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Balancing Power: The Anti-Trust Dilemma in the Tech Era
Brief #53 – Economic Policy
by Inijah Quadri
The concern here is not merely about dominance, but also about how these companies use their dominance.
Safeguarding Personal Data: Navigating Technology and Our Human Rights to Privacy in the Age of Information
Brief #89 – Technology Policy
by Inijah Quadri
As personal data, preferences, and activities are routinely collected, stored, and analyzed by various entities, significant privacy concerns arise.
The Increasing Use of Drugs to Enhance Performance in International Triathlons
Brief #78 – Foreign Policy
by Reilly Fitzgerald
Triathlon has a fairly short, when compared with the likes of cycling and running, history of doping. As the sport really was not founded until late in the 1970s.
The Implications of the George Santos’ Indictment
Brief #78 – Elections & Politics Policy
by Ian Milden
On May 10th, Congressman George Santos (R-NY) was indicted by federal prosecutors on charges of money laundering, wire fraud, theft of public funds, and making false statements to the government.
The Race to ’24: Trump and his detractors, how the Republican field is shaping up
Brief #79 – Elections & Politics Policy
by Abigail Hunt
The 2024 Presidential election is pivotal – will we be able to continue the democratic policies of the past four years?… It is too early to say which of the candidates will cement the nomination, though DeSantis’s fundraising capabilities and name recognition give him an early advantage.
For Republicans, “Parent Choice” is About Power, not Freedom
Brief #83 – Education Policy
by Rudolph Lurz
During a debate in the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial campaign, Terry McAuliffe… stated, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.”
An Update on Foreign Military Support for Ukraine
Brief #77 – Foreign Policy
by Yelena Korshunov
European leaders agreed on the transfer of new large packages of military aid to Kyiv… will the new round of arms deliveries to Ukraine make the country ready for a counteroffensive?
Important Tech Accountability Measures in California May Get Picked Up by Congress
Brief #88 – Technology Policy
by Mindy Spratt
Two measures being considered by the California State Legislature would rein in egregious practices by tech companies that critics have long complained about.
The End of Title 42 and a New Beginning for Immigration Policy
Brief #133 – Immigration Policy
by Arvind Salem
On May 11th at 11:59 PM EDT, a pandemic-era immigration policy deriving from a law known as Title 42 expired after being in effect for over 3 years.
America’s Old-Growth Forests in Need of New Protections
America’s Old-Growth Forests in Need of New Protections
Environment Policy Brief #152 | By: Todd J. Broadman | February 6, 2023
Header photo taken from: Ben Hasty / Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Don Ryan / The Associated Press
Policy Summary
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Just over a third of what remains as forested land in America is classified as “old-growth forest,” equivalent to 167 million acres. By definition, old-growth is at least 80 years old, and just 24% of old-growth forest is fully protected – the balance exposed to the risk of logging. 58 million acres of this old-growth forest are on federal lands under management by either the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management.
President Joe Biden signed Executive Order 14072 to protect mature and old-growth forests. A respite for many, after Trump era rollbacks. Executive Orders though, do not carry the force of law – as does an Act of Congress. Rather, Biden’s intention is to direct the Department of the Interior to “define, identify, and complete an inventory of old-growth and mature forests on Federal lands, accounting for regional and ecological variations, as appropriate.” The longer-term aim is to “institutionalize climate-smart management and conservation strategies that address threats to mature and old-growth forests on Federal lands.” The Executive Order will do little to halt the logging schedule already in place which puts over 300,000 acres at risk, according to a recent report by non-profit group, Climate Forests.
Biden had announced a 30 by 30 Plan, termed “America the Beautiful,” in January of 2021, aiming to protect 30% of U.S. land and water. This initiative would empower local communities and tribal nations to realize its targets. New state laws, like the Revested Lands Sustained Yield Management Act (RLSYMA), run counter to full protection and will continue to present a challenge. RLSYMA will guide logging activities over 2 million acres in Oregon and California.
The U.S. Forest Service focuses on projects that address “demand for wood products, safe roads, wildfire protection, and enhancing recreation experiences.” Along with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), both agencies manage timber sales and are constantly in court, sued by environmental groups for those actions. A recently proposed timber sale of 18,000 acres of old-growth forest was blocked by a District Court in Oregon because it violated the Endangered Species Act – a threat to the northern spotted owl.
Another common argument against logging is that large diameter trees play a critical role in maintaining biodiversity and mitigating climate change and that logging activities over the last 100 years have greatly reduced large trees and their habitat. According to Lauren Anderson, Climate Forest Program Manager for the conservation group Oregon Wild, “Getting forest managers to really think about old-growth trees the same way that other states think about [renewable technologies like] solar panels and wind turbines is the culture shift that needs to happen.”
Policy Analysis
Preserving old-growth forests can be a cornerstone of global climate change and biodiversity leadership. There is widely held agreement on such protections in the scientific community.
If Biden’s Executive Order to do a comprehensive inventory of old-growth and mature forest stands on federal land results in durable protections through state and national laws, then it can be seen as a worthwhile activity. The BLM and USFS though, continue to prioritize industrial timber production. Complicating matters, their budgets are tied to timber production quotas.
For example, timber sales currently taking place include: 4,573 old-growth acres as part of the Poor Windy Project in southwest Oregon; 12,000 acres as part of the Fourmile Vegetation Project in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Wisconsin.
These large trees and trees like them store 35% to 70% more carbon than newer forests; they offer increased watershed protections and wildfire resilience as well. The old-growth forest biodiversity – genetic biodiversity and species biodiversity, is necessary for long-term resilience of the environment.
Much of the “harvested” old-growth timber goes towards pulpwood which is made into paper and plywood. In other words, precious mature trees are logged, ground down, and turned into low-value products, products that could just as easily be supplied by younger trees. Analogous to making hamburger meat from endangered elephants.
Photo taken from: Michael Ciaglo / Getty
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As less than a quarter of old-growth is fully protected, a big win came recently in the form of protections for 9.37 million acres in the Alaskan Tongass National Forest – the world’s largest intact temperate rainforest. Legal protections will “support the ecological, economic and cultural values of Southeastern Alaska.”
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
https://healthyforests.org/ a grassroots coalition that supports the need for active, sustainable forest management to improve and sustain forest health.
https://oregonwild.org/ works to protect and restore Oregon’s wildlands, wildlife, and waters as an enduring legacy for future generations.
https://wildearthguardians.org/ protects and restores the wildlife, wild places, wild rivers, and health of the American West.
Alaska Republicans Should Learn a Lesson About Altering Election Rules from Georgia
Alaska Republicans Should Learn a Lesson About Altering Election Rules from Georgia
Elections & Politics Policy Brief #51 | By: Ian Milden | February 2, 2023
Header photo taken from: Sightline Institute
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Photo taken from: The Associated Press
Policy Summary
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After Democrat Mary Peltola (D-AK) won a special election for a U.S. House seat and the subsequent general election, Republicans in the Alaska state legislature are attempting to abolish the all-party primary system that was established by a voter referendum before the special election.
This Brief will discuss why this won’t get Alaska Republicans the result they want by examining the 2022 elections in Alaska. To support my arguments, I’ll also look at the Georgia runoffs from 2020 and 2022, where Republicans changed the rules and still didn’t win.
Policy Analysis
For example, in a three-person race, the moderate candidate may be preferred to each of the more extreme candidates by a majority of voters. However, voters with far-left and far-right views will rank the candidate in second place rather than in first place. Since ranked-choice voting counts only the number of first-choice votes (among the remaining candidates), the moderate candidate would be eliminated in the first round, leaving one of the extreme candidates to be declared the winner, which is what happened in Alaska.
Chart taken from: Unite America, The Hill
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In the 2020 election, voters in Alaska approved a ballot initiative that changed the primary system to have everyone compete in the same primary. The top four candidates from the primary advance to the general election.
I wrote about this system in a previous brief after the Special Election last year. In wake of the Democrat’s victories in 2022, a bill has been filed to repeal the new election system in Alaska. While it is unclear what the chances of this bill passing are, this legislation mirrors a recent trend of Republicans filing legislation at the state level to make changes to election rules based on trends they did not like.
Of all of the states where Republicans changed election laws, the best state that Republicans can take away a lesson from is Georgia. After Democrats won both U.S. Senate seats in a runoff in 2021, Republicans in the state legislature passed legislation to reduce the length of time for the runoff and severely restrict new registrations before the runoffs. One of the two U.S. Senate seats was up in 2022 (due to the 2020 election being a special election), and Republicans lost.
The reason Republicans lost was that they nominated a candidate, Herschel Walker, who had trouble getting the support of all Republican voters. Walker and his campaign also never successfully figured out how to respond to stories about his character or questions about his qualifications for public office, which hurt his chances of winning.
Alaska Republicans had the same problem in 2022. Sarah Palin is disliked by many Republicans, and that prevented her from being able to win. Some Republicans disliked Palin so much that they voted for Peltola, the Democrat, after Republican candidate Nick Begich was out of the running.
Changing the rules to a traditional partisan primary and general election system likely would not have changed the result. Palin had more support among Republicans than any other candidate in the primary, but she did not have enough support to win the winner-take-all General Election. The limited existing body of polling data from 2022 reinforces this argument.
If Republicans are serious about taking steps to win back the U.S. House seat in Alaska, they need to focus on recruiting and supporting better candidates for public office. Sarah Palin is very well-known, polarizing, and thoroughly caricatured by Saturday Night Live. There was little that Palin could have done to get voters to improve their impressions of her.
While Palin is a unique figure in Alaska politics, the challenges that Republicans face in recruiting and supporting better candidates for public office are a problem nationally. Republicans did not unseat any incumbent Democrats in U.S. Senate races last year because the candidates Republicans chose had significant issues with their backgrounds and qualifications for office and took positions on issues such as abortion that alienated some members of their party’s coalition.
Until Republicans figure out how to improve their selection process for their own nominees, they won’t achieve the results they are hoping for by tampering with election rules.
The Week That Was #3
The Week That Was #3
Foreign Policy Brief #168 | By: Abran C | January 31, 2023
Header photo taken from: the Associated Press / Eraldo Peres
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Photo taken from: Ricardo Stuckert / Reuters
Brazil Indigenous Genocide
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Last week Brazil’s Ministry of Health declared a state of emergency in the Yanomami indigenous peoples territory. The Yanomami territory, Brazil’s largest indigenous reservation, is located in the northern Amazonian region of the country near it’s border with Venezuela. The state of emergency was called following hundreds of children dying from malnutrition and diseases caused by poisoning of the water supply due to illegal gold mining.
A decree by the government of newly elected President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said the aim of the declaration was to restore health services to the Yanomami people that had been dismantled by his far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro. In four years of Bolsonaro’s presidency, 570 Yanomami children died of curable and preventable diseases, mainly malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and deformities caused by mercury poisoning.
The Yanomami people’s lands have been invaded by illegal gold miners for decades, but the frequency and intensity of the incursions skyrocketed under former President Bolsonaro, who allowed and encouraged such mining activity in what should be protected lands. Brazilian federal police are investigating a case of genocide against the Yanomami people by the Bolsonaro administration. President Lula himself upon seeing the state of the Yanomami said “More than a humanitarian crisis, what I saw in Roraima was genocide: a premeditated crime against the Yanomami, committed by a government insensitive to suffering”.
US Secretary of State Anthony Bliken visits the Middle East
US Secretary of State Anthony Bliken landed in Egypt to begin a three day tour of the Middle East and North African region (MENA) on Sunday. In Egypt Blinken is expected to discuss North African regional issues such as conflicts in Libya and Sudan. After his stop in Cairo, Blinken will travel on Monday and Tuesday to Jerusalem and Ramallah, where he will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, respectively.
The trip has taken on new urgency in light of ongoing violence in the occupied territories and Israel’s incoming ultra-nationalist far-right government that saw the return of PM Benjamin Netanyahu. On Thursday Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians during a raid on the Jenin refugee camp.
The number of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces during raids in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in January has risen to at least 29 people, including five minors. Soon after the raids a Palestinian, in retaliation, carried out a gun attack and killed seven Israelis in East Jerusalem.
Photo taken from: EPA-EFE
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Following the attack Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced plans to make it easier for Israelis to obtain and carry guns. High tensions in Israel-Palestine will take up the majority of the discourse on this diplomatic mission, Bliken will likely repeat calls for calm and restate support for a two state solution. However it is unlikely peace talks will occur anytime soon.
France protests against raising the retirement age
Photo taken from: Benoit Tessier / Reuters
Over a million people protested on the streets of Paris last week amid plans by the government to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Emboldened by the mass show of resistance, French unions announced new strikes and protests. Macron has acknowledged the public’s discontent but claimed that the reforms are necessary to save the French pension system.
In a country with an aging population and growing life expectancy where everyone gets a state pension, the government says the reforms are the only way to keep the system functional. Unions however proposed a tax on the wealthy to finance the pension system instead. Were the strikes to continue they could hobble the French economy at a time when the country is struggling with inflation and trying to boost growth.
North Dakota Anti-Trans Law Will Jail Librarians For Displaying Books About Sexual and Gender Identity
North Dakota Anti-Trans Law Will Jail Librarians For Displaying Books About Sexual and Gender Identity
Health and Gender Policy Brief #156 | By: Caroline Howard | January 31, 2023
Header photo taken from: Nadezhda Soboleva / Eyeem / Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Rick Bowmer / The Associated Press
Policy Summary
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A new law introduced in North Dakota will make it a class-b misdemeanor for librarians in public libraries to have any books on display that are deemed “sexually explicit”. Within this list of topics that meet the definition of sexually explicit, are the classifications of sexual identity, and gender identity.
Public libraries in this case are defined as “a library containing collections of books or periodicals for the general population to read, write, borrow, or refer to which is supported with funds derived from taxation.” If a librarian refuses to take down books that have either sexual or gender identity-related topics, they will be either given a fine of $1,500 or will be detained for a maximum period of 30-days, which is standard for under North Dakota’s criminal definition of a class-b misdemeanor.
Policy Analysis
What this policy is attempting to accomplish in many ways is to drive trans, gay, and queer people in general out of the mainstream of society, and relegate them to the outskirts. It has been proven empirically that when someone knows a person who is of a marginalized group, in this case, a transgender person, they are more likely to accept trans people in general.
With that, the more people that start to accept trans people into the mainstream as just something that is normal (because it is normal), the harder it is for people who want bills like this implemented to be able to attack the trans community without consequences.
One of the main ways that it attempts to achieve this goal is by lumping being gay or transgender with a whole litany of other topics that absolutely do meet criteria of a sexually-explicit nature, and should most certainly not be allowed in public libraries. When people are able to successfully compare being transgender to something like pedophilia, it is a lot easier to dehumanize transgender folks, which can lead to much deadlier consequences down the line.
This is already being attempted across the country with the narrative that all people who are in the LGBTQ+ community are “groomers” who want to harm children. Such a narrative also led to the mass shooting at Club-Q in Colorado a couple of months ago, as well as the countless murders of transgender people across the U.S. that have both been reported and not reported.
Photo taken from: WBEZ Chicago
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It is a lot harder to attack a bill that has some good qualities to it, like banning other forms of sexual content that would actually harm children, because then the groomer label gets thrown in your face, and the potential harm can come your way.
This rhetoric is very dangerous and only serves the purpose to tie trans and queer people in with pedophiles and abusers of children. The only thing that is accomplished is pushing transgender people to the outskirts of society, where it is much likelier that they are dehumanized generally, and at worst killed. Even if this bill passes, it is not very likely that it will be implemented, at least for now. Court battles will rage on, and potentially rise up to the Supreme Court.
From there, there is really no telling whether or not the Justices would allow a bill like this to be implemented. Gorsuch in 2020 voted on the side of adding transgender and gay people to the list of people covered under the anti-discrimination portion of the Civil Rights act, so there is a small bit of hope there.
If this bill fails in the courts, it is still a reminder of the legislation, and harm politicians in the GOP will try to wage on marginalized groups, and how it is imperative that we do not let it spread to the federal level. They are speaking loud and clear on what their intentions for queer people in America are, and it is time for all of us to listen.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
ACLU: https://www.aclu.org | “The ACLU has evolved in the years since from this small group of idealists into the nation’s premier defender of the rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. With more than 1.7 million members, 500 staff attorneys, thousands of volunteer attorneys, and offices throughout the nation, the ACLU of today continues to fight government abuse and to vigorously defend individual freedoms including speech and religion, a woman’s right to choose, the right to due process, citizens’ rights to privacy and much more.”
The LGBT Task Force: https://www.thetaskforce.org/new-analysis-shows-startling-levels-of-discrimination-against-black-transgender-people/ | The National LGBTQ Task Force advances full freedom, justice and equality for LGBTQ people. We are building a future where everyone can be free to be their entire selves in every aspect of their lives.
Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org | Trans Lifeline is a grassroots hotline and microgrants 501(c)(3) non-profit organization offering direct emotional and financial support to trans people in crisis – for the trans community, by the trans community.
Fox News’ Role in FIFA Corruption Trial
Fox News’ Role in FIFA Corruption Trial
Foreign Policy Brief #167 | By: Reilly Fitzgerald | January 23, 2023
Header photo taken from: Kamil Krzaczynski / Associated Press
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Photo taken from: Reuters / John Taggart
Policy Summary
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The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, more famously known as FIFA, is the global face of football (or soccer, for Americans). They make the rules of the sport, they can sanction players and teams for misconduct on the pitch; they decide the when and where of major tournaments; the TV rights for tournaments, and also where to take bribes from. Corruption and global sports have always been entwined; just as sports and politics have been.
In regards to the most recent world cups in Qatar (2022), Russia (2018), and Brazil (2014), there has been a consistent documented pattern of corruption in which individual executives and corporations have been banned, imprisoned, sanctioned.
In the ongoing corruption investigation against FIFA by the US Department of Justice, it has come to light that the Fox Corporation is involved in the corruption schemes by giving away hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to receive exclusive TV rights to major global soccer tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup.
Policy Analysis
Corruption in regards to FIFA has been an ongoing issue and legal battle for FIFA. The image of FIFA has been noticeably tarnished throughout the past decade, if not more than that. The organization made headlines for awarding the World Cup to human rights abusers such as Qatar, Russia, and Brazil – each one with documented human rights abuses. It also should not come as a huge surprise to most that there is an air of corruption around this organization, and the decisions it has made throughout the past decade.
It may surprise people, especially to American television viewers, to see the Fox Corporation involved in corruption with FIFA. Since 1994, ESPN had been, solely, given the TV rights to air the World Cup in the United States. However in 2011, it was announced by Fox that it was granted the TV rights to upcoming World Cups, such as in Russia 2018, Qatar 2022, and the future World Cup in North America in 2026.
The information being used at trial has been provided by Alejandro Burazco, who is a former banker, according to Sports Illustrated and the New York Times. He has provided information on the people involved at Fox and details regarding the financial aspects of the corruption.
Burazco’s ‘job’ was to act as an intermediary between Fox and FIFA to help win the TV rights to two major South American tournaments: the Copa Libertadores, and the Copa Sudamericana.
Photo taken from: Elizabeth Williams / The Associated Press
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According to reporting from the New York Times based on Burazco’s statements, ESPN and other networks thought that the bidding process was blind; meaning that FIFA should not have been aware of which companies were bidding at any given time, or based on any amount of money.
The issues surrounding FIFA and the corruption that seems to follow them at every turn, and that has also tarnished the world’s beautiful game will continue into the next World Cup. Hopefully, the Justice Department and the trial against FIFA will result in a cleaner environment for this sport to flourish without scandal and controversy.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Timeline of FIFA Corruption From ESPN (https://www.espn.com/soccer/fifa-world-cup/story/2468845/a-timeline-of-fifa-corruption-allegations)
China’s “Zero-COVID”: Was it worth it?
China’s “Zero-COVID”: Was it Worth it?
Health and Gender Policy Brief #154 | By: Geoffrey Small | January 30, 2023
Header photo taken from: Kevin Frayer / Getty Images
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Photo taken from: Reuters
Policy Summary
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During December, 2022, citizens of China took to the streets and sparked a mass protest against the government’s “zero-COVID” policies that had been in place for over two years. According to Human Rights Watch, prolonged lockdowns, administered unpredictably, by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) have hampered accessibility to necessities like food and proper healthcare. This is especially true for more vulnerable populations like senior citizens.
Videos online show COVID-19 control workers and police dragging and beating people who resisted the lockdowns. Journalists have also been targeted for reporting on COVID-related information and the authoritarian methods that the government used to control outbreaks. It is well known that China has the largest population in the world, with a cultural emphasis on supporting a collective society. However, was a draconian-style lockdown worth it? Comparing metrics between China’s policies and the United States may offer some insight.
Policy Analysis
Rate of Infection
It is well known that the CCP philosophy on transparency runs in contrast to basic principles of a free market democracy like the United States. The reported data on the rate of China’s infection, hospitalization, and deaths have not been entirely accurate or consistent. However, as the pandemic draws to a close, more accurate reports are coming out of China, as they recently abandoned their “zero-COVID” policy.
According to Reuters, Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, reported that 80% of the population in China has been infected. From December 8th to January 12th, Reuters also reported that 59,938 Chinese patients died in hospitals, which is a significant increase from previously reported figures during the “zero-COVID” policy era.
Chart taken from: The Pew Research Center
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The United States’ recent medical reports indicate about half of the population has reported infections with COVID-19. The CDC also reported that 17,158 people have died from infection between December 10th and June 14th. When factoring in China’s significantly larger population, the rate of deaths between the two countries during that timeframe are relatively similar.
Vaccine Effectiveness
Chinese officials have stated that their overall vaccination rate is about 90%. However, 30% of the elderly 60 and up have not been vaccinated. 60% of citizens 80 and older also remain unvaccinated. According to the CDC, The United States two-dose vaccination rate is closer to 69% with 94% of citizens 65 or older vaccinated.
When it comes to vaccine development, there is plenty of misleading information stating that Chinese-developed vaccines CoronaVac and Sinopharm are far less superior to Moderna and Pfizer. Despite this misinformation, China could have benefited from a non-isolationist approach to vaccine development. According to NPR, studies conducted on these vaccines indicate they all offer a high rate of protection. Pfizer’s efficacy rating was 95% to 97%, compared to CoronoVac’s 89% to 94%. However, CoronaVac tests showed that the first two doses provided significantly less protection for older adults when compared to Pfizer.
China’s “zero-COVID” policies will always be subjected to criticism when it comes to the draconian, isolationist, and authoritarian methods they used to keep the virus under control. Its important to donate to organizations like Human Rights Watch in order for the public to understand that authoritarian methods of controlling a pandemic are not more effective than a democratic society’s.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
https://donate.hrw.org/page/107245/donate/1?ea.tracking.id=EP2022EVpgdonate&promo_id=1000
The Impact of Social Media on Politics and Society
The Impact of Social Media on Politics and Society
Technology Policy Brief #52 | By: Inijah Quadri | January 22, 2023
Header photo taken from: kyspp.nus.edu
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Photo taken from: Chris Hale / CQ Roll Call
Policy Summary
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Social media has revolutionized the way we communicate, access information, and engage with politics and society. Platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok have become an integral part of our daily lives, connecting us with friends and family, news, and entertainment. However, the influence of social media on politics and society is a complex and multifaceted issue, with both positive and negative consequences.
This brief aims to explore the ways in which social media is shaping the political and social landscape, focusing on the messaging, approach, and audience of different platforms.
Messaging on Social Media
One of the most significant ways in which social media is impacting politics and society is through the messaging that is shared on these platforms. Social media allows individuals and organizations to disseminate information and ideas to a large audience in a relatively short amount of time. This has led to an increase in the amount of information available to the public, but it has also created a space for misinformation, disinformation, and the spread of conspiracy theories.
For example, during the 2020 US Presidential Election, there were numerous instances of misinformation and disinformation being spread on social media platforms. Misinformation about voter fraud and the integrity of the election was widespread, and it was amplified by politicians and influencers with large social media followings.
Photo taken from: Shutterstock
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This led to confusion and mistrust among the public, and it played a role in the events that occurred on January 6th, 2021 when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol.
Approach of Social Media Platforms
The approach of social media platforms is also playing a significant role in shaping the political and social landscape. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter have been criticized for not doing enough to combat misinformation and hate speech. These platforms have relied on user-generated reports to flag content that violates their policies, but this approach has been criticized for being slow and ineffective.
Audience of Social Media Platforms
The audience of different social media platforms also plays a role in shaping the political and social landscape. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter have a broad and diverse audience, while newer platforms like TikTok and Parlor tend to have a more niche audience. This can lead to a self-reinforcing echo chamber, where individuals are only exposed to information and ideas that align with their existing beliefs.
In addition, a study by the Pew Research Center found that individuals who primarily get their news from social media are more likely to have politically polarized views and to be less informed about current events. This is because social media algorithms tend to prioritize content that is likely to generate engagement, such as content that is controversial or that aligns with the user’s existing beliefs. This can lead to a situation where individuals are exposed to a narrow range of information and ideas, which can reinforce their existing beliefs and biases.
Charts taken from:
The Pew Research Center
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Right-Wing Platforms
There are also social media platforms specifically catering to right-wing audiences, such as Truth Social and Parlor. These platforms have been criticized for promoting conspiracy theories and hate speech, and for not taking enough action to combat misinformation.
Additionally, some of the users of these platforms have been linked to far-right and extremist groups, raising concerns about the promotion of hateful and dangerous ideologies.
Impact on Democracy
The impact of social media on democracy is a contentious issue. On the one hand, social media allows for a more engaged and informed citizenry, as individuals can easily access information and engage in political discussions. Additionally, social media has been credited with helping to mobilize political movements, such as the Arab Spring and the Black Lives Matter movement.
On the other hand, social media can also have negative effects on democracy. The spread of misinformation and disinformation can lead to confusion and mistrust among the public, which can erode the foundations of democracy. Additionally, social media can be used to amplify the voices of extremist and fringe groups, which can skew the political discourse and undermine the democratic process.
Photo taken from: Justin Tallis / AFP
The Role of Governments and Regulators
The impact of social media on politics and society has led to calls for increased regulation of these platforms. Governments and regulators have been criticized for not doing enough to combat misinformation and hate speech, and for not holding these platforms accountable for their actions.
For example, the European Union has proposed a new regulation called the Digital Services Act, which would require social media platforms to take more responsibility for the content that is shared on their platforms. Additionally, the US Congress has held multiple hearings on the role of social media in the spread of misinformation and disinformation, and there have been calls for increased regulation of these platforms.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the impact of social media on politics and society is a complex and multifaceted issue. While social media has provided individuals and organizations with new and powerful ways to communicate and engage with politics and society, it has also created a space for misinformation, disinformation, and the spread of conspiracy theories.
It’s important for social media platforms to take a more proactive approach in combating misinformation and promoting verified content, and for governments and regulators to hold these platforms accountable for their actions. Additionally, individuals need to be more critical of the information they encounter on social media and seek out diverse sources of information to form a well-rounded understanding of current events and issues.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Center for Digital Society: (https://cfds.fisipol.ugm.ac.id/2021/12/09/the-age-of-fake-news-how-fake-news-marred-the-2020-u-s-presidential-election/)
Chron (https://smallbusiness.chron.com/facebook-avatar-rules-27201.html)
European Commission (https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/digital-services-act-package)
Pew Research Center (https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2014/10/21/political-polarization-media-habits/)
The SoapBox (https://newrepublic.com/article/168214/west-parler-truth-social-failing)
Twitter (https://help.twitter.com/en/safety-and-security/sensitive-media)
January 10th Revealed the Need to Update Our Aviation Safety Technology
January 10th Revealed the Need to Update Our Aviation Safety Technology
Technology Policy Brief #51 | By: Steve Piazza | January 21, 2023
Header photo taken from: Jeenah Moon / The New York Times
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Photo taken from: Charles Rex Arbogast / The Associated Press
Policy Summary
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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires that all pilots receive NOTAMs (Notice To Airmen, or Notice to Air Missions in the United States) prior to takeoff. The purpose of these notifications is to provide pilots with information regarding obstacles they may encounter along the way.
Currently, pilots receive NOTAMs through the Federal NOTAM System (FNS), which gathers information from the source of the problem and disseminates it via text so it is available during pre-flight preparations.
Due to a recent technical issue that eventually resulted in the grounding of all commercial and private aircraft in the U.S., attention has been thrust upon aging industry technology in a communication system which has grown exponentially since it was first deployed.
Policy Analysis
On the evening of January 10, while performing regularly scheduled maintenance, an engineer mistakenly replaced a crucial file with one that was corrupt, preventing the NOTAMs from loading and disseminating.
After hours of unsuccessfully rebooting the system, all domestic flights were grounded. It wasn’t until 9:00 AM the next morning that the situation had been remedied and the flight ban lifted. According to Flightaware.com, the entire episode caused the delay of more than 11,000 flights and cancellation of another 1300.
Canada also experienced a similar technical issue which may or may not be related. But, because their system is more advanced and they have less air traffic, they did not experience such a disruption.
The FAA was quick to say that terrorism had been ruled out and called it a technical problem. But without a proper backup system that is nothing more than analog phone equipment rather than current, more reliable technology, whatever they call it should be an indication that the industry is in a crisis.
In plain terms, the present but outdated air transportation infrastructure places travelers and the general public at serious risk.
To begin with, the NOTAM system is almost 30 years old. The practice itself actually started in 1947, which was based on a Notice to Mariners developed by the US Navy way back in 1869.
Photo taken from: Seth Wening, The Associated Press
Ever since the existing system’s deployment in 1993, air traffic controllers, pilots, and other airline personnel receive NOTAMs via text messages traveling along aged teletype networks. This format, which includes the required use of presenting information in all caps, makes messages very difficult to read for pilots already faced with overwhelming, but crucial pre-flight protocols.
An example of their cumbersome nature is this text from a 235 word NOTAM message regarding airspace around San Angelo, Texas: …
SPECIAL SECURITY INSTRUCTIONS, ALL ACFT FLT OPS ARE PROHIBITED: WI AN AREA DEFINED AS 5NM RADIUS OF 311647N1002234W (SJT135007.0) 3500FT MSL-FL180 EFFECTIVE 2301152100 UTC (1500 LOCAL 01/15/23)….
Photo taken from: The Federal Aviation Association
The extreme volume of messages also presents difficulties. The number of messages have tripled in the last 10 years and will soon surpass 1 million per year. Sometimes obstacles are easily overlooked because of the amount of information transmitted. Some users have even said they have at times ignored them because they’re too unwieldy.
Minor steps to make information easier to access and read have been taken. NOTAM communications are now available in digital format, so if flight personnel feel the need to research information on flying conditions, they can use web based applications like FNS NOTAM Search. NOTAM Search is a typical webpage database function where the end user enters a query such as date and location information to get access to the notices.
Other resources that provide additional data, community support, or tools for developers include the FNS NOTAM Distribution Service (FNS NDS) and the NOTAM Application Programming Interface (API) .
Unfortunately, out of synch steps like these are not enough, and solutions for the needed overhaul of the NOTAM system have been proposed. These include automated notifications written in clear sentences and updated graphical interfaces that even show airport diagrams and taxi lanes. Yet, at last discussion, such improvements could take up to six years to implement.
Transportation is not the only area of the government that has been in need of technology upgrades. The Technology Modernization Fund established in 2017 has helped 15 federal agencies with over $400 million in IT upgrades.
But other agencies, such as the Social Security administration and the Small Business Administration, like Transportation are still in dire need.
The recent events of January 10-11 may speed things along for NOTAMs in particular. But as long as there are partisan Congressional stalemates, such as the delayed vote on President Biden’s pick as FAA Director, such upgrades may just have to remain on the ground.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
If you’re interested in real time flight data, click here:
The FAA provides a glimpse into how they’ve modernized NOTAMs to date:
https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/notam
Flyer’s Rights is a consumer advocacy group that is highly dedicated to making change at the federal level: https://flyersrights.org/
The International Civil Aviation Organization is an agency of the United Nations that advocates for civil aviation system safety around the world. Amongst other things, a search also provides access to NOTAMs: https://www.icao.int/Pages/default.aspx
Russia Continues to Kill Ukrainians. Children are Targeted.
Russia Continues to Kill Ukrainians. Children are Targeted.
Foreign Policy Brief #166 | By: Yelena Korshunov | January 23, 2023
Rubbles of a recently attacked residential building in Dnipro, Ukraine.
Header photo taken from: facenews.ua
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Photo taken from: unian.ua
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Russia’s missile killed 46 people in Dnipro on January 14th, among them 5 children
On January 14th a Russian missile hit a residential high-rise building in Dnipro – a big industrial Ukrainian city. According to the head of the Ukrainian regional military administration, Valentin Reznichenko, on January 17th the removal of rubble had been going on for more than 60 hours. At that moment, 90% of the wreckage of the destroyed nine-story building had been dismantled.
Photo taken from: dw.com
Reznichenko reported that 39 people were rescued, 46 died, 79 were injured, including 16 children. There are now 28 injured in hospitals, 10 are in serious condition. 25 residents of the house are still being searched.
These five beautiful kids in the photo below are among those whose lives were taken by a Russian missile that day. They are among about 1,000 children who were killed or injured during Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Image taken from: euromaidanpress.com
(click or tap on image to enlargen)
27-year-old Kateryna Zelenska was rescued from under the rubble after more than 20 hours. Her body temperature was 31°C (87.8°F). Her husband and one-year-old son died under the rubble. Kateryna was deaf from birth and unlike other victims couldn’t call for help during “minutes of silence,” when rescuers were listening from where under the rubble people were calling for help.
Photos taken from (clockwise from top left):
Katerina’s Instagram; Euromaidan Press; Facebook of Denys Monastyrskyi, Minister of Internal Affairs
Refugees from Donetsk and Luhansk were affected by blast wave in the dormitory that stands near the attacked building
Ukrainian portal Tehnopolis(tehnopolis.com.ua) told their audience about what happened in the dormitory of the Dnipro Academy of Physical Culture and Sports that stands a few meters from the house that was hit by a Russian rocket on January 14. The windows are broken, the building is cut with debris – this is how the house, where about a hundred displaced persons from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions had found shelter, looks like today. During the missile attack the blast wave blew out the windows of the building.
Currently, there is no electricity, water and gas in the dormitory. The woman whose name is Olga moved to Dnipro from Eastern Ukraine in April. She says she was asleep during the explosion. “I was in such a shock. I didn’t understand anything. The windows flew out, the panes were flying at us. My husband said: “Come on, crawl into the corridor, it’s safer there, because the rocket hit somewhere”. We heard people’s screams, moaning. Smoke was pouring out. Firefighters arrived fast,” she recalls. Olga was also injured – her fingers were cut by glass.
Meantime in Russia
Some residents of Moscow brought flowers, candles and toys to the monument of Ukrainian poetess Lesya Ukrainka after a Russian missile hit the building in Dnipro, injuring and taking the lives of many people. On the night of January 18, the spontaneous memorial was removed by officials.
A police paddy wagon has been on duty at the site. It’s known that the police detained four people. One of them is charged with petty hooliganism, he was left at the police station until the morning. What happened to the rest of the detainees is unknown.
Location Data Still Putting Abortion Seekers At Risk
Location Data Still Putting Abortion Seekers At Risk
Health & Gender Policy Brief #153 | By: Mindy Spatt | January 20, 2023
Header photo taken from: CNN
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Photo taken from: Electronic Frontier Foundation
Policy Summary
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After the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs and resultant abortion bans, online access to abortion information became increasingly important, and advocates for choice began expressing concern about the vulnerability of location data. With criminal penalties possible in some states, the data could potentially be used by prosecutors to track visits to abortion clinics or to their websites.
Google vowed to fix the problem (See Technology Policy Brief # 68), but recent tests by advocates and researchers show that location data related to abortion is still being collected and sold to brokers, and a new broker, Fog Reveal, is specifically marketing location and other personal data to law enforcement.
Policy Analysis
After Google publicly committed to deleting user location history related to abortion clinics and their websites, a research team at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine and Carnegie Mellon’s Cy Lab ran tests to find out whether location data from abortion clinic webpages was still being collected and whether it was available through data brokers.
Their findings were extremely disturbing; 99% of the webpages of the abortion clinics surveyed had third-party trackers embedded in their sites. Not just one, an average of nine per clinic.
The researchers then looked at where those trackers were sending the data to, and found that that 97.3% of the web pages reported the data to Alphabet (Google), 38.1% reported to Meta (Facebook), 32.7% to Adobe Systems, and 25.1% to Microsoft. There are few limits on the selling and reselling of tracked information from healthcare websites, which doesn’t enjoy the same privacy protections as other medical information.
The nonprofit advocacy group Accountable Tech also tested Google’s new policies by visiting abortion clinics with Android phones and then checking to see whether data related to those visits was being stored by Google. They found that “Google is still retaining location search queries by default, and location history for users who have it turned on – including for reproductive care facilities…”
The data is easily available to law enforcement thanks to a recent entry into the data broker business, Fog Reveal, a platform that gives law enforcement easy access to location data and a trove of other potentially identifying information.
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, “Virginia-based Fog Data Science sells a service that it bills as allowing police to see where a person was at any point in time over the past several years. This surveillance not only includes possible crime scenes, but also homes, churches, workplaces, health clinics, or anywhere else.”
Photo taken from: Tom Williams / Associated Press
(click or tap to enlargen)
The University of Pennsylvania researchers also recommend that healthcare organizations eliminate or take steps to minimize their use of apps and other third party features that require or enable tracking.
EFF found that Fog Data currently has at least 18 contracts with law enforcement agencies and its marketing materials claim it has “billions” of data points about “over 250 million” devices, and that its data can be used to learn where targets work, live, and associate.
All of the advocates are urging passage of privacy legislation including the American Data Protection and Privacy Act as well as further action by Google.
Accountable tech concluded that Google can and should stop collecting and retaining user location data – and enact the changes it previously announced. As long as Google retains the data, it could be forced to hand it over to law enforcement. The FCC could also tighten its rules on cell phone location tracking.
EFF’s research on Fog Reveal caught the attention of Representative Ana Eschoo (D- CA) who has urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the company. In a letter to the agency she said:
“…tools like Fog Reveal may present new threats as states across the country pass increasingly draconian bills restricting people’s access to abortion services and targeting people seeking reproductive healthcare.
The use of Fog Reveal is also seemingly incompatible with protections against unlawful search and seizure guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment. Consumers do not realize that they are potentially nullifying their Fourth Amendment rights when they download and use free apps on their phones.”
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Post-Roe, Google’s Data Collection and Policies Could Endanger Those Seeking Abortions, November 29, 2022, https://accountabletech.org/research/googles-data-collection-and-policies-could-endanger-those-seeking-abortions/
Prevalence of Third-Party Tracking on Abortion Clinic Web Pages, Ari B. Friedman, Lujo Bauer ; Rachel Gonzales, Matthew S. McCoy, JAMA Intern Med. September 8, 2022