Shades of the US's SOPA (anti-anti-piracy legislation) debate in eastern Europe, quite literally (see this Associated Press story): Street and online protests in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia against the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, or ACTA, remind me of a killer TED Talk by copyright legal expert and Harvard University law professor Lawrence Lessig: "Reexamining the Remix." Do … [Read more...] about Revisiting copyright law – worldwide
Too focused on fear of multitasking?
"A flighty mind may be going somewhere," writes Hanif Kureishi – a playwright, screenwriter, filmmaker, novelist, and short-story writer – in the New York Times. In a very personal account of a "wretched [five-year] period" at the bottom of his class in a suburban-London secondary school, he writes about how some of us really need distraction, and how can we parents really tell (as his couldn't … [Read more...] about Too focused on fear of multitasking?
FTC finds kid apps’ privacy practices ‘disAPPointing’
The US Federal Trade Commission has turned this week's wakeup call about mobile-app privacy into a conference call, adding kids' privacy to the conversation. The title of its just-released report "Mobile Apps for Kids: Current Privacy Disclosures are Disappointing" (that's the FTC authors' cute italicization) summarizes the Commission's conclusions well. But to make their point crystal clear, the … [Read more...] about FTC finds kid apps’ privacy practices ‘disAPPointing’
Growing signs social media are good for us
The other night the three of us still at home were talking face-to-face with our son and brother 1,000 miles away for about an hour, for free (well, not counting the cost of our family Internet connection). While enjoying the banter, I was wondering at this ability we had to look into each other's eyes across great distances on computer screens. Only the ability to hug would be better. But having … [Read more...] about Growing signs social media are good for us
About the sexual abuse cases in L.A. district
A disturbing story about the sexual misconduct of teachers in Los Angeles Unified School District is not about technology but it highlights some issues we've been addressing in the Internet safety field. "The reopening of an investigation into teacher misconduct at a high school in Hollywood and the initiation of another in … is leading to concerns that the lewd behavior uncovered at Miramonte … [Read more...] about About the sexual abuse cases in L.A. district