Today's Big Tech Story

Go Ahead, Post the Stupid Photo of Yourself From 10 Years Ago

Critics have raised fears that the pictures could be used for corporate surveillance, but this is a molehill on the mountain.

• Alexis C. Madrigal
• Jan 16, 2019

How to Lose Tens of Thousands of Dollars on Amazon

A growing number of self-proclaimed experts promise they can teach anyone how to make a passive income selling cheap Chinese goods in the internet's largest store. Not everyone’s getting rich quick.

• Alana Semuels
• Jan 2, 2019

When a Sponsored Facebook Post Doesn’t Pay Off

The agency Speakr set influencers up with brands for lucrative campaigns—and then stiffed them.

• Taylor Lorenz
• Dec 26, 2018

Facebook Didn’t Sell Your Data; It Gave It Away

In exchange for even more data about you from Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, Microsoft, and others

• Alexis C. Madrigal
• Dec 19, 2018

Rising Instagram Stars Are Posting Fake Sponsored Content

“It’s street cred—the more sponsors you have, the more credibility you have.”

• Taylor Lorenz
• Dec 18, 2018

What Tumblr’s Porn Ban Really Means

The platform used to be a home for sexual subcultures that don’t always thrive elsewhere.

• Steven W. Thrasher
• Dec 7, 2018

Everything on Social Media Is for Sale

Welcome to the age of micro-monetization.

• Taylor Lorenz
• Nov 27, 2018

The App at the Heart of the Movement to End Affirmative Action

“WeChat is a monster. There’s nothing like it on Earth.”

• Alia Wong
• Nov 20, 2018

How Sheryl Sandberg Lost Her Feminist Street Cred

The latest news about Facebook is a wake-up call that “leaning in” doesn’t mean doing right.

• Olga Khazan
• Nov 16, 2018

When Elon Musk Tunnels Under Your Home

The billionaire is drilling for futuristic transit under Los Angeles. He didn’t have to ask the neighbors first.

• Alana Semuels
• Nov 15, 2018

Amazon’s HQ2 Will Only Worsen America’s ‘Great Divergence’

In today’s economy, well-off people live in big cities, while everyone else gets pushed out. Bringing new Amazon offices to Virginia and New York could hasten the process.

• Alana Semuels
• Nov 13, 2018

The Amazon Selling Machine

The e-commerce company has so much information about us that it’s become expert at shilling us things we didn’t even know we needed. No wonder its advertising business is booming.

• Alana Semuels
• Oct 25, 2018

Instagram Has a Massive Harassment Problem

The platform has cast itself as the internet’s kindest place. But users argue harassment is rampant, and employees say efforts to stem it aren’t funded well or prioritized.

• Taylor Lorenz
• Oct 15, 2018

Police-Grade Surveillance Technology Comes to the Playground

After Parkland, schools are installing gunshot-detection systems typically used in cities like Oakland and Chicago. But are they worth the expense?

• Sidney Fussell
• Oct 4, 2018

Trump Is Not Texting You

What should have been a routine, required national test of the Wireless Emergency Alerts system has become a crucible for public distrust.

• Ian Bogost
• Oct 3, 2018

Elon Musk Is His Own Worst Enemy

The SEC’s suit against the Tesla CEO is the latest sign that he can’t separate his company’s performance from his vision for the future.

• Ian Bogost
• Sep 28, 2018