Rethinking Ethics Training in Silicon Valley
“If technology can mold us, and technologists are the ones who shape that technology, we should demand some level of ethics training for technologists.”
The Case for Standardized and Secure Voting Technology
Officials in the United States should make ballots verifiable—or go back to paper.
What People Really Want From News Organizations
Pundits complain that people are satisfied with the echo chambers they’re in, but that’s not quite right.
Why News Organizations Can't Go It Alone
Journalists still expect people to turn to them first to make sense of the world. They shouldn’t.
Podcasting Is the New Talk-Radio
The intimacy of the format has the potential to make listeners feel things—and emotional resonance affects how people perceive information.
How Bots and Humans Might Work Together to Stop Harassment
Platforms and news organizations both need to do more with technology to protect people.
How Applied Mathematics Could Improve the Democratic Process
A low-tech solution to America’s voting problems
Getting to Know Your Online Doppleganger
Platforms should give users the opportunity to experience informational environments as others see them.
Corporate Surveillance Is Turning Human Workers Into Fungible Cogs
Emerging technologies are enabling more invasive management practices.
Gratitude for Invisible Systems
One way to improve democracy is for more people to appreciate its complex technological underpinnings.
Democracy Has a Design Problem
“What exactly do you do when you go to the polling place?”
Freeing Technology From the Pace of Bureaucracy
Machines and software can improve how well our democracy works for its citizens—but only with human-guided efforts.
Protecting the Public Commons
At a moment when institutional distrust is surging, there’s an urgent need to support civics education.
The Thinning Line Between Commercial and Government Surveillance
Privacy doesn’t just benefit individuals. It’s crucial for a functioning democracy.
Does Technology Aid Political Action or Distract From It?
This month, as part of our ongoing series about how technology is transforming civic life, we asked readers to share…
Broken Technology Hurts Democracy
… and fixing both begins in American schools.
Restoring the Public's Trust in American Journalism
Faith in crucial institutions requires the free flow of reliable information.
How Platforms Are Poisoning Conversations
Political discussions online are perceived as less respectful, less likely to be resolved, less civil, and more angry than discussions in other forums.
The Voting Technology We Really Need? Paper
Software-independent backup systems are more important than ever.
Online Voting Won’t Save Democracy
But letting people use the internet to register to vote is a start.
Disentangling Democracy From Geography
It’s time for representative government to catch up with internet-era concepts of community.
The Antidote to Authoritarianism
Without the open internet, Americans lose an essential tool in the fight against discriminatory mass surveillance.
The Case for a Taxpayer-Supported Version of Facebook
“A public social media platform would have the civic mission of providing us a diverse and global view of the world.”
Democracy Needs Storytellers
Digital tools for documenting and sharing people’s experiences are crucial in times of political upheaval.
You Cannot Encrypt Your Face
Democracy may be impossible in a world where no dissent is anonymous.
When Internet Memes Infiltrate the Physical World
Deplorable frogs and “nasty women” aren’t just online for comic relief. They’re central to how people engage with political issues.
The Age of Misinformation
Facebook, Twitter, Google, and Microsoft must recognize a special responsibility for the parts of their services that host or inform public discourse.
Lessons From Isaac Asimov's Multivac
It isn’t too late to stop technologies from further destabilizing fragile democratic institutions.
The Next Great Experiment
Technology is changing the way people think about—and participate in—democratic society. What does that mean for democracy?