Jan 31 Online political ads remain cheap, efficient and ripe for misuse By Barbara Ortutay, Amanda Seitz, Associated Press Online political ads are still vulnerable to manipulation in this year's U.S. election. That's according to experts who warn that foreign governments and domestic grifters could try to influence the election again this year, just as they did in 2016. Continue reading
Jan 22 Watch 8:18 Why the UN thinks Saudi crown prince helped to hack Jeff Bezos’ phone United Nations investigators have unveiled an extraordinary charge: that the crown prince of Saudi Arabia may have been personally involved in hacking Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos, one of the world’s richest men. Nick Schifrin reports and talks to Agnès… Continue watching
Jan 09 Watch 4:00 News Wrap: UK’s House of Commons approves Jan. 31 for Brexit In our news wrap Thursday, Britain’s House of Commons gave final approval to the country’s leaving the European Union on January 31st. The bill will become law once the House of Lords gives its pro forma consent. Also, officials responding… Continue watching
Jan 09 Facebook again declines to limit political ad targeting By Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press Instead, it is announcing much more limited “transparency features” that aim to give users slightly more control over how many political ads they see. Continue reading
Jan 07 Watch 6:21 News Wrap: Putin travels to Syria to meet with Assad, military officials In our news wrap Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to Syria to meet with its president, Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus. Syrian state media released images of the two leaders, who also met with military commanders. Also, the Justice Department… Continue watching
Jan 07 Facebook bans deepfakes in fight against online manipulation By Kelvin Chan, Associated Press Facebook says it is forbidding the false but realistic clips created with artificial intelligence and sophisticated tools. But the policy leaves plenty of loopholes. Continue reading
Jan 01 Watch 7:42 Local newsrooms across the country are closing. Here’s why that matters Across the country, local newspapers are printing fewer pages, less frequently -- and sometimes collapsing entirely. Recent studies paint a grim picture of the decline in local newspapers and the impact it has on American politics. Jeffrey Brown reports and… Continue watching
Dec 20 Twitter and Facebook delete foreign state-backed accounts By Mae Anderson, Associated Press Twitter's and Facebook's announcements underscore the fact that misinformation concerns aren't limited to the U.S. and Russia. Continue reading
Dec 13 Watch 8:15 Are social media giants doing enough to prevent the spread of misinformation? Social media has revolutionized the way we connect and communicate -- and certainly not all for the better. In his new book, “Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation,” Andrew Marantz explores how digital platforms full… Continue watching
Dec 13 Watch 7:21 How this nomadic music group is bridging cultural divides By Ali Rogin Tinariwen’s members are Tuaregs, an ethnic group from all across the Sahara desert. They’re nomads who lay down musical rather than physical roots, and their music follows a rich Tuareg lyrical tradition -- gone electric. But although the Tinariwen feel… Continue watching