1. Monthly archive
  2. December 2018

December 2018

New report on Russian disinformation, prepared for the Senate, shows the operation’s scale and sweep

A report prepared for the Senate that provides the most sweeping analysis yet of Russia’s disinformation campaign around the 2016 election found the operation used every major social media platform to deliver words, images and videos tailored to voters’ interests to help elect President Donald Trump — and worked even harder to support him while in office. The report is the first to study the millions of posts provided by major technology firms to the Senate Intelligence Committee, led by Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), its chairman, and Sen. Mark Warner (VA), its ranking Democrat.

Tech Workers Got Paid in Company Stock. They Used It to Agitate for Change.

Silicon Valley technology firms are known for giving stock to their workers, a form of compensation that often helps employees feel invested in their companies. But tech workers are now starting to use those shares to turn the tables on their employers. As many tech employees take a more activist approach to how their innovations are being deployed and increasingly speak out on a range of issues, some are using the stock as a way to demand changes at their companies. Employee shareholder proposals may ultimately not be effective since shareholder-led proposals are often shot down.

Text, Californians, text: State commission won't pursue tax on text messaging

California's Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) announced it would no longer be pursuing a measure that would've added a surcharge to phone bills for text messaging. "On Dec. 12, 2018, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a declaratory ruling finding that "text messaging" is an information service, not a telecommunications service, under the Federal Telecommunications Act," the CPUC wrote in its statement. The CPUC noted that if texting were a telecommunications service it would be subject to state tax under California law.

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