Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly news podcast co-created by Techdirt’s Mike Masnick and Everything in Moderation’s Ben Whitelaw. Each episode looks at the latest news in online speech, covering issues regarding trust & safety, content moderation, regulation, court rulings, new services & technology, and more.The podcast regularly features expert guests with experience in the trust & safety/online speech worlds, discussing the ins and outs of the news that week and what it may mean for the industry. Each episode takes a deep dive into one or two key stories, and includes a quicker roundup of other important news. It's a must-listen for trust & safety professionals, and anyone interested in issues surrounding online speech.If your company or organization is interested in sponsoring Ctrl-Alt-Speech and joining us for a sponsored interview, visit ctrlaltspeech.com for more information.Ctrl-Alt-Speech is produced with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, a fiscally-sponsored multi-donor fund at Global Impact that supports charitable activities to build a more robust, capable, and inclusive Trust and Safety ecosystem and field.
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Twitter Inc. Official 'Bird Logo' Fascia Sign - An Iconic Fixture from the Company’s Market Square Headquarters in San Francisco (RR Auction)AI Slop Is a Brute Force Attack on the Algorithms That Control Reality (404 Media)Spain to impose massive fines for not labelling AI-generated content (Reuters)China Announces Generative AI Labeling to Cull Disinformation (Bloomberg) After Axing Fact-Checkers, Meta’s Community Notes Will Have Help From X (Adweek)UK to crack down on illegal content across social media (Financial Times)Lobsters and the Online Safety Act (Lobste.rs)We are sorry. The forum has closed down (The Hamster Forum)‘Kids can bypass anything if they’re clever enough!’ How tech experts keep their children safe online (The Guardian)The Snapchat Move That Leaves Teen Girls Heartbroken (WSJ)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. If you’re in London on Thursday 27th March, join Ben, Mark Scott (Digital Politics) and Georgia Iacovou (Horrific/Terrific) for an evening of tech policy, discussion and drinks. Register your interest. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
3/20/25 • 53:44
In this week’s roundup of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Bluesky's CEO on the Future of Social Media (YouTube)The Take It Down Act isn’t a law, it’s a weapon (The Verge)Trump Promises To Abuse Take It Down Act For Censorship, Just As We Warned (Techdirt)Ex-Facebook employee alleges sexual harassment and human rights failures in new memoir (NBC News)Meta goes to arbitrator to prevent whistleblower from promoting tell-all book (CNBC) Reddit's rule check feature will help users avoid breaking subreddit rules (Engadget)Users Make Voices Heard as Appeals Centre’s First Decisions Overturn Platforms (Appeals Centre Europe) 'Pretty Vile:' Spotify Removes Andrew Tate 'Pimping Hoes' Class After Employees Complain (404 Media)Keep kids off Roblox if you're worried, its CEO tells parents (BBC)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor Resolver, the leading provider of risk intelligence and advisory services. In our Bonus Chat, Karley Chadwick, head of platform Trust and Safety Delivery at Resolver, talks about emerging safety trends in gaming and augmented reality and reflects on her experience as a threat analyst.If you’re in London on Thursday 27th March, join Ben, Mark Scott (Digital Politics) and Georgia Iacovou (Horrific/Terrific) for an evening of tech policy, discussion and drinks. Register your interest. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
3/13/25 • 56:39
In this week’s roundup of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host Kat Duffy, Senior Fellow for Digital and Cyberspace Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations and CEO of RightsDuff Strategies. They cover:Why Techdirt Is Now A Democracy Blog (Whether We Like It Or Not) (Techdirt)America’s Global Presence Isn’t ‘Soft Power.’ It’s a Superpower. (Foreign Policy)These teenage boys were blackmailed online – and it cost them their lives (USA Today)United Nations Convention against Cybercrime (UN)Chairman Jordan Subpoenas Big Tech for Information on Foreign Censorship of American Speech (House Judiciary Committee)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
3/7/25 • 51:17
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Facebook & Content Moderation (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver)Australia takes enforcement action against Telegram for serious delay in terror and child sexual abuse transparency (eSafety Commission) US judge says Trump Media, Rumble need not follow Brazilian order they deem censorship (Reuters)Why the Rumble Suit Against a Brazilian Justice is Not About Free Speech (Tech Policy Press)Underage Users at Meta, Snap Show Large Australian Breaches (Bloomberg)‘Big Tech Censorship’ of Users Targeted by Trump’s FTC Chief (Bloomberg)Instagram 'Error' Turned Reels Into Neverending Scroll of Murder, Gore, and Violence (404 Media)Meta’s ‘free speech’ revamp divides oversight board (Financial Times)Microsoft Hosted Explicit Videos of This Startup Founder for Years. Here's How She Got Them Taken Down (Wired)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
2/27/25 • 50:10
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben are joined by a group of students from the Media Law and Policy class at the American University School of Communication. Together they cover:U.K. orders Apple to let it spy on users’ encrypted accounts (Washington Post)US lawmakers respond to the UK’s Apple encryption backdoor request (Engadget)UK: Encryption order threatens global privacy rights (Human Rights Watch)Analysis: AI Summit emphasizes innovation and competition over trust and safety (DFR Lab)An overdue idea for making the internet safer just got the funding it needs (Platformer)Google-backed public interest AI partnership launches with $400M+ for open ecosystem building (Techcrunch)Britain dances to JD Vance’s tune as it renames AI institute (Politico) Section 230 Still Works in the Fourth Circuit (For Now)–M.P. v. Meta (Eric Goldman)TikTok Opts to Not Take Section 230 Immunity Fight to the US Supreme Court (Law.com)Shopify says risk of fraud, not Nazi swastika, was reason for Kanye West store takedown (The Logic)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
2/14/25 • 58:26
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Elon’s Twitter Destruction Playbook Hits The US Government, And It’s Even More Dangerous (Techdirt)US presses Brussels for answers over EU social media law (Politico)Inside the Elon Musk-Jim Jordan ‘mind meld’ shaking up Capitol Hill (Politico)Musk adds Shell, Nestlé, Lego to X advertiser ‘boycott’ lawsuit (The Hill)Musk Shows Us What Actual Government Censorship On Social Media Looks Like (Techdirt)In wake of Meta moderation shift, advertisers have accepted new status quo: brand safety is a myth (Digiday)Meta sees no ‘noticeable impact’ in advertiser demand since content policy shift (Marketing Week)Amazon Raises Its Ad Spending on Elon Musk’s X, in Major Reversal (Wall Street Journal)Senator Hawley Proposes Jail Time for People Who Download DeepSeek (404 Media)Apple Blasts EU Laws After First Porn App Comes to iPhones (Bloomberg)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
2/6/25 • 53:34
In this week’s roundup of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host Renee DiResta, associate research professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. They cover:The new free speech crisis hiding in plain sight (MSNBC)‘Free Speech’ Warrior RFK Jr. Has Been Trying To Censor a Blogger for Years (Who What Why)In motion to dismiss, chatbot platform Character AI claims it is protected by the First Amendment (TechCrunch)Trump Signs Agreement Calling for Meta to Pay $25 Million to Settle Suit (WSJ)Meta’s Free-Speech Shift Made It Clear to Advertisers: ‘Brand Safety’ Is Out of Vogue (WSJ)X refuses to remove stabbing video watched by Southport killer (Financial Times)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
1/30/25 • 54:46
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Application Of Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act To TikTok (The White House)Restoring Freedom Of Speech And Ending Federal Censorship (The White House)America Is No Longer the Home of the Free Internet (The Atlantic)Good morning, America: Why India banned TikTok 5 years back (India Today)Facebook, X, YouTube to do more against online hate speech, EU says (Reuters)Commission welcomes the integration of the revised Code of conduct on countering illegal hate speech online into the Digital Services Act (European Commission)Bluesky 2024 Moderation Report (Bluesky)Bluesky's 2024 moderation report shows how quickly harmful content grew as new users flocked in (Engadget)The Technological Poison Pill: How ATProtocol Encourages Competition, Resists Evil Billionaires, Lock-In & Enshittification (Techdirt)We need to protect the protocol that runs Bluesky (MIT Technology Review)If you’re in London on Thursday 30th January, join Ben, Mark Scott (Digital Politics) and Georgia Iacovou (Horrific/Terrific) for an evening of tech policy, discussion and drinks. Register your interest.This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
1/24/25 • 53:02
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:TikTok Oral Arguments (Supreme Court)Biden administration looks for ways to keep TikTok available in the U.S. (NBC News)Trump considers executive order hoping to ‘save TikTok’ from ban or sale in U.S. law (Washington Post)TikTok Users Gleefully Embrace Even More Chinese App To Spite US TikTok Ban (Techdirt)Meta employees criticize Zuckerberg decisions to end fact-checking (CNBC)Meta moderators were already in Texas before Zuckerberg announced move, say ex-workers (The Guardian)Not Many Meta Employees Will Have to Move to Texas After All (Wired)Meta just flipped the switch that prevents misinformation from spreading in the United States (Platformer)Brazil expresses concern over Meta’s changes to content moderation (Al Jazeera)EU reassesses tech probes into Apple, Google and Meta (Financial Times)Despite DEI & content moderation reversals, advertisers won’t flee Meta (The Drum)Meta’s ‘free speech’ overhaul sparks advertisers’ concern (Financial Times)French Woman Says AI Brad Pitt Scammed Her Out of $850K (Hollywood Reporter)French TV show pulled after ridicule of woman who fell for AI Brad Pitt (The Guardian)Why This OnlyFans Model Posts Machine Learning Explainers to Pornhub (404 Media)If you’re in London on Thursday 30th January, join Ben, Mark Scott (Digital Politics) and Georgia Iacovou (Horrific/Terrific) for an evening of tech policy, discussion and drinks. Register your interest.This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
1/17/25 • 54:37
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Here's why Meta ended fact-checking, according to experts (ABC News)Meta Follows Elon Musk’s Lead, Moves Staffers to Billionaire-Friendly Texas (Wired)Leaked Meta Rules: Users Are Free to Post “Mexican Immigrants Are Trash!” or “Trans People Are Immoral” (The Intercept)Trust & Safety is how platforms put values into action (T&S Insider from Everything in Moderation)Nadler Releases Democratic Staff Report on Republicans' Deluded Theory to Undermine Free Speech (House Committee on the Judiciary)EU vows to 'energetically' pursue X probe under Digital rulebook (Bloomberg)Twitter Briefly Blocked The NY Post, Elon Cried Foul. Now He’s Doing Far Worse (Techdirt)The Great Decentralization (Noema Mag)If you’re in London on Thursday 30th January, join Ben, Mark Scott (Digital Politics) and Georgia Iacovou (Horrific/Terrific) for an evening of tech policy, discussion and drinks. Register your interest.This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
1/11/25 • 55:18
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Social media platforms have work to do to comply with Online Safety Act, says Ofcom (The Guardian)LFGSS and Microcosm shutting down 16th March 2025 (the day before the Online Safety Act is enforced) (LFGSS)The GamingOnLinux Forum is shutting (GamingOnLinux)Australia leads the world in setting new standards for online child safety (eSafety Commission)How will Australia's under-16 social media ban work? We asked the law's enforcer (NPR)Fentanyl Almost Killed Michael Brewer. Now He Wants Snap to Pay (Bloomberg)Telegram Moderation Overview (Telegram)U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to TikTok ban (CNBC)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. While Online Regulators may have stolen Christmas, Ctrl-Alt-Speech is going to try to take a short holiday break and will return in early January. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
12/20/24 • 52:31
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:He was suicidal and needed help. A 15-year-old girl pushed him to kill himself on a live stream (Washington Post)Romania’s top court annuls presidential election result (CNN)Continuing to protect the integrity of TikTok during Romanian elections (TikTok)Covert Facebook Network Found Targeting Romanian Voters (Bloomberg)TikTok pushes far right candidate content in Romanian election, Global Witness investigation shows (Global Witness)Romania annulled its presidential election results amid alleged Russian interference. What happens next? (Atlantic Council)X’s Yaccarino Praises Child Safety Bill and Urges House Backing (Bloomberg)Elon Musk’s X comes out in favor of pro-censorship law (Mashable - January 2024)Kenya’s President Wades Into Meta Lawsuits (TIME)Attacker Has Techdirt Reclassified As Phishing Site, Proving Masnick’s Impossibility Law Once Again (Techdirt)No actual moles were harmed in the making of this episode, which is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
12/13/24 • 52:56
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:TikTok Ban Upheld (DC Circuit)TikTok’s Romanian reckoning (Politico)Romania asks EU to investigate TikTok’s election handling after ultranationalist’s stunning win (Politico)TikTok Removes Covert Network Linked to Romanian Candidate (Bloomberg)GOP FTC Commissioners Abuse “Free Speech” Rhetoric To Push For Government Control Over Online Speech (Techdirt)Race to replace FTC chair Lina Khan pits antitrust hawks against candidate softer on Big Tech: sources (NY Post)Meta says it’s mistakenly moderating too much (The Verge)The Curious Case Of ChatGPT’s Banned Names: Hard-Coding Blocks To Avoid Nuisance Threats (Techdirt)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor Internet Society, a global nonprofit that advocates for an open, globally connected, secure and trustworthy Internet for everyone. In our Bonus Chat, Natalie Campbell and John Perrino from Internet Society join us to talk about the social media age restriction law in Australia, a proposed age verification bill in Canada, and the trend of age gating and age verification globally, and what it means for the open internet. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
12/6/24 • 63:16
In this week’s roundup of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host David Sullivan, the Executive Director of the Digital Trust & Safety Partnership. They cover:Trump's FCC Pick Wants to Be the Speech Police. That's Not His Job (Wired)Sauce for the Goose: The FCC Lacks Authority to Interpret Section 230 Post-Loper Bright (The Federalist Society)Roblox gives parents more power to protect the safety of young gamers (NBC)Meta should allow third party imagery of terrorist attacks, with a warning (Oversight Board)As Bluesky soars, Threads rolls out custom feeds globally (TechCrunch)Threads’ algorithm will focus more on the people you follow (The Verge)The communications minister cited a study in support of a teen social media ban. Its co-author disagrees (Crikey)Meta says it has removed 2 million accounts linked to pig butchering scams (The Record)You Too Can Hire an ‘Etsy Witch’ to Curse Elon Musk (Wired)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
11/22/24 • 51:37
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia follows The Guardian in quitting Elon Musk’s X due to disinformation and ‘disturbing content’ (Fortune)Bluesky attracts millions as users leave Musk's X after Trump win (Reuters)Advertisers set to return to X as they seek favour with Elon Musk and Donald Trump (Financial Times) The plan to ban children under 16 from social media (The Times) Should smartphones be banned in schools? (Financial Times) Facebook and Instagram to Offer Subscription for No Ads in Europe (Facebook) An update on political advertising in the European Union (Google)Facebook’s Algorithms Think a Small English Community Is Up to No Good (Gizmodo)Phony X accounts are meddling in Ghana’s election (Rest of World)Sockpuppet network impersonating Americans and Canadians amplifies pro-Israel narratives on X (DFR Lab)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
11/15/24 • 51:41
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Pennsylvania Becomes Hot Spot for Election Disinformation (NY Times)After Trump Took the Lead, Election Deniers Went Suddenly Silent (NY Times)X Is a White-Supremacist Site (The Atlantic)Papers, Please? The Republican Plan to Wall Off the Internet (Tech Policy Press)What Trump's Victory Means for Internet Policy (CNET)The government plans to ban under-16s from social media platforms. Here's what we know so far (ABC Australia)Canada orders shutdown of TikTok's Canadian business, app access to continue (Reuters)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
11/8/24 • 45:18
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:These look like Harris ads. Trump backers bought them (Washington Post)Facebook Took More Than $1 Million For Ads Sowing Election Lies (Forbes)Election officials are outmatched by Elon Musk’s misinformation machine (CNN)Election Falsehoods Take Off on YouTube as It Looks the Other Way (New York Times)Exploiting Meta’s Weaknesses, Deceptive Political Ads Thrived on Facebook and Instagram in Run-Up to Election (ProPublica)The U.S. Spies Who Sound the Alarm About Election Interference (New Yorker)This Is What $44 Billion Buys You (The Atlantic) How Russia, China and Iran Are Interfering in the Presidential Election (New York Times) Can A.I. Be Blamed for a Teen’s Suicide? (New York Times) 'Sickening' Molly Russell chatbots found on Character.ai (BBC) This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor Concentrix, the technology and services leader driving trust, safety, and content moderation globally. In our Bonus Chat, Dom Sparkes, Trust and Safety Director for EMEA, and David Elliot, Head of Technology, try to lighten the mood by discussing how to make a compelling business case for online safety and the importance of measuring ROI. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
11/1/24 • 58:25
Ben and Mike are technically off this week, but we decided to run an experiment. After discussing Google’s NotebookLM and its ability to create AI-generated podcasts about any content, Mike experimented with how it would handle one of the stories Mike & Ben discussed last week: Daphne Keller’s The Rise of the Compliant Speech Platform on Lawfare. Mike explains why we’re running this, some of the work that went into it, as well as his thoughts on the experiment, followed by the AI-generated version.This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
10/25/24 • 25:33
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:How Russian disinformation is reaching the U.S. ahead of the 2024 election (NBC News)The Rise of the Compliant Speech Platform (Lawfare)ExTwitter Makes It Official: Blocks Are No Longer Blocks (Techdirt)People are flocking to Bluesky as X makes more unwanted changes (The Verge)Instagram blames some moderation issues on human reviewers, not AI (TechCrunch)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our launch sponsor Modulate, which builds prosocial voice technology that combats online toxicity and elevates the health and safety of online communities. Mike Pappas joins us for our bonus chat, talking to Mike about the ever important decision between building your own trust & safety tools versus buying them from vendors. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
10/18/24 • 60:30
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:States sue TikTok over app’s effects on kids’ mental health (CNBC)Risks vs. Harms: Youth & Social Media (Substack)Instagram and Threads moderation is out of control (The Verge)TikTok lays off hundreds in Malaysia in move toward AI moderation (Asia Nikkei)Meta ‘Supreme Court’ expands with European center to handle TikTok, YouTube cases (Washingon Post)The DSA article you didn't know about, but should (T&S Insider)Streaming platform Kick bans Jack Doherty after he crashed his car on a livestream (Polygon) Truth Social Users Are Losing Ridiculous Sums of Money to Scams (Gizmodo)Hacked ‘AI Girlfriend’ Data Shows Prompts Describing Child Sexual Abuse (404 Media)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
10/11/24 • 52:12
In this week’s roundup of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host Professor Kate Klonick, who has studied and written about trust & safety for many years and is currently studying the DSA & DMA in the EU as a Fulbright Scholar. They cover:EU Commission’s Digital Fairness Fitness Check (European Commission)Differences in misinformation sharing can lead to politically asymmetric sanctions (Nature)Inside Two Years of Turmoil at Big Tech's Anti-Terrorism Group (Wired)Big Tech’s Promise Never To Block Access To Politically Embarrassing Content Apparently Only Applies To Democrats (Techdirt)Someone Put Facial Recognition Tech onto Meta's Smart Glasses to Instantly Dox Strangers (404 Media)Americans’ Views Mixed on Tech’s Role in Politics (Anchor Change with Katie Harbath)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor TaskUs, a leading company in the T&S field which provides a range of platform integrity and digital safety solutions. In our Bonus Chat at the end of the episode, Marlyn Savio, a psychologist and research manager at TaskUs, talks to Mike about a recent study they released regarding frontline moderators and their perceptions and experiences dealing with severe content. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
10/4/24 • 60:59
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Ben is joined by guest host Cathryn Weems, who has held T&S roles at Yahoo, Google, Dropbox, Twitter and Epic Games. They cover:Google outlines plans to help you sort real images from fake (The Verge)Fake AI “podcasters” are reviewing my book and it’s freaking me out (Ars Technica) We Don't Need Google to Help "Reimagine" Election Misinformation (Tech Policy Press)Social media owners top global survey of misinformation concerns (The Guardian)Expert Survey on the Global Information Environment (IPIE)X’s First Transparency Report Since Elon Musk’s Takeover Is Finally Here (Wired)Telegram will now provide some user data to authorities (BBC)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor Concentrix, the technology and services leader driving trust, safety, and content moderation globally. In our Bonus Chat at the end of the episode, clinical psychologist Dr Serra Pitts, who leads the psychological health team for Trust & Safety at Concentrix, talks to Ben about how to keep moderators healthy and safe at work and the innovative use of heart rate variability technology to monitor their physical response to harmful content. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
9/27/24 • 67:23
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Breton’s resignation could mark a new chapter for EU digital policy (Euractiv)Finnish horse enthusiast is an EU tech front-runner (Politico)Instagram, Facing Pressure Over Child Safety Online, Unveils Sweeping Changes (New York Times)Instagram to make teenagers’ profiles private by default (Financial Times)AI chatbots might be better at swaying conspiracy theorists than humans (Arstechnica)SocialAI offers a Twitter-like diary where AI bots respond to your posts (TechCrunch)Meta bans Russian state media for 'foreign interference’ (Reuters)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
9/20/24 • 51:52
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host Riana Pfefferkorn, a Policy Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human Centered AI. They cover:Australia threatens fines for social media giants enabling misinformation (Reuters)Social media ban for children to be introduced this year, but age limit undetermined (ABC)ASIO director-general Mike Burgess issues warning to big tech companies they may soon be forced to unlock encrypted chats (ABC)Utah Social Media Restrictions Likely Violate First Amendment, Judge Rules (Media Post)Nearly 40 states back surgeon general’s social media warning labels (The Verge)How TikTokers think about misinformation (Washington Post)Meta, TikTok, and Snap pledge to participate in program to combat suicide and self-harm content (TechCrunch)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
9/13/24 • 54:50
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Social networks can’t be forced to filter content for kids, says judge (The Verge)Judge Rejects Yet Another Attempt By Texas To Police Online Speech (Techdirt)Telegram apologizes for handling of deepfake porn content in S. Korea (Yonhap)Brazilian Supreme Court panel upholds X ban (Axios)Elon Musk’s Starlink backtracks to comply with Brazil’s ban on X (The Guardian)With Musk’s X banned in Brazil, its users carve out new digital homes (AP)The Internet Archive Loses Its Appeal of a Major Copyright Case (Wired)Posts That Include “From the River to the Sea” (Oversight Board)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
9/6/24 • 55:20
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:TikTok must face a lawsuit for recommending the viral ‘blackout challenge’ (The Verge)Third Circuit’s Section 230 TikTok Ruling Deliberately Ignores Precedent, Defies Logic (Techdirt)France charges Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, releases him on €5M bail (Politico) Elon Musk’s X could face ban in Brazil after failure to appoint legal representative (The Guardian)Zuckerberg says he regrets caving to White House pressure on content (Politico)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
8/30/24 • 53:03
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike is joined by guest host Daphne Keller, the Director of the Program on Platform Regulation at Stanford's Cyber Policy Center. They cover:Ninth Circuit Rules in Favor of NetChoice Over California’s Age Appropriate Design Code (Ninth Circuit)Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta on appellate court decision regarding California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (State of California)Regulating platform risk and design: ChatGPT says the quiet part out loud (Stanford Cyberlaw blog)X says it is closing operations in Brazil due to judge’s content orders (CNBC)Indigenous creators are clashing with YouTube’s and Instagram’s sensitive content bans (Rest of World)Teens are making thousands by debating Trump vs. Harris on TikTok (Rest of World)Forced to rethink this Patreon (Chris Klimas Patreon)Ninth Circuit Allows Case Against YOLO Technologies to Proceed (Ninth Circuit)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
8/23/24 • 61:35
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:EU takes shot at Musk over Trump interview — and misses (Politico)Online Safety Act not fit for purpose after far-right riots, says Sadiq Khan (The Guardian)See why AI detection tools can fail to catch election deepfakes (The Washington Post)Harris campaign's Google ads rewrite news headlines (Axios)Children to be taught how to spot extremist content and fake news online (The Guardian)The friendliest social network you’ve never heard of (The Washington Post)The FTC finalizes its rules clamping down on fake online reviews (Engadget) Trust & Safety as Preventative Healthcare (Delbius)A key part of California’s online safety law for kids is still on hold after appeals court ruling (The Verge)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
8/16/24 • 52:52
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Bluesky adds Techdirt founder Mike Masnick to its board (TechCrunch)X, Owned by Elon Musk, Brings Antitrust Suit Accusing Advertisers of a Boycott (New York Times)WFA Shutters GARM, X Antitrust Suit Cited (MediaPost)UK faces resistance from X over taking down disinformation during riots (Financial Times)Open letter to UK online service providers (Ofcom)Google and Meta struck secret ads deal to target teenagers (Financial Times) Turkey blocks access to Instagram for failure to comply with laws (Reuters)Harry and Meghan discuss 'protecting' their children (BBC)The Many Reasons Why NCMEC’s Board Is Failing Its Mission, From A NCMEC Insider (Techdirt)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
8/9/24 • 63:09
In this week's round-up of the latest news in online speech, content moderation and internet regulation, Mike and Ben cover:Jim Jordan Demands Advertisers Explain Why They Don’t Advertise On MAGA Media Sites (Techdirt)TikTok Has a Nazi Problem (Wired)NazTok: An organized neo-Nazi TikTok network is getting millions of views (Institute for Strategic Dialogue)How TikTok bots and AI have powered a resurgence in UK far-right violence (The Guardian)Senate Passes Child Online Safety Bill, Sending It to an Uncertain House Fate (New York Tmes)The teens lobbying against the Kids Online Safety Act (The Verge)Social Media Mishaps Aren’t Always Billionaire Election Stealing Plots (Techdirt)X suspends ‘White Dudes for Harris’ account after massive fundraiser (Washington Post)Why Won’t Google Auto-complete ‘Trump Assassination Attempt’? (Intelligencer)‘Technical glitch’ is no longer an excuse (Everything in Moderation from 2020)A message to our Black community (TikTok from 2020)This episode is brought to you with financial support from the Future of Online Trust & Safety Fund, and by our sponsor Discord. In our Bonus Chat at the end of the episode, Mike speaks to Juliet Shen and Camille Francois about the Trust & Safety Tooling Consortium at Columbia School of International and Public Affairs, and the importance of open source tools for trust and safety. Ctrl-Alt-Speech is a weekly podcast from Techdirt and Everything in Moderation. Send us your feedback at podcast@ctrlaltspeech.com and sponsorship enquiries to sponsorship@ctrlaltspeech.com. Thanks for listening.
8/2/24 • 63:04
