Blog

Data

Smart TVs are like “a digital Trojan Horse” in…

48-page report urges FTC, FCC to investigate connected TV industry data harvesting. The companies behind the streaming industry, including smart TV and streaming stick manufacturers and streaming service providers, have developed a “surveillance system” that has “long undermined privacy and consumer protection,” according to a report from the Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) published today and sent

Capitalism

FTC Staff Report Finds Large Social Media and Video…

Report recommends limiting data retention and sharing, restricting targeted advertising, and strengthening protections for teens. A new Federal Trade Commission staff report that examines the data collection and use practices of major social media and video streaming services shows they engaged in vast surveillance of consumers in order to monetize their personal information while failing

Capitalism

A Bit About Neoliberalism

The term neoliberalism is often criticized because it is used in various ways and understood differently by different people. It’s a slippery concept, but one could also say that about liberalism or democracy or conservatism. Each of these words is tricky and takes on different shapes in different times and places, and that’s true of

Class Struggle

Labor union disapproval hits 57-year low

The share of Americans who say they disapprove of labor unions hasn’t been this low since September 1967, per new Gallup data. Why it matters: Unions have seen a resurgence in recent years, with an uptick in strikes and organizing efforts, helped along by more positive public sentiment and, until recently, a strong labor market that emboldens

Conservatives

This is Terrifying

Documents show organization’s staffing initiative is going strong as it seeks to replace government employees. Newly leaked training videos confirm how the staffing initiative of Project 2025, the controversial rightwing plan for the next Republican presidency, is gearing up for a major effort to replace non-partisan civil servants with conservative loyalists, and is being led by

Democracy

What Just Happened in France Is Astounding

The far right was at the gates of power. In the initial round of voting on June 30, Marine Le Pen’s National Rally came first with 33 percent support, topping more than half the local races. With the party projected to fall just short of an absolute majority, France was in a frenzy of speculation and anxiety. National