This year’s report comes against the backdrop of rising populism, political and economic instability, along with intensifying concerns about giant tech companies and their impact on society. News organisations have taken the lead in reporting these trends, but also find themselves challenged by them – further depressing an industry reeling […] Read more »
Deepfakes Are Coming. We Can No Longer Believe What We See.
… We ordinarily tend to think that perception — the evidence of your eyes and ears — provides pretty strong justification. If you see something with your own eyes, you should probably believe it. By comparison, the claims that other people make — which philosophers call “testimony” — provide some […] Read more »
Many Americans Say Made-Up News Is a Critical Problem That Needs To Be Fixed
Many Americans say the creation and spread of made-up news and information is causing significant harm to the nation and needs to be stopped, according to a new Pew Research Center survey of 6,127 U.S. adults conducted between Feb. 19 and March 4, 2019, on the Center’s American Trends Panel. […] Read more »
5 reasons why income inequality has become a major political issue
Income inequality has captured America’s economic debate. President Donald Trump, elected with the votes of discontented blue-collar workers, slaps tariffs on allies and adversaries alike in the name of restoring yesterday’s middle-class manufacturing jobs. His 2020 Democratic challengers demand an array of federal initiatives, including higher minimum wages, tax hikes […] Read more »
‘Screen Time’ Is Over
… Consider what a person can do in just the time it takes to wait for a bus: text, watch a comedy skit, play a video game, buy concert tickets, take five selfies, each with a different set of cartoon ears. Learning how that behavior shapes an individual’s life experience […] Read more »
Infrastructure week is past due
To its discredit, the Trump administration has turned “infrastructure week” into a running joke, betraying both the president’s core constituency and the country at large. The need is no joke. At last report, the professional American Society of Civil Engineers rated the nation’s infrastructure a D+, a grade in which […] Read more »