What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future

After Facebook and Twitter banned thousands of accounts in the wake of the Capitol riots, fringe groups are flocking to platforms like Signal and Telegram. With the inauguration just days away, and government officials warning of violence, QAnon believers and Stop the Steal protesters are now communicating in encrypted spaces. What, if anything, is being planned? Guest: Will Sommer, politics reporter at the Daily BeastHostLizzie O’Leary  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, in the wake of violent protests at the Capitol, the social media platforms took unprecedented steps to rein in the president. Facebook banned his account at least through Inauguration Day. Twitter removed tweets and locked his account for 12 hours. Will these measures really make a difference? And how is it that two CEOs came to have so much power over the president’s reach?Guest: Danielle Citron, professor at UVA Law School and vice president of the Cyber Civil Rights InitiativeHostLizzie O’Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timnit Gebru, renowned AI ethics researcher and co-founder of Black in AI, discusses the controversy surrounding her departure from Google, focusing on topics like ethics, AI, and racism in the tech industry. She also delves into the significance of representation in AI research and expresses frustration with Google's lack of action and diversity initiatives.

This week, the FTC and more than 40 state attorneys general brought antitrust lawsuits against Facebook. And they’re not pulling their punches. They are calling for Facebook to spin off Instagram and WhatsApp into independent companies. In other words, breakup.The lawsuits represent some of the most significant antitrust action in the United States in the last 40 years. Will they get results?Guest:Tony Romm, tech policy reporter at the Washington PostHostLizzie O’Leary  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ransomware attacks--when hackers break into digital systems, encrypt files, and demand payment to unlock them, isn’t new. But 2020 has seen an explosion in the frequency of these hacks, which are often targeted at schools and hospitals. Who is behind this recent spate of attacks? And is there anything schools and hospitals can do to protect themselves?Guests:Jessica Beyer, teacher at Baltimore County Public SchoolsDave Uberti, cyber security reporter at the Wall Street JournalHostLizzie O’Leary  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Joe Biden takes office in two months, the federal government will take on a new stance in its fight to contain the coronavirus. The broad strokes of that strategy have been outlined in debates and on campaign websites, but now the real work begins.Two weeks ago, the president-elect appointed a team of 13 advisers to answer some key questions. How can the new government win the trust of the 73 million Americans who voted for Donald Trump? What would a national mask mandate look like? How will the different vaccines be distributed?A member of President-elect Biden’s COVID-19 council takes us behind the scenes.Guest: Celine Gounder, member of the Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Advisory Board, and host of the American Diagnosis and Epidemic podcasts.HostLizzie O’Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Barack Obama first won the White House, back in 2008, with Joe Biden as his vice president, the executive branch’s stance towards tech and tech companies was seen as cooperative, progressive, and forward-thinking. This time around, the tech giants can expect a very different relationship.Will Biden be the president to finally rein in big tech?Guest: Cecilia Kang, technology reporter at The New York TimesHostLizzie O’Leary  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Companies like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash have always argued that their workers are independent contractors, not employees. This distinction has been crucial in their rise from startups to multi-billion-dollar companies.On Tuesday, Californians sided with these companies by approving Prop 22, a ballot measure that enshrines workers’ non-employee status. Why did progressive Californians side with Big Tech? And will the rest of the country follow California’s lead?Guest: Sam Harnett, Tech and Labor reporter at KQEDHostLizzie O’Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2016 general election changed the way we think about information online and its power to sway results. Four years later, Americans will vote amid a surge of misinformation, collected and distorted to fit political narratives.What can people and platforms do to protect the truth in this most consequential election?Guests:Renee DiResta, Research manager at the Stanford Internet ObservatoryJustin Hendrix, founder of Tech Policy Press Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been 22 years since the federal government last brought a meaningful legal challenge to a big tech company. Back then, when the Justice Department sued Microsoft, the outcome changed the direction of the company for years to come. Now, the Department of Justice is coming for Google. Can the search giant resist this challenge to its role as the gatekeeper of the internet?Guest: Tony Romm, technology reporter at the Washington PostHostLizzie O’Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices