Mammon category archive
It’s All about the Algorithm 0
Anne Applebaum explains.
I don’t agree with her wholeheartedly, because she doesn’t differentiate between the actions of Facebook and those of Facebook posters, nor does she remark on the credulousness of the American Facebook user. Nevertheless, as regards how Facebook and other anti-social media platforms manipulate the material that Facebook users see when they log in, I submit that her piece is worth a read. Said manipulation may not be “publishing,” but at the very least it is some form of “polishing.”
A snippet:
At the same time, Facebook has declared itself free of responsibility: The company continues to argue that it is not legally liable for material that appears on its platform because it is not a “publisher,” even though it behaves in every other way like a publisher, including by collecting advertising revenue that used to go to publishers. The result is that anyone who seeks to spread false information on Facebook or any other social-media site is, in practice, no longer bound by laws on libel or false advertising that were explicitly designed to stop them.
The Snaring Economy 0
At the San Francisco Chronicle, Chirag Asaravala wonders whether there is dark side to the “there’s an app for that” model of employment. A snippet:
(snip)
They are, in fact, the signs of emerging oppression and growing social stratification. These app-based services are virtual canaries in the coal mine of a country that is foundering and struggling to make meaningful work for its young people.
Republican Core Values 0
Atrios sums them up.
The Return of Snake Oil 0
At the San Francisco Chronicle, Lisa Fullam exposes the duplicity behind Donald Trump’s advocacy for “the right to try” unproven “medical” treatments.
Consumer Predation Agency 0
The Trumpling continues.
Watchdog groups are up in arms because, under Mulvaney, the CFPB has put on hold a rule that would restrict payday lenders and their high-interest-rate loans. The agency has also dropped a lawsuit against online lenders charging 900 percent interest rates. Critics say these moves are payback for campaign contributions to Mulvaney when he was a congressman representing South Carolina.
Much more at the link.
