43:03 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text"><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69289358/2/stebbins-v-rumble-inc/" target="_blank">[link]<div class="msg-link">https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69289358/2/stebbins-v-rumble-inc/</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/3/2024, 11:43:31 PM"><span class="msg-text">Funny how he started filing outside ND Cal after the order declaring him a vexatious litigant there.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/4/2024, 12:18:43 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">Brendan Carr is screeching about the idea that Harris appearing on Saturday Night Live somehow violates equal time rules lmao</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/4/2024, 12:19:45 AM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/03/harris-appearance-snl-equal-time-rule" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/03/harris-appearance-snl-equal-time-rule</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/4/2024, 1:29:59 AM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">NBC actually called his bluff and published the invitation the law says they need to.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/4/2024, 3:03:02 PM"><span class="handle">deadspatula:</span> <span class="msg-text">Better, They already gave him free adtime during NASCAR.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/4/2024, 10:50:22 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">I think the only equitable solution to Elon's fraudulent lottery is to make him give everyone who participated $1M.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/6/2024, 8:58:05 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">All I can say about these election results: _Fuck._</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/6/2024, 12:30:55 PM"><span class="handle">tomacamot:</span> <span class="msg-text">Yep</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/6/2024, 7:58:03 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">I am SUPER FOCUSED and MOTIVATED today</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/6/2024, 7:58:27 PM"><span class="msg-text">I just tried to log in, failed to type my username in correctly (which is my last name) and gave up.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/7/2024, 2:43:18 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">The deterioration of Google</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/7/2024, 2:43:18 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://www.baldurbjarnason.com/2024/the-deterioration-of-google/" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://www.baldurbjarnason.com/2024/the-deterioration-of-google/</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/7/2024, 2:44:20 PM"><span class="msg-text">*"The “algorithm” seems to have become a black box even Google engineers can’t figure out."*</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/7/2024, 10:28:20 PM"><span class="msg-text">Trump’s likely FCC chair wrote Project 2025 chapter on how he’d run the agency.
Brendan Carr wants to preserve data caps, punish NBC, and give money to SpaceX.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/7/2024, 10:28:24 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/11/trumps-likely-fcc-chair-wrote-project-2025-chapter-on-how-hed-run-the-agency/" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/11/trumps-likely-fcc-chair-wrote-project-2025-chapter-on-how-hed-run-the-agency/</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/7/2024, 11:36:31 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">So basically, Ajit Pai, but somehow worse.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/8/2024, 12:21:24 AM"><span class="handle">founxer42000:</span> <span class="msg-text">Carr is going to be a terrible chair. He makes Ajit look like a Rhodes Scholar.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/8/2024, 6:57:53 PM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">Pai had some principles. Not necessarily good ones. But he had some. Carr has none.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/8/2024, 7:04:55 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">There'll be a lot of that for a bit I think.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/8/2024, 7:23:31 PM"><span class="msg-text">I'm trying to figure out how to put my brain into airplane mode</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/9/2024, 2:17:03 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">Well, Carr might be hamstrung by the Supreme Court's deletion of Chevron</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/9/2024, 3:41:55 AM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">lol yeah, sure. Consistency.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/9/2024, 3:37:45 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">FBI says hackers are sending fraudulent police data requests to tech giants to steal people’s private information</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/9/2024, 3:37:52 PM"><span class="msg-text"><a href="https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/08/fbi-says-hackers-are-sending-fraudulent-police-data-requests-to-tech-giants-to-steal-peoples-private-information/" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/08/fbi-says-hackers-are-sending-fraudulent-police-data-requests-to-tech-giants-to-steal-peoples-private-information/</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/11/2024, 4:24:53 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text"><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/jaz.bsky.social/post/3lamm7liwrc2w" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://bsky.app/profile/jaz.bsky.social/post/3lamm7liwrc2w</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/11/2024, 4:25:35 AM"><span class="msg-text">Looks like Bluesky's growing by about 100k users per day more sustainably rather than just spiking every so often</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/11/2024, 5:50:01 AM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">can't wait to hear how no one uses the site from trump/musk fans again as we continue to grow</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/11/2024, 7:01:44 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">As if Twitter didn't get as large as it did gradually</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/12/2024, 5:47:55 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text"><a href="https://www.404media.co/fyi-a-warrant-isnt-needed-secret-service-says-you-agreed-to-be-tracked-with-location-data/" target="_blank">[article]<div class="msg-link">https://www.404media.co/fyi-a-warrant-isnt-needed-secret-service-says-you-agreed-to-be-tracked-with-location-data/</div></a></span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/14/2024, 3:28:19 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">The Onion has purchased Infowars.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/14/2024, 3:29:11 PM"><span class="msg-text">At last, something in this god forsaken timeline has proven that good things can still happen</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/14/2024, 7:31:44 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">Steamboat Willie’s ©️ expiring?</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/17/2024, 6:29:36 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">As expected, Alex Jones is contesting the sale and somehow Elon's lawyers are getting involved</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/17/2024, 6:55:59 AM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">Yeah. There's a lot more to it. It seems Elon's lawyers are simply contesting the idea that his twitter infowars handle is property that can be sold</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/17/2024, 6:56:22 AM"><span class="msg-text">There's good reason to believe the sale will still go through (though possibly not with the twitter handle)</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/17/2024, 7:21:56 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">So I found this video: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrkAORPiaEA" target="_blank">[video]<div class="msg-link">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrkAORPiaEA</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/17/2024, 7:22:28 AM"><span class="msg-text">It's basically how Youtube's ContentID system is _woefully_ ill-suited to tackle the potential epidemic of AI music</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/17/2024, 7:23:04 AM"><span class="msg-text">And how people can put AI-made music on ContentID with literally zero consequences</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/18/2024, 9:23:08 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">Re: Infowars/Onion, if Person A buys Company X, then as the "successor and assign" doesn't Person A get access to all of Company X's official accounts with their vendors?  And by Person A, I actually mean Musk, and by Company X, I mean Twitter.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/19/2024, 12:06:11 AM"><span class="handle">Mike Masnick:</span> <span class="msg-text">The argument is that account names are actually controlled by Twitter, and they get to decide who gets them (see: Musk taking the accounts of @x and @america when he wanted to use them for himself)</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/19/2024, 12:08:45 AM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">Isn't this already addressed by being able to just change the handle? Like how POTUS just becomes POTUS45 or whatever after term?</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/19/2024, 1:19:52 AM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">If that's the case why does he even need to intervene?  He can do what he wants with the account any time.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/19/2024, 8:25:38 PM"><span class="handle">mildconcern:</span> <span class="msg-text">because it's Infowars and he's self appointed as a fighter in the culture wars</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/20/2024, 7:22:43 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">It seems Denuvo is trying to go on a PR spree because they're losing customers due to bad reputation (like, even EA are dropping them with Dragon Age Veilguard)</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/20/2024, 4:27:50 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">I confused “Denuvo” with “Lenovo” but a few more rational seconds in my brain set me straight.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/21/2024, 5:26:03 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">I would love it if for now the world started saying LLM instead of AI.  We could start today right here.  When you say LLM its limitations are much more recognizable to the average person.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/21/2024, 5:30:25 PM"><span class="msg-text">Also, I believe that the way to fight LLMs in the public sphere is to do what Newt Gingritch did to Democrats in 1995, associate all manner of negative images with it.  For example, it is entirely appropriate to say that a program that outputs bullshit is unsanitary.  It is filth.  I don't like to wallow in filth and that's why I eschew LLMs and decrement the reputation of those who try to foist it on me.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/21/2024, 5:30:51 PM"><span class="msg-text">Conversely, this is probably why you see sparkles wherever LLM options crop up in your phone or desktop or Google search results.  The purveyors are trying to associate it with cleanliness when it is anything but.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/21/2024, 5:33:25 PM"><span class="msg-text">Here are some other words to associate with LLMs:  unhygienic, stinky, rotten, spoiled, unhealthy, corrupt, tainted, defiled, foul, putrid, putrescent, fetid, unclean.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/21/2024, 5:33:59 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">Newt Gingrich *is* a program that outputs bullshit while being very unsanitary.</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/21/2024, 5:34:22 PM"><span class="msg-text">And he ended up being depressingly successful.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/21/2024, 9:12:46 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">He also resigned in disgrace</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/22/2024, 4:58:42 PM"><span class="handle">tomacamot:</span> <span class="msg-text">I call them chatbots. It seems to get the point across.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/23/2024, 9:42:42 AM"><span class="handle">candescence:</span> <span class="msg-text">So it looks like "conservatives" are trying to follow the "woke" crowd over to Bluesky, start shit, immediately get banned/blocked and then complain about it</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/23/2024, 9:53:37 AM"><span class="msg-text">Proving once again that social media without their punching bags is unbearable to them but they can't stand dealing with social media that's actually moderated properly</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/25/2024, 10:04:50 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">Is this going to be a TechDirt story? <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/phillewis.bsky.social/post/3lbsis43sls2x" target="_blank"> https://bsky.app/profile/phillew...<div class="msg-link">https://bsky.app/profile/phillewis.bsky.social/post/3lbsis43sls2x</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/25/2024, 10:06:04 PM"><span class="msg-text">I mean, it's a ridiculous lawsuit and Spotify is a company on the internet, and this is not just Man Bites Dog, but Man eats dog for dinner</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/25/2024, 10:20:17 PM"><span class="msg-text">Okay, Drake is claiming RICO</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/25/2024, 10:20:23 PM"><span class="msg-text">Now I know he's gonna fail</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 2:24:59 PM"><span class="handle">BentFranklin:</span> <span class="msg-text">I might be okay with the Ten Commandments in school rooms if they also display them in the Oval Office.  Joe Biden should install them before he leaves so the Orange Man will have to either see them every day or take them down himself.</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 5:29:00 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text"><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/phillewis.bsky.social/post/3lbujtl5sgk2a" target="_blank"> https://bsky.app/profile/phillew...<div class="msg-link">https://bsky.app/profile/phillewis.bsky.social/post/3lbujtl5sgk2a</div></a></span></li><li class="msg" title="11/26/2024, 5:29:51 PM"><span class="msg-text">Okay, so Drake is apparently Charles Carreon and Prenda Law</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 5:30:14 PM"><span class="handle">Cathy Gellis:</span> <span class="msg-text">Wow, deep cut, Leah...</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 5:30:29 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">Thank you, Cathy!</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 5:31:09 PM"><span class="handle">John Roddy:</span> <span class="msg-text">Motion to transform into corncob</span></li><li class="msg with-handle" title="11/26/2024, 5:31:28 PM"><span class="handle">Leah (Samuel) Abram:</span> <span class="msg-text">**DRAKE'S NOT OWNED!! DRAKE'S NOT OWNED!!!**</span></li><li class="msg" title="11/26/2024, 5:31:38 PM"><span class="msg-text"><img draggable="false" role="img" class="emoji" alt="😛" src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/svg/1f61b.svg"></span></li></ul></div>
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					<h2 class="olderstuff olderstuff-day-link">
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					<td class="olderstuff">13:30</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/techdirt-podcast-episode-406-one-billion-users/">
							Techdirt Podcast Episode 406: One Billion Users						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">11:04</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/bivens-is-dead-says-the-10th-circuit-confirming-youre-only-wasting-your-time-when-suing-federal-officers/">
							'Bivens Is Dead' Says The 10th Circuit, Confirming You're Only Wasting Your Time When Suing Federal Officers						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">10:59</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/daily-deal-the-complete-chatgpt-artificial-intelligence-openai-training-bundle-4/">
							Daily Deal: The Complete ChatGPT Artificial Intelligence OpenAI Training Bundle						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">09:33</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/if-you-like-mille-bornes-youll-love-one-billion-users/">
							If You Like Mille Bornes, You’ll Love One Billion Users						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">05:33</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/26/republicans-helping-poor-people-and-minorities-afford-broadband-is-illegal-now-sorry/">
							Republicans: Helping Poor People And Minorities Afford Broadband Is Illegal Now, Sorry						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">20:11</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/trump-campaign-settles-post-judgement-with-eddy-grant-over-electric-avenue-case/">
							Trump Campaign Settles Post Judgment With Eddy Grant Over 'Electric Avenue' Case						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">15:17</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/federal-court-blocks-louisiana-law-mandating-posting-of-ten-commandments-in-school-classrooms/">
							Federal Court Blocks Louisiana Law Mandating Posting Of Ten Commandments In School Classrooms						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">13:07</td>
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							India Punishes Meta For Its 'Take-It-Or-Leave-It' Approach To Collecting And Sharing Personal Data						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">11:07</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/two-missouri-cops-are-facing-criminal-charges-for-helping-themselves-to-nude-photos-found-on-drivers-phones/">
							Two Missouri Cops Are Facing Criminal Charges For Helping Themselves To Nude Photos Found On Drivers' Phones						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">11:03</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/daily-deal-rosetta-stone-all-languages-3/">
							Daily Deal: Rosetta Stone (All Languages)						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">09:37</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/trump-orders-republicans-to-kill-journalism-shield-law-they-had-supported/">
							Trump Orders Republicans to Kill Journalism Shield Law They Had Supported						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">05:35</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/25/whoops-white-house-microsoft-cybersecurity-partnership-gave-company-an-illegal-de-facto-monopoly-on-government-services/">
							Whoops: White House Microsoft Cybersecurity Partnership Gave Company An Illegal De Facto Monopoly On Government Services						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">13:15</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/24/funniest-most-insightful-comments-of-the-week-at-techdirt-137/">
							Funniest/Most Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">12:00</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/23/back-our-kickstarter-for-one-billion-users-the-social-media-card-game/">
							Back Our Kickstarter For One Billion Users, The Social Media Card Game						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">19:39</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/kfc-sues-churchs-chicken-over-original-recipe-trademark-which-shouldnt-be-trademarkable/">
							KFC Sues Church's Chicken Over 'Original Recipe' Trademark, Which Shouldn't Be Trademarkable						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">15:43</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/ctrl-alt-speech-nothing-to-fcc-here/">
							Ctrl-Alt-Speech: Nothing To FCC Here						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">13:08</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/vpn-company-cyberghost-says-we-infringed-its-copyright-in-an-advertisement-we-ran-for-them-a-decade-ago/">
							VPN Company Cyberghost Says We Infringed Its Copyright In An Advertisement We Ran For Them A Decade Ago						</a>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/city-of-los-angeles-says-fuck-it-no-cops-were-harmed-when-we-released-their-names-and-photos/">
							City Of Los Angeles Says Fuck It: No Cops Were Harmed When We Released Their Names And Photos						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">11:04</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/daily-deal-xbox-game-pass-ultimate-3-month-membership/">
							Daily Deal: Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 3-Month Membership						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">09:32</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/texas-ag-declares-war-on-advertisers-who-snub-musks-extwitter/">
							Texas AG Declares War On Advertisers Who Snub Musk's ExTwitter						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">05:25</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/22/oh-look-it-was-trivial-to-buy-troop-and-intelligence-officer-location-data-from-dodgy-unregulated-data-brokers/">
							Oh Look, It Was Trivial To Buy Troop And Intelligence Officer Location Data From Dodgy, Unregulated Data Brokers						</a>
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							Thursday						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">20:08</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/sixth-circuit-tosses-evidence-after-cop-cant-find-one-credible-reason-for-extending-a-traffic-stop/">
							Sixth Circuit Tosses Evidence After Cop Can't Find One Credible Reason For Extending A Traffic Stop						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">16:24</td>
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						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/sports-psychologist-continues-bullshit-copyright-suits-over-retweets-by-school-officials/">
							Sports Psychologist Continues Bullshit Copyright Suits Over Retweets By School Officials						</a>
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					<td class="olderstuff">13:19</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/will-the-right-to-repair-movement-survive-trumpism-2-0/">
							Will The 'Right To Repair' Movement Survive Trumpism 2.0?						</a>
						(10)					</td>
				</tr>

				
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">11:09</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/hertz-continues-to-be-hertz-threatens-customer-with-arrest-for-using-too-many-of-his-unlimited-miles/">
							Hertz Continues To Be Hertz, Threatens Customer With Arrest For Using Too Many Of His 'Unlimited' Miles						</a>
						(44)					</td>
				</tr>

				
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">11:04</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/daily-deal-microsoft-windows-11-pro-6/">
							Daily Deal: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro						</a>
						(0)					</td>
				</tr>

				
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">09:28</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/substackeratis-grave-concerns-about-white-house-big-tech-collusion-have-disappeared-with-elons-ascension/">
							Substackerati’s ‘Grave Concerns’ About White House/Big Tech Collusion Have Disappeared With Elon’s Ascension						</a>
						(54)					</td>
				</tr>

				
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">05:24</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/21/net-neutrality-is-dead-as-a-doornail-under-trump-2-0/">
							Net Neutrality Is Dead As A Doornail Under Trump 2.0						</a>
						(83)					</td>
				</tr>

				
			<tr>
				<td colspan="2">
					<h2 class="olderstuff olderstuff-day-link">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/20/">
							Wednesday						</a>
					</h2>
				</td>
			</tr>

			
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">20:01</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/20/molson-coors-appeals-the-56-million-judgement-in-stone-brewing-case/">
							Molson Coors Appeals The $56 Million Judgement In Stone Brewing Case						</a>
						(5)					</td>
				</tr>

				
				<tr>
					<td class="olderstuff">15:44</td>
					<td class="olderstuff">
						<a href="https://www.techdirt.com/2024/11/20/texas-ballot-measure-decriminalizes-marijuana-possession-says-odor-of-marijuana-is-no-longer-probable-cause/">
							Texas Ballot Measure Decriminalizes Marijuana Possession, Says 'Odor Of Marijuana' Is No Longer Probable Cause						</a>
						(11)					</td>
				</tr>

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