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

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus dissect the latest fallout from the Facebook Cambridge Analytica scandal, wherein the profile data of over 50 million Facebook users was obtained and allegedly used by Trump’s online voter targeting firm. The hosts go deep into some of the subplots of that scandal, and what it means for Facebook, elections, and your privacy. They’ll also discuss the death of a pedestrian in Arizona at the hands of an Uber self-driving car, and what that means for the future of autonomous vehicles. Finally, a tech story that has gotten less attention that it probably deserves: a change in the law that governs whether websites are liable for what their users say. Will and April are joined by David Carroll, a professor at Parsons School of Design at the New School, who focuses on political campaigns and data targeting. He’s suing Cambridge Analytica in the UK to find out what the company did with his data, and where it went. The hosts talk with him about the mechanics of how campaigns use voters’ persona data to win elections.Don’t Close My Tabs:Twitter: Sally Kuchar on Housing in the Bay AreaThe Atlantic: My Cow Game Extracted Your Facebook DataPodcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus take a deep look into gerrymandering and the highly specialized mapping technology that has allowed for political parties - especially the GOP since 2010 - to drastically change the way political districts are drawn and controlled. The hosts are joined by David Daley, a senior fellow at FairVote and the author of  Ratf**ked: The True Story Behind the Secret Plan to Steal America's Democracy. This interview was recorded on March 13th, so no news or tabs this week, but we’ll be back to our regular schedule next week. Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus discuss Elon Musk’s plan to… colonize Mars? They explain how sanctuary cities may unwittingly be sharing data with ICE through police surveillance tech. And Facebook VP Adam Mosseri, head of the news feed, joins the show for a wide-ranging interview. He explains how his team thinks about its responsibility to inform the public, and how they tackle complex problems ranging from fake news in the United States to Facebook-fueled hate campaigns in Myanmar.Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus try to make sense of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s rare honest assessment of his company’s shortfalls, and what new state regulations mean for self-driving cars and trucks. Cody Wilson, the man behind the first 3D printed gun, joins the hosts to talk about his vision of a “Wikileaks for guns” and why he thinks gun control is no longer possible. And, as always, Don’t Close My Tabs: this week Will looks at the “deepfakes” video phenomenon and April discusses former Trump aide Sam Nunberg’s email inbox exhaustion.Don’t Close My Tabs:Twitter: Sam Nunberg on CNN with Jake TapperNew York Times: Here Comes the Fake Videos, TooPodcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus take a look at Vero, the new social network that has people fleeing Instagram and Facebook, how conspiracy theories after the Parkland massacre have bubbled to the top of YouTube’s search results, and the controversy over how Facebook charges for campaign ads, after a Wired report showed that Trump faced much lower rates than Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn joins the show to talk about net neutrality, the upcoming Sinclair merger, sky-high prison phone rates and what the FCC is doing to help restore communications post Hurricane Maria. Don’t Close My Tabs:Wired: How Trump Conquered Facebook - Without Russian AdsUber Driver’s Playlists: @TEEJUS Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus dig into special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s recent indictment of 13 Russian nationals and 3 Russian companies for their role in tampering with the 2016 election. Jonathan Albright from the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia join the hosts to talk about his take on the indictments, and the research he’s conducted that show how the big social media companies were manipulated by Russian trolls from the Internet Research Agency at a rate far greater than those companies claimed. Don’t Close My Tabs:The Verge: Google Removes ‘View Image’ Button From Search ResultsVulture: The Story of Combat Jack, Hip-Hop’s Flagship Podcaster Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus lamentthe anticlimactic end to Waymo and Uber’s court drama, explain why teens are pissed at Snapchat, and examine John Perry Barlow’s contributions to the internet we know today. The hosts are joined by Justin Rosenstein, co-founder of Asana and the former Facebooker behind the like button, to talk about the distraction crisis and whether Silicon Valley can solve a problem it created.Don’t Close My Tabs:The Robot Dog That Can Open a Door Is Even More Impressive Than It LooksCandy Heart Messages Written by a Neural Network Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus talk about a new anti-tech lobbying group formed by ex-employees of Facebook and Google, the big trial that’s happening this week in San Francisco that involves Waymo accusing Uber of stealing trade secrets in a winner-take-all race for self-driving supremacy. The hosts are also joined by Marcy Wheeler, an independent journalist and long time expert on the ins and outs of FISA and mass digital surveillance. And as always, Don’t Close My Tabs, the hosts’ picks for best on the Web this week.Don’t Close My Tabs:New York Times: Making a Crypto Utopia in Puerto RicoNew York Times: A Driver’s Suicide Reveals the Dark Side of the Gig Economy Podcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus talk about about a clever effort to restore net neutrality in Montana and New York. They also discuss Facebook’s latest news feed tweaks: this time it’s trying to resuscitate the local news economy by putting more stories from local sources in your feed. The hosts are joined by Dipayan Ghosh, a former privacy and policy advisor to Facebook, the Obama Administration, and Hillary Clinton’s campaign -  to talk about his recent report on how digital advertising technologies lend themselves to disinformation campaigns, and what the government can do about it. And as always, Don’t Close My Tabs, their picks for best on the web this week.Don’t Close My Tabs:The Guardian: Fitness Tracking App Strava Gives Away Location of Secret US Army BasesThe New York Times: The Follower FactoryPodcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus talk about Facebook’s fraught plan to rate the media and the cool yet creepy Amazon store that automatically bills you for your purchases. The hosts are joined by Daily Beast technology and culture reporter Taylor Lorenz to talk about the incredible fame, wealth, and influence of young YouTube stars—and their startling business savvy. And, as always, Don’t Close My Tabs: Netflix’s price hike and an inside scoop on last year’s bizarre blow-up by the CEO of HQ Trivia.Don’t Close My Tabs:The Washington Post: Netflix raised its prices, and we kept subscribing anywayThe Daily Beast: CEO of HQ, the Hottest App Going: If You Run This Profile, We’ll Fire Our HostPodcast production by Max Jacobs.If Then plugs: You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices