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YouTube Announces New Policies to Target Medical Misinformation
YouTube on Tuesday announced it is creating a new framework to crack down on medical misinformation on the platform.
The platform has faced controversy in recent years for its algorithm and the way it can direct viewers to misleading and extremist content. In 2021, YouTube said it removed more than 1 million videos related to “dangerous coronavirus information” since the beginning of the outbreak in the U.S.
YouTube said it will use three categories, “Prevention, Treatment and Denial” to sort the kinds of medical misinformation on the platform.
It will remove content that contradicts guidance from health authorities on the prevention and transmission of certain conditions, including vaccines. It will also take down content that contradicts guidance on treatments, including videos that tout unproven remedies in place of seeking care, and content that denies the existence of specific conditions, including COVID-19, according to YouTube.
Biden Administration Asks Supreme Court to Hear Cases on State Social Media Laws
The Biden administration urged the Supreme Court on Monday to take up multiple cases involving state laws that restrict social media companies’ moderation of their own platforms, arguing the laws violate the First Amendment rights of companies such as Meta and Twitter.
The U.S. government’s brief adds pressure on the court to rule on whether states can force tech platforms to host content they would otherwise remove under their terms of service.
Should the court agree to hear the cases involving laws passed by Texas and Florida, the outcome could reshape what Americans nationwide can see on digital social platforms.
The state laws in question allow social media users to sue tech companies for alleged political censorship, including suspensions, bans and other penalties a user might experience as a result of violating a platform’s terms. They also require tech platforms to explain their individualized content moderation decisions to users.
Viewed as a bellwether for internet speech and private rights in the face of government power, the cases take place against the backdrop of conservative claims that major social media platforms have a political agenda to discriminate against right-wing users by stifling their speech.
Sage Steele Leaves ESPN After Settling Her Lawsuit Over COVID Vaccine Comments
ESPN and host Sage Steele have settled a lawsuit she filed after being disciplined for comments she made about the company’s policy requiring employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Steele posted on social media on Tuesday that she is leaving the Bristol, Connecticut-based company, where she has worked since 2007.
Steele was taken off the air for 10 days in October 2021 and pulled from several high-profile assignments, including coverage of the New York City Marathon, the Rose Parade, and the annual ESPNW Summit, because she criticized ESPN and The Walt Disney Co.’s requirement that employees be vaccinated against COVID-19, according to her lawsuit, which was filed in May 2022 in Connecticut Superior Court.
She also was required to make a public apology, the lawsuit said.
She said that while she respected everyone’s decision to get vaccinated, she believed that a corporate mandate was “sick” and “scary to me in many ways.” She also indicated that she did not want to get vaccinated but did so to keep her job and support her family, according to the lawsuit.
Students Blocked From Campus When COVID Hit Want Money Back. Some Are Getting Refunds
Thousands of college students will get hundreds of dollars in compensation as colleges and universities move this summer to settle multimillion-dollar lawsuits stemming from canceled classes and activities during COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns. While some of the class-action suits against the colleges and universities are still in litigation, and still others dismissed, several major cases have been settled in recent weeks.
The settlements mean students who were charged tuition and fees but weren’t able to use in-person services during the pandemic shutdowns will receive some compensation, though they won’t be refunded for all the on-campus amenities they lost. The amounts depend on the total settlement figure, minus legal fees and other court expenses. Each case has a different timeline.
Most recently, the University of Delaware agreed in June to set up a $6.3 million fund to partially reimburse tuition and fees that the students paid for classes, housing and activities in 2020. The students argued that they did not receive the full benefit of in-person participation in academics and extracurricular activities. Each student is expected to receive several hundred dollars in cash as part of the agreement.
There have been about 300 such lawsuits, according to Times Higher Education, a British publication that partners with The Wall Street Journal on rankings and evaluations of U.S. schools.
NYC Teachers Fired Over Vaccine Refusal Rally at S.I. Courthouse; Judge’s Ruling Looms
Teachers fired for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine gathered Monday outside the Staten Island Courthouse in St. George amid an ongoing civil complaint against the city, while a Staten Island judge revealed the date he’ll rule on the litigation.
The ongoing suit against the city, backed by the Children’s Health Defense, calls for reinstatement, back pay and damages for pain and suffering, including but not limited to the loss of homes, having to move out of state and a lack of health insurance. Plaintiffs and their supporters allege widespread religious discrimination by city officials, citing a policy instated at the height of the pandemic that refused religious exemptions for all denominations except for Christian Scientists.
After hearing arguments from both sides Monday, state Supreme Court Justice Ralph Porzio said he will rule on Sept. 6 whether the city acted lawfully and if lost wages should be restored to the plaintiffs. He will also rule on the legality of a class action lawsuit filed against the state.
In October, Porzio ruled that New York City Sanitation workers who were fired for not getting vaccinated against COVID-19 should be reinstated and given back pay. As part of his decision, he ruled that Mayor Eric Adams’ lifting of the vaccine mandate for some private employees earlier this year — notably, athletes and entertainers — was evidence that the public worker mandate was arbitrary and unreasonable.
Can You Break Your Smartphone Addiction?
After a decade-plus of growing ubiquity, people have started to reckon with the negative effects of smartphones — especially their addictive nature. It’s resulted in a growing push to reduce smartphone use, especially after the early pandemic lockdowns caused people to spend more time online. But the new wave of smartphone pushback is running up against a big problem.
Even as we recognize the drawbacks of our excessive use of smartphones, the world around us is increasingly designed to force us to use them for essential tasks. In many ways, we’ve so thoroughly integrated the devices into our lives, it’s become impossible to break free.
The Pandemic Learning Loss Was Worse for Kids With Special Needs. Now, Startups Are Helping Students With Autism, Dyslexia and ADHD Get Back on Track.
This upcoming school year marks the second since the return to in-person learning. And neurodivergent students that require special education assistance and mental health support are behind the learning curve.
Guadalupe Lara, an intensive behavioral instruction aide for students with special needs at Pacific Elementary in Manhattan Beach, California, said helping her students recover from the learning losses during remote learning during the pandemic has been very tough. During the last school year, some students have been unable to recognize words that they were previously able to comprehend in reading lessons, she said.
Nine-year-old students with registered learning differences saw a drop in reading and math scores in 2022 compared to their peers in 2020, Edweek reported, citing long-term trend data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
U.S. Watchdog Teases Crackdown on Data Brokers That Sell Americans’ Personal Information
The U.S. government plans to rein in the vast data broker industry with new, privacy-focused regulations that aim to safeguard millions of Americans’ personal information from data breaches, violent criminals and even artificial intelligence chatbots.
The coming proposal by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would extend existing regulations that govern credit reports, arrest records and other data to what the agency describes as the “surveillance industry,” or the sprawling economy of businesses that traffic in increasingly digitized personal information.
The potential rules, which are not yet public or final, could bar data brokers from selling certain types of consumer information — including a person’s income or their criminal and payment history — except in specific circumstances, the CFPB said.
The push could also see new restrictions on the sale of personal information such as Social Security numbers, names and addresses, which the CFPB said data brokers often buy from the major credit reporting bureaus to create their own profiles on individual consumers.
Montana TikTok Ban: Digital Rights Groups Join the Fight Against ‘Unconstitutional’ Bill
Digital rights advocate groups have officially joined the legal fight against a proposed Montana TikTok ban.
After being approved in May, the “unconstitutional new restrictions” are set to be enforced on January 1, 2024. This will make Montana the first U.S. state to completely ban TikTok, making the use of a VPN service a necessity to keep accessing the popular video-sharing app.
The social media company and five TikTok creators have decided to challenge the legislation’s lawfulness in court. Here’s how digital rights advocates are backing up their fight.
The fate of TikTok, its creators, and viewers is on a ticking clock in Montana and so are citizens’ rights to free speech and access to information. That’s why the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed an amicus brief on August 11 in support of the ongoing lawsuit.
