A U.S. federal judge has issued an injunction that restricts the Biden administration from meeting and communicating with social media companies to moderate their content. The ruling came in response to a lawsuit brought by Republican attorneys general, who argued the federal government had gone too far in its efforts to encourage social media companies to address posts. The judge noted that the government had failed to provide any evidence that its actions were necessary to protect public health or safety, and the ruling was welcomed by the Republican attorneys general. The ruling is likely to have a significant impact on the way social media companies moderate their content, and the Biden administration will likely appeal the decision.
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Meta Platforms, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, is set to launch a new microblogging app called Threads on Thursday, July 6th. The app is expected to rival Twitter and will allow users to retain their followers from Instagram and keep the same username. According to the app listing on Apple’s App Store, Threads is described as “Instagram’s text-based conversation app” and will allow users to discuss topics from current events to what’s trending. Meta Platforms is looking to capitalize on the recent controversy surrounding Twitter and offer users an alternative platform.
This week, airline passengers experienced a reprieve from the tens of thousands of weather-related flight delays, despite concerns that the new 5G wireless systems being rolled out near major airports could cause disruptions. Fortunately, predictions that the interference would cause massive flight groundings failed to come true, and data compiled by tracking service FlightAware showed that the number of flight delays and cancellations declined. However, bad weather continues to cause widespread delays in the Northeast.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has announced a temporary limit on the number of tweets users can read daily in order to address "extreme levels of data scraping & system manipulation". Verified accounts are limited to 6,000 posts a day and unverified accounts to 300 posts a day. This is the latest widespread outage since Musk acquired the social media site late last year, and reactions to the change have been mixed.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) voted against the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, but celebrated the arrival of $1.4 billion in federal funds to his state. President Joe Biden mocked Tuberville for his reaction, and invited him to the groundbreaking ceremony. The money will be used to expand broadband access to underserved areas in Alabama, and is expected to be put to use in the coming months.
The Federal Trade Commission has filed a lawsuit against Amazon, accusing the online retailer of using deceptive tactics to enroll consumers into its Prime program without their knowledge and making it difficult for them to cancel their subscription. FTC Chair Lina Khan said Amazon has been "tricking and trapping people into recurring subscriptions without their consent," and the FTC is seeking a court order to stop Amazon from using deceptive tactics and to provide refunds to those affected.
Several U.S. agencies have been hacked as part of a global cyberattack that has affected dozens of companies and organizations. CISA is providing support to the affected agencies and is working to identify the vulnerability and ensure it is patched. The agency is also urging organizations to take steps to protect their systems and is providing resources to help them respond to the attack.
GLAAD's Social Media Safety Index found that all five major social media platforms failed to protect LGBTQ+ users from hate speech and harassment for the second consecutive year. Twitter received the lowest score, and GLAAD called it "the most dangerous platform for LGBTQ people". The organization is calling on the platforms to take meaningful action to protect LGBTQ+ users and create a safe and inclusive online space.