Politics

The Obama administration is preparing to unveil a legislative proposal for a far-reaching overhaul of the National Security Agency’s once-secret bulk phone records program in a way that — if approved by Congress — would end the aspect that has most alarmed privacy advocates since its existence was leaked last year, according to senior administration Continue Reading →

Former presidents — they’re just like us (minus the generous pension, 24-hour-a-day Secret Service protection, dedicated presidential library and a few other perks that come to mind). If you want to keep something private, send an old-fashioned letter, advises former President Jimmy Carter. The 89-year-old former president told NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell in a new Continue Reading →

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and a handful of other CEOs had an “honest talk” with President Obama Friday afternoon at a hastily arranged meeting to discuss Silicon Valley’s continued unhappiness with U.S. government surveillance practices. White House officials characterized the meeting as a “continued dialogue” on the surveillance issue, but it appeared to be a Continue Reading →

Question-and-answer service Quora has begun rolling out verified profiles for public figures, with President Barack Obama signing up as the first user to receive a blue checkmark. Obama has taken to Quora to answer questions about the Affordable Care Act ahead of the March 31 enrollment deadline. On-boarding the president of the US has become Continue Reading →

Turkey’s battle over Net censorship is heating up, with the government there reportedly blocking a method that let citizens sidestep a Twitter ban, the White House expressing “serious concern” over the ban, and Google reportedly refusing requests from Turkish authorities to take down YouTube videos that cast the prime minister in a critical light. Bloomberg Continue Reading →

The White House is testing smartphones from Samsung and LG Electronics for internal use, a person familiar with the matter said, threatening one of the last and most high-profile strongholds of BlackBerry. The devices are being tested by the White House’s internal technology team and the White House Communications Agency, a military unit in charge Continue Reading →

Should driving with Google Glass be allowed? There’s no precedent; technology is almost always ahead of strategy, tactics and the law. In my book Television Disrupted: The Transition from Network to Networked TV, 2nd Edition (York House Press, 2008), I looked for lessons from the Civil War: “Often described as the first modern war, the Continue Reading →

Mark Zuckerberg isn’t the first name that comes to mind as a champion of privacy. But the seemingly endless revelations of NSA surveillance programs has inspired Facebook’s founder to call up no less than President Obama himself to defend his users from government intrusion. On Thursday Zuckerberg posted a statement on Facebook calling on the Continue Reading →

President Obama’s somewhat testy but endlessly hilarious Between Two Ferns clip with Zach Galifianakis is storming the Internet on Tuesday, racking up more than 3 million views in just a few hours. Even more, it appears that the president’s gambit — looking a little silly — was worth it to reach a core demographic of Continue Reading →

Microsoft is trying to persuade politicians to take out targeted ads on Xbox Live, Skype, MSN and other company platforms as midterm elections begin heating up around the country. To plug the idea, Microsoft officials handed out promotional materials Thursday at CPAC, the annual conference for conservatives. It’s the latest move by tech companies to Continue Reading →