theverge--2020-05-21--Apple and Google’s COVID-19 notification system won’t work in a vaccum

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Last month , before Google and Apple announced their joint effort to enable COVID-19 exposure notifications , I wrote about the trouble with using Bluetooth-based solutions for contact tracing .
Chief among the issues is getting a meaningful number of people to download any app in the first place , public health officials told me .
And now that such apps are being released in the United States , we ’ re seeing just how big a challenge that is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on April 22 that the app , Healthy Together , would be an integral part of getting the state back on its feet : “ This app will give public health workers information they need to understand and contain the pandemic and help Utahns get back to daily life.
” The state spent $ 2.75 million to purchase the app and is paying a monthly maintenance fee of $ 300,000 , according to contracts obtained by BuzzFeed News .
But as of May 18 , just 45,000 of the state ’ s 3.2 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to Twenty .
That ’ s roughly 1.4 percent adoption , well below the 60 percent or so that public health officials say is necessary to make such exposure notifications effective .
And it bodes ill for other states ’ efforts to distribute their own apps , particularly in a world where the federal response continues to be confused and even counterproductive .
But a new reason for hope arrived today , in the form of an official release of the Apple/Google exposure notification protocol .
The system , which allows official @ @ @ @ @ @ @ features to help identify potential new cases of COVID-19 , is now available as an update to iOS and Android .
Three states are working on projects so far , Russell Brandom reported today at The Verge : In a call with reporters today , Apple and Google said 22 countries have received API access to date .
Later this year , an update to iOS and Android will allow people to begin participating in the program even if they haven ’ t yet downloaded an official public health app .
But as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the best-designed tech interventions won ’ t be effective if they ’ re not supported by contact tracing and isolation of new cases .
So let ’ s check in to see how we ’ re doing on those fronts .
“ Contact tracing ” was the name originally given to the Apple/Google initiative , before the companies acknowledged that what they were doing didn ’ t quite live up to that standard .
The term refers to getting in touch with people who may have been exposed to a disease and directing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the current consensus view is that this work is best done by human beings .
The Apple/Google system , which has been rebranded as “ exposure notification , ” is intended to augment the work of human contact tracers .
Around the United States and the world , public health departments are hiring people as contact tracers .
Officials estimate that we will need at least 100,000 such workers in the United States , and by April 11,000 had already been hired .
California and Massachusetts began hiring early ; Illinois , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states that have followed .
There ’ s clearly much more work to be done , and quickly , but here ’ s a case where federal inaction hasn ’ t totally stopped states from developing a response .
( More federal money to hire contact tracers would help , though . )
And what about isolating new cases ?
This is the process whereby people infected with COVID-19 temporarily relocate to government-run facilities to receive care in an environment where they are unlikely to spread the disease to others .
Israel and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been using such facilities .
San Francisco , in a possible step toward a contact isolation program , has begun paying to house people who were homeless in hotels as a measure to reduce the spread of the disease .
Lyman Stone makes the case for rapid deployment of contact isolation in the Washington Post .
He imagines a world in which people receive tickets for failing to comply with orders to isolate — but also one in which the facilities themselves are nice enough to get people to go along with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all of us are looking for answers to the pandemic , an approach that combines testing , tracing , and isolation appears to be as close to a sure thing that we have , short of a vaccine .
Caroline Chen looked at the research Tuesday in ProPublica : The Apple/Google collaboration represents a chance to use the companies ’ vast size and power to make a positive contribution to public health during a crisis .
But it will only ever be one piece of the puzzle — and not necessarily one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ good news is that we increasingly understand how COVID-19 can be brought under control .
The open question is whether the United States government , to which we have entrusted the job of keeping us all safe , will do what is necessary to make it happen .
Total cases in the US : More than 1,547,300 Total deaths in the US : At least 92,600 Total test results ( positive and negative ) in New York : 1,467,739 Total test results ( positive and negative ) in New Jersey : 520,182 Data @ @ @ @ @ @ @ data from The COVID Tracking Project .
⭐ Twitter won ’ t add a “ misleading ” label to an article shared by Trump ’ s campaign manager , Brad Parscale , that claims hydroxychloroquine has a “ 90 percent chance of helping ” COVID-19 patients .
Even though the claim is misleading , Twitter says it won ’ t add a label because the link contains no direct call for action .
Here ’ s Adi Robertson at The Verge : China has launched a Twitter offensive in the COVID-19 information war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official sites has almost doubled since January , and the number of diplomatic Twitter accounts has tripled .
In recent days , these accounts have been spreading a conspiracy theory that the virus came from a government lab in the US .
( Anna Schecter / NBC ) Here ’ s how “ Plandemic ” went from a niche conspiracy video about COVID-19 to a mainstream phenomenon .
This account includes a blow-by-blow look at who shared what , and when .
( Sheera Frenkel , Ben Decker and Davey Alba / The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ firm NSO Group created a web domain that looked as if it belonged to Facebook to entice targets to click on links that would install the company ’ s powerful phone hacking technology .
Facebook is already suing the surveillance firm for leveraging a vulnerability in WhatsApp to let NSO clients remotely hack phones .
( Joseph Cox / Vice ) Facebook hired Aparna Patrie , a Senate Judiciary attorney , to its public policy team amid ongoing antitrust scrutiny .
Patrie served as committee counsel under Sen. Richard Blumenthal .
( Keturah @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deal with the US Department of Defense to build cloud technology designed to detect and respond to cyberthreats .
The news comes two years after workers at the search giant protested Google ’ s contract with the Pentagon for Project Maven , an initiative that used AI to improve analysis of drone footage .
( Richard Nieva / CNET ) A judge in Singapore sentenced a man to death via a Zoom call for his role in a drug deal .
It ’ s one of just two known cases where a capital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( John Geddie / Reuters ) The rollout of Twitch ’ s Safety Advisory Council has been a disaster .
this piece argues .
The group is supposed to advice on issues of safety and harassment , and one of the council members has already become the target of harassment since joining .
( Nathan Grayson / Kotaku ) ⭐ ByteDance ’ s valuation has risen to more than $ 100 billion in recent private share transactions .
The news reflects expectations that TikTok ’ s parent company will keep pulling in new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Lulu Yilun Chen , Vinicy Chan , Katie Roof , and Zheping Huang : ⭐ Twitter is testing a way to let you limit how many people can reply to your tweets .
If you ’ re part of the test , when you compose a tweet , you ’ ll be able to select if you ’ ll allow replies from everyone , people you follow , or only people you @ mention .
There are a lot of interesting implications here with regard harassment and abuse — and also free @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has the story : Facebook ’ s new AI tool will automatically identify items people put up for sale .
The company ’ s “ universal product recognition model ” uses artificial intelligence to identify consumer goods , from furniture to fast fashion to fast cars .
( James Vincent / The Verge ) Deutsche Bank analysts say Facebook ’ s push into online shopping could generate a $ 30 billion jump in annual revenue .
The company will make money off transaction fees , as well as a possible increase in advertising @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Insider ) Mark Zuckerberg went on CBS to discuss Shops .
The interview also gets into Facebook ’ s responsibility to manage misinformation on the platform .
Facebook will limit offices to 25 percent occupancy , put people on shifts and require temperature checks when it lets employees back into workplaces in July .
Staff will also have to wear masks in the office when not social distancing .
( Mark Gurman and Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg ) Video chat tools like Meet , Zoom , BlueJeans serve as meeting emulators .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the meeting , but don ’ t capture the actual interactions , this writer argues .
True !
( Paul Ford / Wired ) Zoom suspended its free service to people in China .
As of May 1st , individual free users can no longer host meetings on Zoom , but will still be able to join them .
( Yifan Yu / Nikkei ) YouTube added bedtime reminders to help people log off late at night .
The feature is part of a broader set of YouTube wellness and screen time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Google ’ s Digital Wellbeing initiative .
A charming throwback to the days when we cared about screen time .
( Nick Statt / The Verge ) The secure messaging app Signal added PINs , a new feature to help people move their profiles across devices .
The move is intended to make the company less reliant on phone numbers as its users ’ primary identification .
( Bijan Stephen / The Verge ) People are hiding their social distance lapses from social media , a reversal of the typical use of Instagram @ @ @ @ @ @ @ activities .
All the secret quarantine relationships happening right now will make for a great Netflix series in 2025 .
( Kaitlyn Tiffany / The Atlantic ) Students are failing AP tests because the College Board testing portal doesn ’ t support the default photo format on iPhones .
Students now have to spend weeks studying before retaking the test .
Interfaces are important !
Someone should start a newsletter about them !
( Monica Chin / The Verge ) Stuff to occupy you online during the quarantine .
Update your phone .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest version of iOS or Android to begin participating in exposure notification .
Check out beloved satirical website Clickhole , which returned on Wednesday under its new ownership .
Play Crucible , the first big video game developed by Amazon .
The Verge ’ s Nick Statt found the shooter derivative but uniquely enjoyable .
The joke in the above tweet is that Twitter disabled replies using the new audience-limiting features it unveiled today .
Related joke : Send us tips , comments , questions , and exposure notifications : casey @ theverge.com @ @ @ @ @

Last month, before Google and Apple announced their joint effort to enable COVID-19 exposure notifications, I wrote about the trouble with using Bluetooth-based solutions for contact tracing. Chief among the issues is getting a meaningful number of people to download any app in the first place, public health officials told me. And now that such apps are being released in the United States, we’re seeing just how big a challenge that is.
Utah Gov. Gary Herbert said on April 22 that the app, Healthy Together, would be an integral part of getting the state back on its feet: “This app will give public health workers information they need to understand and contain the pandemic and help Utahns get back to daily life.” The state spent $2.75 million to purchase the app and is paying a monthly maintenance fee of $300,000, according to contracts obtained by BuzzFeed News. But as of May 18, just 45,000 of the state’s 3.2 million people had downloaded Healthy Together, according to Twenty.
That’s roughly 1.4 percent adoption, well below the 60 percent or so that public health officials say is necessary to make such exposure notifications effective. And it bodes ill for other states’ efforts to distribute their own apps, particularly in a world where the federal response continues to be confused and even counterproductive.
But a new reason for hope arrived today, in the form of an official release of the Apple/Google exposure notification protocol. The system, which allows official public health apps to use system-level Bluetooth features to help identify potential new cases of COVID-19, is now available as an update to iOS and Android. Three states are working on projects so far, Russell Brandom reported today at The Verge:
Alabama is developing an app in connection with a team from the University of Alabama, while the Medical University of South Carolina is heading up a similar project in collaboration with the state’s health agency. Most notably, North Dakota is planning to incorporate the system into its Care19 app, which drew significant criticism from users in its early versions. “As we respond to this unprecedented public health emergency, we invite other states to join us in leveraging smartphone technologies to strengthen existing contact tracing efforts,” North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum said in a statement, “which are critical to getting communities and economies back up and running.”
In a call with reporters today, Apple and Google said 22 countries have received API access to date. Later this year, an update to iOS and Android will allow people to begin participating in the program even if they haven’t yet downloaded an official public health app.
But as we’ve discussed here before, the best-designed tech interventions won’t be effective if they’re not supported by contact tracing and isolation of new cases. So let’s check in to see how we’re doing on those fronts.
“Contact tracing” was the name originally given to the Apple/Google initiative, before the companies acknowledged that what they were doing didn’t quite live up to that standard. The term refers to getting in touch with people who may have been exposed to a disease and directing them to testing and other resources, and the current consensus view is that this work is best done by human beings. The Apple/Google system, which has been rebranded as “exposure notification,” is intended to augment the work of human contact tracers.
Around the United States and the world, public health departments are hiring people as contact tracers. Officials estimate that we will need at least 100,000 such workers in the United States, and by April 11,000 had already been hired. California and Massachusetts began hiring early; Illinois, Georgia, and Texas are among the states that have followed. There’s clearly much more work to be done, and quickly, but here’s a case where federal inaction hasn’t totally stopped states from developing a response. (More federal money to hire contact tracers would help, though.)
And what about isolating new cases? This is the process whereby people infected with COVID-19 temporarily relocate to government-run facilities to receive care in an environment where they are unlikely to spread the disease to others. Israel and Denmark are among the countries that have been using such facilities. San Francisco, in a possible step toward a contact isolation program, has begun paying to house people who were homeless in hotels as a measure to reduce the spread of the disease.
Lyman Stone makes the case for rapid deployment of contact isolation in the Washington Post. He imagines a world in which people receive tickets for failing to comply with orders to isolate — but also one in which the facilities themselves are nice enough to get people to go along with the idea voluntarily:
This system also encourages compliance because the centralized facilities would provide isolated individuals with all their basic needs (plus daily supervision so they would get treatment if they become sick). Food and medication can be delivered, WiFi would be free, and governments should provide financial compensation for lost work time. And, since covid-19 is much less dangerous to kids, families could choose for their children to be quarantined with them or separately, whichever they prefer. All of this would require legislation by state governments, but none of it is infeasible. Alas, contact isolation sounds scary to many people. It conjures images of internment, stigmatization or family separation. But the truth is that the curtailment of our liberties would be minuscule compared with the society-wide lockdowns Americans have been enduring.
At a time when all of us are looking for answers to the pandemic, an approach that combines testing, tracing, and isolation appears to be as close to a sure thing that we have, short of a vaccine. Caroline Chen looked at the research Tuesday in ProPublica:
Researchers in the U.K. used a model to simulate the effects of various mitigation and containment strategies. The researchers estimated that isolating symptomatic cases would reduce transmission by 32%. But combining isolation with manual contact tracing of all contacts reduced transmission by 61%. If contact tracing only could track down acquaintances, but not all contacts, transmission was still reduced by 57%. A second study, which used a model based on the Boston metropolitan area, found that so long as 50% of symptomatic infections were identified and 40% of their contacts were traced, the ensuing reduction in transmission would be sufficient to allow the reopening of the economy without overloading the health care system. The researchers picked Boston because of the quality of available data, according to senior author Yamir Moreno, a professor at the institute for biocomputation and physics of complex systems at the University of Zaragoza in Spain. “For other locations, these percentages will change, however, the fact that the best intervention is testing, contact tracing and quarantining remains,” he said.
The Apple/Google collaboration represents a chance to use the companies’ vast size and power to make a positive contribution to public health during a crisis. But it will only ever be one piece of the puzzle — and not necessarily one of the larger pieces, either. The good news is that we increasingly understand how COVID-19 can be brought under control. The open question is whether the United States government, to which we have entrusted the job of keeping us all safe, will do what is necessary to make it happen.
Virus tracker
Total cases in the US: More than 1,547,300
Total deaths in the US: At least 92,600
Reported cases in California: 84,449
Total test results (positive and negative) in California: 1,339,316
Reported cases in New York: 359,235
Total test results (positive and negative) in New York: 1,467,739
Reported cases in New Jersey: 150,399
Total test results (positive and negative) in New Jersey: 520,182
Reported cases in Illinois: 98,300
Total test results (positive and negative) in Illinois: 621,684
Governing
⭐ Twitter won’t add a “misleading” label to an article shared by Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, that claims hydroxychloroquine has a “90 percent chance of helping” COVID-19 patients. Even though the claim is misleading, Twitter says it won’t add a label because the link contains no direct call for action. Here’s Adi Robertson at The Verge:
The incident is an early test of Twitter’s expanding fight against misleading health information. This month, Twitter started labeling tweets that made false or disputed claims about the novel coronavirus, in addition to removing misinformation that could incite harm. A company spokesperson, however, said the tweet is “currently not in violation of the Twitter Rules and does not qualify for labeling.” Twitter says it’s prioritizing tweets that contain a potentially harmful call to action; it’s singled out messages that encouraged people to damage 5G cell towers, for instance. It says it won’t step in to label all tweets that contain unverified or disputed information about the coronavirus. So far, Facebook also hasn’t made a call on whether the story violates its anti-misinformation rules. But a Facebook spokesperson told The Verge that the article would likely be eligible for fact-checking. The platform typically flags content that’s rated entirely or partially false, warning users and reducing its reach.
China has launched a Twitter offensive in the COVID-19 information war. Twitter output from China’s official sites has almost doubled since January, and the number of diplomatic Twitter accounts has tripled. In recent days, these accounts have been spreading a conspiracy theory that the virus came from a government lab in the US. (Anna Schecter / NBC)
Here’s how “Plandemic” went from a niche conspiracy video about COVID-19 to a mainstream phenomenon. This account includes a blow-by-blow look at who shared what, and when. (Sheera Frenkel, Ben Decker and Davey Alba / The New York Times)
The Israeli surveillance firm NSO Group created a web domain that looked as if it belonged to Facebook to entice targets to click on links that would install the company’s powerful phone hacking technology. Facebook is already suing the surveillance firm for leveraging a vulnerability in WhatsApp to let NSO clients remotely hack phones. (Joseph Cox / Vice)
Facebook hired Aparna Patrie, a Senate Judiciary attorney, to its public policy team amid ongoing antitrust scrutiny. Patrie served as committee counsel under Sen. Richard Blumenthal. (Keturah Hetrick / LegiStorm)
Google signed a deal with the US Department of Defense to build cloud technology designed to detect and respond to cyberthreats. The news comes two years after workers at the search giant protested Google’s contract with the Pentagon for Project Maven, an initiative that used AI to improve analysis of drone footage. (Richard Nieva / CNET)
A judge in Singapore sentenced a man to death via a Zoom call for his role in a drug deal. It’s one of just two known cases where a capital punishment verdict has been delivered remotely. (John Geddie / Reuters)
The rollout of Twitch’s Safety Advisory Council has been a disaster. this piece argues. The group is supposed to advice on issues of safety and harassment, and one of the council members has already become the target of harassment since joining. (Nathan Grayson / Kotaku)
Industry
⭐ ByteDance’s valuation has risen to more than $100 billion in recent private share transactions. The news reflects expectations that TikTok’s parent company will keep pulling in new advertisers. Here’s Bloomberg’s Lulu Yilun Chen, Vinicy Chan, Katie Roof, and Zheping Huang:
“The trading of ByteDance is reflective of the global wave of consumers who agree that ByteDance can displace Facebook as the leading social network,” said Andrea Walne, a partner at Manhattan Venture Partners who follows the secondary markets. [...] ByteDance has grown into a potent online force propelled in part by a TikTok short video platform that’s taken U.S. teenagers by storm. Investors are keen to grab a slice of a company that draws some 1.5 billion monthly active users to a family of apps that includes Douyin, TikTok’s Chinese twin, as well as news service Toutiao. That’s despite American lawmakers raising privacy and censorship concerns about its operation. This week, it poached Walt Disney Co. streaming czar Kevin Mayer to become chief executive officer of TikTok.
⭐ Twitter is testing a way to let you limit how many people can reply to your tweets. If you’re part of the test, when you compose a tweet, you’ll be able to select if you’ll allow replies from everyone, people you follow, or only people you @ mention. There are a lot of interesting implications here with regard harassment and abuse — and also free expression. Jay Peters at The Verge has the story:
Limiting who can reply to your tweets could help prevent abuse and harassment on the platform. By keeping replies to a limited set of people, in theory, you could have more thoughtful and focused conversations with people of your choosing without the risk of trolls jumping into the conversation.
Facebook’s new AI tool will automatically identify items people put up for sale. The company’s “universal product recognition model” uses artificial intelligence to identify consumer goods, from furniture to fast fashion to fast cars. (James Vincent / The Verge)
Deutsche Bank analysts say Facebook’s push into online shopping could generate a $30 billion jump in annual revenue. The company will make money off transaction fees, as well as a possible increase in advertising dollars. (Rob Price / Business Insider)
Mark Zuckerberg went on CBS to discuss Shops. The interview also gets into Facebook’s responsibility to manage misinformation on the platform.
Facebook will limit offices to 25 percent occupancy, put people on shifts and require temperature checks when it lets employees back into workplaces in July. Staff will also have to wear masks in the office when not social distancing. (Mark Gurman and Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg)
Video chat tools like Meet, Zoom, BlueJeans serve as meeting emulators. They attempt to copy and repeat the form of the meeting, but don’t capture the actual interactions, this writer argues. True! (Paul Ford / Wired)
Zoom suspended its free service to people in China. As of May 1st, individual free users can no longer host meetings on Zoom, but will still be able to join them. (Yifan Yu / Nikkei)
YouTube added bedtime reminders to help people log off late at night. The feature is part of a broader set of YouTube wellness and screen time tools released in 2018 as part of Google’s Digital Wellbeing initiative. A charming throwback to the days when we cared about screen time. (Nick Statt / The Verge)
The secure messaging app Signal added PINs, a new feature to help people move their profiles across devices. The move is intended to make the company less reliant on phone numbers as its users’ primary identification. (Bijan Stephen / The Verge)
People are hiding their social distance lapses from social media, a reversal of the typical use of Instagram where people once bragged about their social activities. All the secret quarantine relationships happening right now will make for a great Netflix series in 2025. (Kaitlyn Tiffany / The Atlantic)
Students are failing AP tests because the College Board testing portal doesn’t support the default photo format on iPhones. Students now have to spend weeks studying before retaking the test. Interfaces are important! Someone should start a newsletter about them! (Monica Chin / The Verge)
Things to do
Stuff to occupy you online during the quarantine.
Update your phone. You’ll need to have the latest version of iOS or Android to begin participating in exposure notification.
Play Crucible, the first big video game developed by Amazon. The Verge’s Nick Statt found the shooter derivative but uniquely enjoyable.
And finally...
The joke in the above tweet is that Twitter disabled replies using the new audience-limiting features it unveiled today. Related joke:
Talk to us


theverge--2020-05-21--BuzzFeed’s quizzes get new multiplayer mode to help you socialize from home

BuzzFeed has introduced a multiplayer version of its classic quizzes called Quiz Party , which lets you and up to three friends complete them simultaneously in your browser .
The feature gives you a unique URL to share with friends so you can quickly found out , as a group , what geological epoch matches your personality or what Disney princess you are based on your blood type .
( Disclaimer : these are not , so far as we know , real BuzzFeed quizzes . )
At the moment the functionality is quite basic .
You ’ re each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ own , and there ’ s no chat feature to let you talk to your friends .
But it ’ s a lot more social than simply sharing the results of a quiz on social media , and waiting for friends to complete it in their own time .
Although you work through the questions individually , you can see each player ’ s progress at the top of the screen , and you get your results as a group .
So it means there ’ s nowhere to hide when a quiz @ @ @ @ @ @ @ house ( read : Hufflepuff ) .
BuzzFeed ’ s CTO Peter Wang tells TechCrunch that the company is seeing an explosion of interest in quizzes .
Traffic had tripled year-over-year as of March this year Wang said , with interest apparently being driven by everyone trying to keep themselves entertained while cooped up at home during the pandemic .
He adds that the company plans to expand Quiz Party over time .
That means more quizzes , but it could also mean new functionality like music and chat support , the CTO @ @

BuzzFeed has introduced a multiplayer version of its classic quizzes called Quiz Party, which lets you and up to three friends complete them simultaneously in your browser. The feature gives you a unique URL to share with friends so you can quickly found out, as a group, what geological epoch matches your personality or what Disney princess you are based on your blood type. (Disclaimer: these are not, so far as we know, real BuzzFeed quizzes.)
At the moment the functionality is quite basic. You’re each still essentially completing the quiz on your own, and there’s no chat feature to let you talk to your friends. But it’s a lot more social than simply sharing the results of a quiz on social media, and waiting for friends to complete it in their own time.
Although you work through the questions individually, you can see each player’s progress at the top of the screen, and you get your results as a group. So it means there’s nowhere to hide when a quiz inevitably sorts you into the wrong Hogwarts house (read: Hufflepuff).


theverge--2020-05-21--Twitter brings its new quote tweet view to Android and the web

Twitter made it easier to see quote tweets on iOS on May 12th , and that new functionality is now @ @ @ @ @ and for the web , the company announced today .
If you tap or click @ @ @ @ @ word on a tweet , you ’ ll be taken to a new page that @ @ @ @ @ of two columns : a column showing retweets with comments and a column showing all @ @ @ @ @ can see how it works in the video below : The new feature the latest @ @ @ @ @ rolled out recently to make it easier to follow and track conversations on the platform @ @ @ @ @ m a particular fan of is the new interface for threaded conversations , which is @ @ @ @ @ web users .
And just yesterday , Twitter began testing a way to let users @ @ @ @ @ which could help prevent abuse and harassment on the platform but does have some thorny @ @ @ @ @ and the spreading of misleading or fake information .

Twitter made it easier to see quote tweets on iOS on May 12th , and that new functionality is now available on Twitter for Android and for the web, the company announced today .
If you tap or click on the “Retweets” word on a tweet, you’ll be taken to a new page that lets you look at one of two columns: a column showing retweets with comments and a column showing all retweets without comments. You can see how it works in the video below:
The new feature the latest of many that Twitter has rolled out recently to make it easier to follow and track conversations on the platform. One that I’m a particular fan of is the new interface for threaded conversations, which is available to some iOS and web users. And just yesterday, Twitter began testing a way to let users limit replies to tweets, which could help prevent abuse and harassment on the platform but does have some thorny implications for politicians’ tweets and the spreading of misleading or fake information.


theverge--2020-05-21--Watch the new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s Tenet that just debuted in Fortnite

Christopher Nolan , one of Hollywood ’ s biggest proponents of the theatrical experience , is the latest director to see his movie get the Fortnite treatment .
The latest trailer for his upcoming film Tenet debuted in Fortnite on Thursday .
Although very little about the film is actually known , Tenet is described as a movie set within the world of international espionage , and the first trailer and marketing material for the movie has played up a concept in which time moves forward and backward — hence the palindrome title .
The new trailer expands on John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he learns to warp time , with the stake of the world and its future in his hands .
Prior to Nolan ’ s Tenet trailer premiering in Epic Games ’ massive virtual universe , Disney and director J.J. Abrams teamed up with Epic to debut a scene from Star Wars : The Rise of Skywalker .
Abrams was on hand to introduce the clip , appearing as a tinier virtual version of himself on top of a stage where players could see him talk to host Geoff Keighley .
The scene was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Skywalker ’ s opening crawl .
After the trailer premiered , Keighley also announced that a classic Nolan movie will screen in Fortnite for fans some time this summer .
Tenet will be a litmus test for big-budget Hollywood releases during the pandemic Missing from the trailer : any specific release date for Tenet .
The movie is still slated for July 17th , according to new marketing material that appeared on Twitter after the trailer debuted .
Nolan ’ s Tenet isn ’ t just one of Warner Bros. ’ biggest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s also become a litmus test as to whether Hollywood studios could start releasing their films after facing a series of delays brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic .
Mulan , The Spongebob Movie : Sponge on the Run , and Wonder Woman 1984 are all set to follow Tenet .
If Warner Bros. decides to alter the release date for its Nolan blockbuster , however , it could influence the release schedules of other big-budget studio films .
What ’ s increasingly unlikely to happen is Tenet becoming a digital-only title .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Warner Bros. have all moved some of their titles to digital or streaming-only exclusives , while delaying others that cost more to make and stand to lose the most if not given the opportunity to recoup costs at the theater .
The moves have caused strife with big theater chains like AMC and Regal as studios reiterate their commitment to the theatrical model while also using this current unprecedented time to test new release strategies .
With a budget north of $ 205 million , and several million more being on advertising and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bros. would make Tenet a digital-only title at this juncture .
Especially as Nolan continues to champion movies getting a proper theatrical release .
The bottom line is whether Tenet will hit theaters on July 17th like Warner Bros. has repeated .
As of right now , the answer seems to be yes — Warner Bros. hasn ’ t said anything otherwise .
But that could all change in the days and weeks ahead .
Update May 21st , 8:17PM ET : Although the trailer still doesn ’ t have a release date @ @ @ @ @ @ @ original July 17th release date back to marketing materials on Twitter .
The marketing materials are different from earlier in the day , before the trailer premiered .
The story has been updated to include these details .

Christopher Nolan, one of Hollywood’s biggest proponents of the theatrical experience, is the latest director to see his movie get the Fortnite treatment.
The latest trailer for his upcoming film Tenet debuted in Fortnite on Thursday. Although very little about the film is actually known, Tenet is described as a movie set within the world of international espionage, and the first trailer and marketing material for the movie has played up a concept in which time moves forward and backward — hence the palindrome title. The new trailer expands on John David Washington’s main character as he learns to warp time, with the stake of the world and its future in his hands.
Prior to Nolan’s Tenet trailer premiering in Epic Games’ massive virtual universe, Disney and director J.J. Abrams teamed up with Epic to debut a scene from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Abrams was on hand to introduce the clip, appearing as a tinier virtual version of himself on top of a stage where players could see him talk to host Geoff Keighley. The scene was later alluded to in the The Rise of Skywalker’s opening crawl. After the trailer premiered, Keighley also announced that a classic Nolan movie will screen in Fortnite for fans some time this summer.
Tenet will be a litmus test for big-budget Hollywood releases during the pandemic
Missing from the trailer: any specific release date for Tenet. The movie is still slated for July 17th, according to new marketing material that appeared on Twitter after the trailer debuted.
Nolan’s Tenet isn’t just one of Warner Bros.’ biggest movies of the year — it’s also become a litmus test as to whether Hollywood studios could start releasing their films after facing a series of delays brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mulan, The Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run, and Wonder Woman 1984 are all set to follow Tenet. If Warner Bros. decides to alter the release date for its Nolan blockbuster, however, it could influence the release schedules of other big-budget studio films.
What’s increasingly unlikely to happen is Tenet becoming a digital-only title. Studios like Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros. have all moved some of their titles to digital or streaming-only exclusives, while delaying others that cost more to make and stand to lose the most if not given the opportunity to recoup costs at the theater.
The moves have caused strife with big theater chains like AMC and Regal as studios reiterate their commitment to the theatrical model while also using this current unprecedented time to test new release strategies. With a budget north of $205 million, and several million more being on advertising and marketing, it’s unlikely Warner Bros. would make Tenet a digital-only title at this juncture. Especially as Nolan continues to champion movies getting a proper theatrical release.
The bottom line is whether Tenet will hit theaters on July 17th like Warner Bros. has repeated. As of right now, the answer seems to be yes — Warner Bros. hasn’t said anything otherwise. But that could all change in the days and weeks ahead.


theverge--2020-05-21--Facebook teases a vision of remote work using augmented and virtual reality

Facebook has long believed in the promise of virtual and augmented reality extending well beyond entertainment , and we ’ re now getting a clearer glimpse at what that future might look like now that the current pandemic is reshaping how companies everywhere think about remote work .
According to Andrew “ Boz ” Bosworth , Facebook ’ s head of of AR and VR , the company is already investing in “ supercharging remote work and productivity ” using those technologies .
He even shared a video of what that might look like , featuring real footage of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ software .
It ’ s not much — the video is just eight seconds long .
But it does show off an idea that Facebook execs like Bosworth think might be the future of work .
We see a few floating displays , which are quickly resized and rearranged by the user with a form of touch gesture that looks like a pinch , drag , and zoom .
Of course , these displays are virtual , but the world around the user is real — that ’ s thanks to passthrough .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ utilizing the outward-facing cameras on a Rift or Quest VR headset to see the room around you .
Passthrough is used to create the virtual mesh barrier that confines Oculus software within a certain area you draw yourself using the Touch controller .
The feature is also useful if you ’ re simply curious where you are in a room or how close you might be to , say , a wall or a piece of furniture .
But here in this demo , Bosworth says Facebook imagines a mix of AR and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mixed reality — that uses passthrough to show you your keyboard while you type .
That way , you can have the tangible effect of using a physical keyboard while not having to worry about the space you ’ d require for a proper three-monitor setup .
There ’ s also a little menu bar that appears to float at the bottom of the user ’ s field of view that looks like it contains shortcuts and other quick productivity-related features you might access with a tap of the finger .
“ We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale.
” “ In the future , we could create a super-powered augmented workspace with multiple customizable screens in VR , unbounded from the limits of physical monitors .
It would leverage technologies like Passthrough to create a mixed reality productivity experience that allows people to switch between real and virtual worlds at any time , improving spatial awareness while offering the flexibility we ’ re accustomed to with laptops and other common devices , ” reads a blog post Facebook published today .
“ By @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hand tracking with the familiarity of everyday input devices like a keyboard and mouse , we could give people the best of both worlds.
” This isn ’ t entirely novel stuff .
We ’ ve seen demos like this on Microsoft ’ s HoloLens and the Magic Leap One headset .
Facebook and Oculus have also shown off similar capabilities in the context of demoing Oculus hand tracking and other features that would be integral when you ’ re actually wearing something on your face while you do meaningful work , such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only hope will be legible text on a virtual screen .
( The demo Bosworth shared is captured from the headset itself , so it ’ s hard to tell what it actually looks like from the user end . )
But it ’ s noteworthy that Facebook is now accelerating its work in mixed reality during the COVID-19 pandemic .
The company already has an enterprise unit for Oculus dedicated to selling headsets to companies .
Facebook and Oculus ’ joint work on hand tracking , more realistic avatars , spatial audio @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how seriously the company is committed to the idea of virtual presence and making it as powerful as possible .
But perhaps the biggest signal from Facebook about its ambitions to try and transform remote work came earlier today , when CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a massive shift in how he plans to operate his company by allowing workers to request permanent remote status and to open up new roles at the company to remote workers , too .
While other tech firms have done the same , including Square and Twitter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its size to make the leap .
“ We ’ re going to be the most forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale , ” CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview with The Verge .
“ We need to do this in a way that ’ s thoughtful and responsible , so we ’ re going to do this in a measured way .
But I think that it ’ s possible that over the next five to 10 years — maybe closer to 10 than five , but somewhere in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get to about half of the company working remotely permanently.
” “ VR and AR is all about giving people remote presence.
” Zuckerberg specifically brought up AR and VR as options that could , in the long term , make remote work more viable by giving remote employees a sense of presence during meetings and other collaborative efforts .
“ VR and AR is all about giving people remote presence , ” Zuckerberg said .
“ So if you ’ re you ’ re long on VR and AR and on video @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some capacity that you ’ re helping people be able to do whatever they want from wherever they are .
So I think that that suggests a worldview that would lead to allowing people to work more remotely over time.
” Zuckerberg says the COVID-19 pandemic and his company ’ s moves to respond to the changes it ’ s forcing on society “ will help us advance some of the future technology we ’ re working on around remote presence , because we ’ re just going to be using it constantly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Facebook Workplace platform and Portal video chat devices are changing how his company works today .
Down the line , that will inevitably include AR and VR , too .
“ Right now , VR and AR is a large group within the company , but it ’ s still somewhat disconnected from the work that most employees are doing on a day-to-day basis .
And I think that this could change that sooner , ” he added .
“ So that ’ s something that I ’ m particularly excited about @ @

Facebook has long believed in the promise of virtual and augmented reality extending well beyond entertainment, and we’re now getting a clearer glimpse at what that future might look like now that the current pandemic is reshaping how companies everywhere think about remote work.
According to Andrew “Boz” Bosworth, Facebook’s head of of AR and VR, the company is already investing in “supercharging remote work and productivity” using those technologies. He even shared a video of what that might look like, featuring real footage of an experimental test using prototype Facebook hardware and software.
It’s not much — the video is just eight seconds long. But it does show off an idea that Facebook execs like Bosworth think might be the future of work. We see a few floating displays, which are quickly resized and rearranged by the user with a form of touch gesture that looks like a pinch, drag, and zoom.
Of course, these displays are virtual, but the world around the user is real — that’s thanks to passthrough. Oculus uses the term to refer to utilizing the outward-facing cameras on a Rift or Quest VR headset to see the room around you. Passthrough is used to create the virtual mesh barrier that confines Oculus software within a certain area you draw yourself using the Touch controller. The feature is also useful if you’re simply curious where you are in a room or how close you might be to, say, a wall or a piece of furniture.
But here in this demo, Bosworth says Facebook imagines a mix of AR and VR — what the tech industry calls mixed reality — that uses passthrough to show you your keyboard while you type. That way, you can have the tangible effect of using a physical keyboard while not having to worry about the space you’d require for a proper three-monitor setup. There’s also a little menu bar that appears to float at the bottom of the user’s field of view that looks like it contains shortcuts and other quick productivity-related features you might access with a tap of the finger.
“We’re going to be the most forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale.”
“In the future, we could create a super-powered augmented workspace with multiple customizable screens in VR, unbounded from the limits of physical monitors. It would leverage technologies like Passthrough to create a mixed reality productivity experience that allows people to switch between real and virtual worlds at any time, improving spatial awareness while offering the flexibility we’re accustomed to with laptops and other common devices,” reads a blog post Facebook published today. “By combining the flexibility of new inputs like hand tracking with the familiarity of everyday input devices like a keyboard and mouse, we could give people the best of both worlds.”
This isn’t entirely novel stuff. We’ve seen demos like this on Microsoft’s HoloLens and the Magic Leap One headset. Facebook and Oculus have also shown off similar capabilities in the context of demoing Oculus hand tracking and other features that would be integral when you’re actually wearing something on your face while you do meaningful work, such as typing and reading what we can only hope will be legible text on a virtual screen. (The demo Bosworth shared is captured from the headset itself, so it’s hard to tell what it actually looks like from the user end.)
But it’s noteworthy that Facebook is now accelerating its work in mixed reality during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company already has an enterprise unit for Oculus dedicated to selling headsets to companies. Facebook and Oculus’ joint work on hand tracking, more realistic avatars, spatial audio, and more powerful wireless technology illustrate how seriously the company is committed to the idea of virtual presence and making it as powerful as possible.
But perhaps the biggest signal from Facebook about its ambitions to try and transform remote work came earlier today, when CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a massive shift in how he plans to operate his company by allowing workers to request permanent remote status and to open up new roles at the company to remote workers, too. While other tech firms have done the same, including Square and Twitter, Facebook is the first major company of its size to make the leap.
“We’re going to be the most forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview with The Verge. “We need to do this in a way that’s thoughtful and responsible, so we’re going to do this in a measured way. But I think that it’s possible that over the next five to 10 years — maybe closer to 10 than five, but somewhere in that range — I think we could get to about half of the company working remotely permanently.”
“VR and AR is all about giving people remote presence.”
Zuckerberg specifically brought up AR and VR as options that could, in the long term, make remote work more viable by giving remote employees a sense of presence during meetings and other collaborative efforts. “VR and AR is all about giving people remote presence,” Zuckerberg said. “So if you’re you’re long on VR and AR and on video chat, you have to believe in some capacity that you’re helping people be able to do whatever they want from wherever they are. So I think that that suggests a worldview that would lead to allowing people to work more remotely over time.”
Zuckerberg says the COVID-19 pandemic and his company’s moves to respond to the changes it’s forcing on society “will help us advance some of the future technology we’re working on around remote presence, because we’re just going to be using it constantly ourselves.”


theverge--2020-05-21--Thomson Reuters faces pressure over ICE contracts

A group of Thomson Reuters shareholders says the company ’ s technology databases are being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “ track and arrest immigrants on a massive scale , ” potentially causing reputational damage to the company .
“ Companies are facing scrutiny for contracting with government agencies carrying out the Trump administration ’ s inhumane family separation and indefinite family detention policies at the US-Mexico border , ” states the resolution from the BC Government and Service Employees ’ Union ( BCGEU ) General Fund and its Defence Fund , both of which are in British @ @ @ @ @ @ @ based in Toronto ) .
“ The UN considers such separation and detention illegal under international law and has stated the practice constitutes ‘ arbitrary and unlawful interference in family life , and is a serious violation of the rights of the child.
’ ” According to the resolution , ICE has more than $ 60 million in contracts with Thomson Reuters , and the agency relies on its CLEAR software in its efforts to track undocumented immigrants .
CLEAR consolidates public records across numerous databases , such as motor vehicle and arrest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ information , cellphone records , and license plate recognition , the proposal states .
“ Shareholder engagement and capital stewardship are equally important for the BCGEU—we invest and manage our members ’ dues responsibly in order to grow our union and we aggressively leverage our investments to demand action from companies on the issues that matter to our members and all working people , ” BCGEU president Stephanie Smith wrote in an email to The Verge .
“ The bottom line for us is that an ethical , activist approach to investing provides @ @ @ @ @ @ @ financial and a social justice perspective.
” Latinx grassroots organization Mijente , which has worked to push tech companies not to work with ICE , says in a blog post that Thomson Reuters “ is not [ just ] a passive data broker that sells personal data to ICE , ” but also helps the Department of Homeland Security division target people “ with both automated analysis and in-house human analysts.
” Jacinta Gonzalez of Mijente said in an interview with The Verge that the role of data brokers like CLEAR in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ While Thomson Reuters has built a brand as a trusted news source , few people realize that the news operation is largely financed by the company ’ s role as a data broker for agencies like ICE , ” Gonzalez said .
She added that there are “ enormous risks ” associated with working with ICE , not the least of which are human rights concerns around the agency ’ s detention of immigrants and the separation of families trying to enter the US at its border with Mexico .
Thomson Reuters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ backlash for working with ICE The Canadian groups want Thomson Reuters to produce a human rights risk report and address “ how Thomson Reuters assesses its role in contributing to and being directly linked to human rights impacts by end users , ” and how the company “ mitigates its role in contributing to adverse human rights impacts from end users.
” Thomson Reuters spokesperson Dave Moran said the company takes its role as a corporate citizen extremely seriously .
“ Thomson Reuters provides products and services to many parts of the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law , ” Moran said in an email to The Verge .
“ We [ are ] proud of the work we do with law enforcement agencies and public safety organizations and our contribution to making our communities safer.
” In its public response to the shareholder proposal , the company ’ s board of directors recommends shareholders reject it .
“ The Board believes that producing a human rights risk report in the form contemplated by the proposal is not in the best interests of Thomson Reuters or its shareholders , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believes that our company ’ s current policies and practices appropriately and adequately reflect Thomson Reuters ’ commitment to respecting human rights.
” Thomson Reuters is the latest big company to face backlash for working with ICE .
In 2018 , Microsoft employees wrote an open letter to management asking it to cancel any ICE-related contracts .
Amazon was criticized for reportedly selling its Rekognition facial recognition software to ICE , and an ICE contract with Microsoft-owned Github sparked protests among developers .
According to Thomson Reuters , CLEAR is only available to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a certified permissible use ” under US state and federal laws , all customers are vetted and trained before they get access to Thomson Reuters products , and have to “ certify their specific legally permissible uses prior to each time they seek access to any data.
” The company signed a contract with ICE in 2015 which is in “ support of its work on active criminal investigations and priority cases involving threats to national security and/or public safety.
” Moran declined to provide details about Thomson Reuters ’ contracts with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meeting , being conducted virtually this year , is scheduled for June 3rd .

A group of Thomson Reuters shareholders says the company’s technology databases are being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “track and arrest immigrants on a massive scale,” potentially causing reputational damage to the company.
“Companies are facing scrutiny for contracting with government agencies carrying out the Trump administration’s inhumane family separation and indefinite family detention policies at the US-Mexico border,” states the resolution from the BC Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) General Fund and its Defence Fund, both of which are in British Columbia, Canada (Thomson Reuters is based in Toronto). “The UN considers such separation and detention illegal under international law and has stated the practice constitutes ‘arbitrary and unlawful interference in family life, and is a serious violation of the rights of the child.’”
According to the resolution, ICE has more than $60 million in contracts with Thomson Reuters, and the agency relies on its CLEAR software in its efforts to track undocumented immigrants. CLEAR consolidates public records across numerous databases, such as motor vehicle and arrest records, utilities, health care provider information, cellphone records, and license plate recognition, the proposal states.
“Shareholder engagement and capital stewardship are equally important for the BCGEU—we invest and manage our members’ dues responsibly in order to grow our union and we aggressively leverage our investments to demand action from companies on the issues that matter to our members and all working people,” BCGEU president Stephanie Smith wrote in an email to The Verge. “The bottom line for us is that an ethical, activist approach to investing provides superior results over the long-term from a financial and a social justice perspective.”
Latinx grassroots organization Mijente, which has worked to push tech companies not to work with ICE, says in a blog post that Thomson Reuters “is not [just] a passive data broker that sells personal data to ICE,” but also helps the Department of Homeland Security division target people “with both automated analysis and in-house human analysts.”
Jacinta Gonzalez of Mijente said in an interview with The Verge that the role of data brokers like CLEAR in the surveillance of immigrants has been unsettling.
“While Thomson Reuters has built a brand as a trusted news source, few people realize that the news operation is largely financed by the company’s role as a data broker for agencies like ICE,” Gonzalez said. She added that there are “enormous risks” associated with working with ICE, not the least of which are human rights concerns around the agency’s detention of immigrants and the separation of families trying to enter the US at its border with Mexico.
Thomson Reuters is the latest big firm to face backlash for working with ICE
The Canadian groups want Thomson Reuters to produce a human rights risk report and address “how Thomson Reuters assesses its role in contributing to and being directly linked to human rights impacts by end users,” and how the company “mitigates its role in contributing to adverse human rights impacts from end users.”
Thomson Reuters spokesperson Dave Moran said the company takes its role as a corporate citizen extremely seriously. “Thomson Reuters provides products and services to many parts of the U.S. government in support of the rule of law,” Moran said in an email to The Verge. “We [are] proud of the work we do with law enforcement agencies and public safety organizations and our contribution to making our communities safer.”
In its public response to the shareholder proposal, the company’s board of directors recommends shareholders reject it.
“The Board believes that producing a human rights risk report in the form contemplated by the proposal is not in the best interests of Thomson Reuters or its shareholders,” the response states. “The Board believes that our company’s current policies and practices appropriately and adequately reflect Thomson Reuters’ commitment to respecting human rights.”
Thomson Reuters is the latest big company to face backlash for working with ICE. In 2018, Microsoft employees wrote an open letter to management asking it to cancel any ICE-related contracts. Amazon was criticized for reportedly selling its Rekognition facial recognition software to ICE, and an ICE contract with Microsoft-owned Github sparked protests among developers.
According to Thomson Reuters, CLEAR is only available to “authorized professional and government subscribers that have a certified permissible use” under US state and federal laws, all customers are vetted and trained before they get access to Thomson Reuters products, and have to “certify their specific legally permissible uses prior to each time they seek access to any data.”
The company signed a contract with ICE in 2015 which is in “support of its work on active criminal investigations and priority cases involving threats to national security and/or public safety.” Moran declined to provide details about Thomson Reuters’ contracts with ICE.


theverge--2020-05-21--The new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s Tenet will air in Fortnite

The outdoor theater on Fortnite ’ s new party royale island is finally being put to use .
Tonight , at 8PM ET , the virtual space will be home to the latest trailer for Christopher Nolan ’ s time-traveling film Tenet .
The trailer will air on an hourly basis , though it ’ s not clear how long it ’ ll be available .
This isn ’ t the first time the world of film and TV has come to Fortnite .
The battle royale game has been home to a clip from Star Wars : The Rise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s reboot of Punk ’ d .
However , both of those events took place before developer Epic launched a brand-new , nonviolent space in the game called party royale , which is housed on a different island .
A separate area of the island has already hosted two live music events featuring Diplo and Deadmau5 .
Party royale could well be the future of Fortnite as an ever-evolving social space — for now , it ’ s your best shot at catching some of Tenet before the full movie debuts in July @

The outdoor theater on Fortnite’s new party royale island is finally being put to use. Tonight, at 8PM ET, the virtual space will be home to the latest trailer for Christopher Nolan’s time-traveling film Tenet. The trailer will air on an hourly basis, though it’s not clear how long it’ll be available.


theverge--2020-05-21--John Krasinski’s adorable YouTube series ‘Some Good News’ is moving to CBS All Access

ViacomCBS is licensing John Krasinski ’ s heartwarming weekly YouTube series Some Good News , making a once totally free and accessible show now locked behind a streaming paywall .
New episodes of Some Good News will stream exclusively on ViacomCBS ’ s streaming service , CBS All Access , according to The Hollywood Reporter .
Krasinski , however , will no longer host the show .
Instead , he ’ ll step into a producing role , with a new host to be announced at a later date .
After the episodes stream on All Access , they ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the company ’ s linear networks , ” according to the Reporter .
It ’ s unclear which networks will get the show ( ViacomCBS owns MTV , Nickelodeon , CBS , Comedy Central , and more ) , or how long new episodes will stream exclusively in All Access .
Calls reportedly started coming in from networks to acquire Krasinski ’ s show following the first episode , which premiered at the end of March .
Since then , the channel has garnered more than 2 million subscribers and netted around 70 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to take a deal with any of the companies because he intended the show to remain free and accessible to as many people as possible .
He started the series to bring a little good news to people — a welcome distraction from what ’ s happening in the world .
Now , that ’ s only possible if you pay for a ViacomCBS product .
CBS All Access costs $ 5.99 a month with ads and $ 9.99 a month without ads .
The streaming service , which is undergoing major changes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the United States , although the company has struck deals with other networks and streamers to carry All Access originals ( like Star Trek : Discovery and Star Trek : Picard ) in international territories .
ViacomCBS does have international streaming services it could use to distribute the show , including Paramount Plus , but it ’ s unclear if the company will use those avenues .
Krasinski ’ s show works because it ’ s one man sitting behind his desk at home The net result is that Some Good News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people around the world as Krasinski first intended .
Even with ViacomCBS networks carrying second runs of the episodes , it hardly compares to YouTube ’ s 2 billion active monthly users around the world .
Krasinski ’ s official statement claims that the CBS paywall will cause the opposite effect , though .
“ Could not be more excited and proud to be partnering with CBS/Viacom to be able to bring Some Good News to so many more people !
” Krasinski said , according to the Reporter .
“ From the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ create a news show dedicated entirely to good news .
Never did I expect to be joining the ranks of such a historic news organization as CBS.
” Whether a version of Some Good News produced by one of the largest media and entertainment conglomerates in the world can retain the authenticity of Krasinski ’ s show will be the biggest concern .
Krasinski ’ s show works because it ’ s one man sitting behind his desk at home , looking into a web camera , and reacting to viral videos .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
There are no network executive notes or concerns about proper lighting .
Under ViacomCBS , that might change .
Production values might increase , the new host might not be as immediately likable and charming , and the corporatization of the entire show might act as a turnoff .
Genuineness isn ’ t something that people can fake very well or very easily .

ViacomCBS is licensing John Krasinski’s heartwarming weekly YouTube series Some Good News, making a once totally free and accessible show now locked behind a streaming paywall.
New episodes of Some Good News will stream exclusively on ViacomCBS’s streaming service, CBS All Access, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Krasinski, however, will no longer host the show. Instead, he’ll step into a producing role, with a new host to be announced at a later date. After the episodes stream on All Access, they’ll “move to a number of the company’s linear networks,” according to the Reporter. It’s unclear which networks will get the show (ViacomCBS owns MTV, Nickelodeon, CBS, Comedy Central, and more), or how long new episodes will stream exclusively in All Access.
Calls reportedly started coming in from networks to acquire Krasinski’s show following the first episode, which premiered at the end of March. Since then, the channel has garnered more than 2 million subscribers and netted around 70 million views. The actor was hesitant to take a deal with any of the companies because he intended the show to remain free and accessible to as many people as possible. He started the series to bring a little good news to people — a welcome distraction from what’s happening in the world. Now, that’s only possible if you pay for a ViacomCBS product.
CBS All Access costs $5.99 a month with ads and $9.99 a month without ads. The streaming service, which is undergoing major changes this summer, is also only available in the United States, although the company has struck deals with other networks and streamers to carry All Access originals (like Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard) in international territories. ViacomCBS does have international streaming services it could use to distribute the show, including Paramount Plus, but it’s unclear if the company will use those avenues.
Krasinski’s show works because it’s one man sitting behind his desk at home
The net result is that Some Good News will no longer be as accessible to people around the world as Krasinski first intended. Even with ViacomCBS networks carrying second runs of the episodes, it hardly compares to YouTube’s 2 billion active monthly users around the world. Krasinski’s official statement claims that the CBS paywall will cause the opposite effect, though.
“Could not be more excited and proud to be partnering with CBS/Viacom to be able to bring Some Good News to so many more people!” Krasinski said, according to the Reporter. “From the first episode, our goal was to create a news show dedicated entirely to good news. Never did I expect to be joining the ranks of such a historic news organization as CBS.”


theverge--2020-05-21--Windows 10 gets accessibility improvements to cursor, screen reader, and more

Microsoft is making some improvements to its Windows 10 accessibility features , specifically centered around making the text cursor easier to see and follow using the built-in Magnifier feature .
There ’ s also new text-to-speech functionality being integrated into the Magnifier tool , as well as improvements to Narrator ( the built-in Windows screen reader ) , all set to roll out in the May 2020 Update .
Microsoft had previously offered tools to adjust the size and color of the standard mouse cursor .
Now it ’ s bringing similar options to the text cursor , allowing users @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , thickness , and color of the text cursor , along with adding a new , larger indication to easily find it on-screen .
Similarly , the Magnifier feature will follow the text cursor in the middle of the display , just like it does with the regular mouse cursor .
Magnifier is also getting a new text-to-speech feature that will read out text in browsers or applications ( Edge , Chrome , Firefox , Word , Outlook , and Powerpoint are all called out by name ) .
To that end , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Magnifier app , allowing users to easily control playback .
Lastly , Microsoft has made improvements to Narrator , its screen reading tool that makes it possible to use Windows without being able to see the screen .
Microsoft is adding options to hear sounds instead of full phrases for toggling actions , and it ’ s adding better support for announcing capital letters and words .
Narrator also offers a better experience when web browsing , adding support for Firefox , an option to automatically start reading webpages , and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entire page .

Microsoft is making some improvements to its Windows 10 accessibility features, specifically centered around making the text cursor easier to see and follow using the built-in Magnifier feature. There’s also new text-to-speech functionality being integrated into the Magnifier tool, as well as improvements to Narrator (the built-in Windows screen reader), all set to roll out in the May 2020 Update.
Microsoft had previously offered tools to adjust the size and color of the standard mouse cursor. Now it’s bringing similar options to the text cursor, allowing users with impaired vision to adjust the size, thickness, and color of the text cursor, along with adding a new, larger indication to easily find it on-screen. Similarly, the Magnifier feature will follow the text cursor in the middle of the display, just like it does with the regular mouse cursor.
Magnifier is also getting a new text-to-speech feature that will read out text in browsers or applications (Edge, Chrome, Firefox, Word, Outlook, and Powerpoint are all called out by name). To that end, there are new media control buttons in the Magnifier app, allowing users to easily control playback.


theverge--2020-05-21--Apple has moved some AirPods Pro manufacturing from China to Vietnam

Some Apple AirPods Pro cases now say the headphones are assembled in Vietnam , according to a Twitter user , multiple reports on the MacRumors forums , and one Verge staffer who recently purchased a pair , indicating the company may be reducing its reliance on Chinese manufacturing ( via MacRumors ) .
Typically , AirPods Pro units contain a message on the back of the case that says the device was assembled in China .
Here ’ s a photo of what the new message looks like : Apple famously assembles a large majority of its products in China @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in , and even made sizable foreign investments toward , diversifying its manufacturing .
That ’ s partly due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the ongoing trade war between the US and China that imposed tariffs on some Apple products and components and put pressure on CEO Tim Cook ’ s lobbying efforts with the Trump administration .
As far back as 2017 , Apple began assembling some iPhone models in India , too .
In February , for example , Apple issued a rare investor note saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ temporarily constrained ” as its manufacturing partners in China ramped back up amid the outbreak .
Nikkei reported last July that Apple was considering moving some of its manufacturing to Vietnam due to the trade war as well .
It ’ s unclear what percentage of AirPods Pro are manufactured in Vietnam or if Apple plans to make more products in the country .
However , The Information reported on Tuesday that it plans to use factories in Vietnam to manufacture a pair of as-of-yet-unannounced over-ear headphones , though Apple is apparently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in China as well .
Apple did not reply to a request for comment .

Some Apple AirPods Pro cases now say the headphones are assembled in Vietnam, according to a Twitter user, multiple reports on the MacRumors forums, and one Verge staffer who recently purchased a pair, indicating the company may be reducing its reliance on Chinese manufacturing (via MacRumors). Typically, AirPods Pro units contain a message on the back of the case that says the device was assembled in China.
Here’s a photo of what the new message looks like:
Photo by Kara Verlaney / The Verge
Apple famously assembles a large majority of its products in China. But the company has shown interest in, and even made sizable foreign investments toward, diversifying its manufacturing. That’s partly due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the ongoing trade war between the US and China that imposed tariffs on some Apple products and components and put pressure on CEO Tim Cook’s lobbying efforts with the Trump administration. As far back as 2017, Apple began assembling some iPhone models in India, too.
In February, for example, Apple issued a rare investor note saying that the worldwide iPhone supply would be “temporarily constrained” as its manufacturing partners in China ramped back up amid the outbreak. Nikkei reported last July that Apple was considering moving some of its manufacturing to Vietnam due to the trade war as well.
It’s unclear what percentage of AirPods Pro are manufactured in Vietnam or if Apple plans to make more products in the country. However, The Information reported on Tuesday that it plans to use factories in Vietnam to manufacture a pair of as-of-yet-unannounced over-ear headphones, though Apple is apparently going to manufacture some of the headphones in China as well.


theverge--2020-05-21--Avatar: The Last Airbender is back on Netflix, but don’t start with the first episode

Avatar : The Last Airbender is back on Netflix after a seven-year absence , and if you never caught the show , now is a perfect time .
Avatar isn ’ t just one of the best animated series around ; it ’ s full-stop excellent television regardless of format .
This might not be clear from episode 1 , though .
As premieres go , it ’ s charming but geared toward hooking children .
Skepticism is okay !
Just don ’ t pass it by without diving into one of its best episodes , “ Zuko Alone ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s a standalone tale that explains everything you need to know — a terrific martial arts Western with surprisingly rich characterization and a gut-punch ending — all in 20 minutes .
In Avatar , there are four nations , each based on the mastery of a different element : Water , Earth , Fire , and Air .
The Fire Nation declared war on the others , and the series is about children caught up in this war .
Most episodes focus on Aang , the titular Avatar , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ability to master all four elements and prophesied to restore balance .
The only problem : he ’ s a child and not quite in command of every element yet .
Through a mix of standalone and serial episodes , Avatar follows Aang and his young friends as they help him on his journey to master the elements , while pursued by Fire Nation and stymied by adults in power .
it ’ s a show that rarely simplifies things to “ good ” or “ evil ” “ Zuko Alone ” focuses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the show ’ s primary antagonists , exiled from the Fire Nation after a humiliating failure , left to wander on his own .
The episode is removed from the show ’ s highly serialized plot .
Like in a good Western , Zuko takes on the archetypal role of The Man With No Name .
He arrives at a small frontier town for rest and a meal when he encounters a conflict : crooked Earth Kingdom soldiers are terrorizing the villagers they ’ re supposed to protect .
As a once-proud @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been a villain unaccustomed to caring about others .
In exile however , his priorities are slowly shifting , and he decides to intervene .
( If this sounds familiar , it ’ s because it ’ s the plot of Shane , one of the most beloved and regularly homaged Westerns . )
In “ Zuko Alone , ” the former prince finally gets a chance to see what he ’ s represented all this time to the people outside of the Fire Nation .
His internal conflict is externalized by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the unspoken idea that his new friends might not respond so kindly if they knew who he was .
One reason Avatar : The Last Airbender is loved by its fans is the way it refuses to talk down to its audience .
Like Phillip Pullman ’ s YA trilogy His Dark Materials , it ’ s a show that rarely simplifies things to “ good ” or “ evil , ” letting its protagonists be selfish and wrong at times and giving its antagonists depth whenever possible .
In the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compassion and conflict , and war provides them with regular opportunity to behave nobly or selfishly .
That its main characters are all children only underlines all of this .
The frequent goofy hijinks and moments of weakness are all normal parts of growing up , and no matter how much we ’ d like it to be , growing up does not happen in a vacuum .
It happens out in the world where there is conflict , war , and pain .
The children of Avatar want to be kids , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world of their parents and are just starting to see it for what it is — but they ’ re not yet jaded enough to stop seeing what it could be .
This is what makes “ Zuko Alone ” a good introduction to Avatar : it ’ s a small character study of one of these kids , scarred in more ways than one , coming to terms with all manner of consequence — the cost of his decisions , the burden of his place in the world , the limits of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the potential he still has to become who he wants to be , under his old name or not .

Avatar: The Last Airbender is back on Netflix after a seven-year absence, and if you never caught the show, now is a perfect time. Avatar isn’t just one of the best animated series around; it’s full-stop excellent television regardless of format. This might not be clear from episode 1, though. As premieres go, it’s charming but geared toward hooking children. Skepticism is okay! Just don’t pass it by without diving into one of its best episodes, “Zuko Alone” (season 2, episode 7). It’s a standalone tale that explains everything you need to know — a terrific martial arts Western with surprisingly rich characterization and a gut-punch ending — all in 20 minutes.
In Avatar, there are four nations, each based on the mastery of a different element: Water, Earth, Fire, and Air. The Fire Nation declared war on the others, and the series is about children caught up in this war. Most episodes focus on Aang, the titular Avatar, the only person in the world with the ability to master all four elements and prophesied to restore balance. The only problem: he’s a child and not quite in command of every element yet. Through a mix of standalone and serial episodes, Avatar follows Aang and his young friends as they help him on his journey to master the elements, while pursued by Fire Nation and stymied by adults in power.
it’s a show that rarely simplifies things to “good” or “evil”
“Zuko Alone” focuses on the young Prince Zuko, one of the show’s primary antagonists, exiled from the Fire Nation after a humiliating failure, left to wander on his own. The episode is removed from the show’s highly serialized plot. Like in a good Western, Zuko takes on the archetypal role of The Man With No Name. He arrives at a small frontier town for rest and a meal when he encounters a conflict: crooked Earth Kingdom soldiers are terrorizing the villagers they’re supposed to protect. As a once-proud member of the invading nation, Zuko has been a villain unaccustomed to caring about others. In exile however, his priorities are slowly shifting, and he decides to intervene. (If this sounds familiar, it’s because it’s the plot of Shane, one of the most beloved and regularly homaged Westerns.)
In “Zuko Alone,” the former prince finally gets a chance to see what he’s represented all this time to the people outside of the Fire Nation. His internal conflict is externalized by his decision to hide his identity, and the unspoken idea that his new friends might not respond so kindly if they knew who he was.
One reason Avatar: The Last Airbender is loved by its fans is the way it refuses to talk down to its audience. Like Phillip Pullman’s YA trilogy His Dark Materials, it’s a show that rarely simplifies things to “good” or “evil,” letting its protagonists be selfish and wrong at times and giving its antagonists depth whenever possible. In the world of Avatar, characters are caught between compassion and conflict, and war provides them with regular opportunity to behave nobly or selfishly. That its main characters are all children only underlines all of this. The frequent goofy hijinks and moments of weakness are all normal parts of growing up, and no matter how much we’d like it to be, growing up does not happen in a vacuum. It happens out in the world where there is conflict, war, and pain. The children of Avatar want to be kids, but they’re also inheriting the world of their parents and are just starting to see it for what it is — but they’re not yet jaded enough to stop seeing what it could be.
This is what makes “Zuko Alone” a good introduction to Avatar: it’s a small character study of one of these kids, scarred in more ways than one, coming to terms with all manner of consequence — the cost of his decisions, the burden of his place in the world, the limits of his control over how others perceive him, and the potential he still has to become who he wants to be, under his old name or not.


theverge--2020-05-21--Sea of Thieves is sailing to Steam on June 3rd

Rare ’ s open-world pirate game , Sea of Thieves , is sailing to Steam on June 3rd , Microsoft announced today .
For the past two years , Sea of Thieves was available on Xbox One and the Windows Store .
The Steam version will cost $ 39.99 with cross-play support included between all versions of the game .
If you own a copy on either Windows 10 or Xbox One , you will still need to purchase a Steam version to play it on Valve ’ s digital storefront .
At launch , the Steam version will include @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the other platforms .
This includes the Ships of Fortune update released last April that introduced a new emissary system , allowing players to become an emissary in the game .
Sea of Thieves was a slow burn that has greatly improved over the last two years .
As my colleague Tom Warren pointed out when he checked out the game in February 2018 ahead of its release , Sea of Thieves , at the time , “ still felt like a work in progress.
” Fortunately , Rare has been consistently adding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ years , with four content updates in 2020 alone and the game ’ s player base surpassing 10 million this year .

Rare’s open-world pirate game, Sea of Thieves, is sailing to Steam on June 3rd, Microsoft announced today. For the past two years, Sea of Thieves was available on Xbox One and the Windows Store.
The Steam version will cost $39.99 with cross-play support included between all versions of the game. If you own a copy on either Windows 10 or Xbox One, you will still need to purchase a Steam version to play it on Valve’s digital storefront.
At launch, the Steam version will include all of the content previously released on the other platforms. This includes the Ships of Fortune update released last April that introduced a new emissary system, allowing players to become an emissary in the game.


theverge--2020-05-22--Pac-Man will be playable on Twitch starting this June

Pac-Man will be a playable game on Twitch starting this June , Bandai Namco and Amazon Games announced today .
To play the Twitch version of the game , called Pac-Man Live Studio , you ’ ll just need to navigate to the dedicated Twitch channel for the game when it goes live , though you ’ ll only be able to play it on a web browser .
Don ’ t worry — you will be able to play the original Pac-Man mazes in Pac-Man Live Studio ’ s Classic Mode .
But there will be other modes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to four people can play together try and climb a global leaderboard and compete for a high score , but you ’ ll only have one life per level .
In Studio Mode , you can make and share mazes , and you can get a look at the game ’ s maze editor in the screenshot below .
And in Select Mode , up to four players can try to get a high score on community-made mazes .
Twitch is well-known as a destination to watch video games , and it has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creator-led streams , such as the Twitch Plays Pokémon .
But Pac-Man Live Studio will be the first game that ’ s built directly into the platform .
That raises the intriguing possibility that other games could be built into Twitch in the future , turning it a place to watch and play games .
There are also rumors that Amazon is preparing its own Stadia-like cloud gaming service that will be integrated with Twitch , potentially meaning that you could someday be able to play games more graphically intensive than Pac-Man right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Crucible , its new free-to-play hero shooter that ’ s only available on Steam right now , comes to mind as a potential candidate for something like this . )
If you need to get your Pac-Man fix before Pac-Man Live Studio is available on Twitch , you can spend some of your Friday on one of my favorite places of the internet , the Pac-Man Google Doodle .

Pac-Man will be a playable game on Twitch starting this June, Bandai Namco and Amazon Games announced today. To play the Twitch version of the game, called Pac-Man Live Studio, you’ll just need to navigate to the dedicated Twitch channel for the game when it goes live, though you’ll only be able to play it on a web browser.
Don’t worry — you will be able to play the original Pac-Man mazes in Pac-Man Live Studio’s Classic Mode. But there will be other modes, too. In Endless Mode, up to four people can play together try and climb a global leaderboard and compete for a high score, but you’ll only have one life per level. In Studio Mode, you can make and share mazes, and you can get a look at the game’s maze editor in the screenshot below. And in Select Mode, up to four players can try to get a high score on community-made mazes.
Image: Bandai Namco and Amazon Games
Twitch is well-known as a destination to watch video games, and it has played host to a number of interactive creator-led streams, such as the Twitch Plays Pokémon. But Pac-Man Live Studio will be the first game that’s built directly into the platform. That raises the intriguing possibility that other games could be built into Twitch in the future, turning it a place to watch and play games.
There are also rumors that Amazon is preparing its own Stadia-like cloud gaming service that will be integrated with Twitch, potentially meaning that you could someday be able to play games more graphically intensive than Pac-Man right from a Twitch channel. (Amazon’s Crucible, its new free-to-play hero shooter that’s only available on Steam right now, comes to mind as a potential candidate for something like this.)


theverge--2020-05-22--Elon Musk holds a ‘bake-off’ for a new factory

Meltdown May is continuing apace , as Elon Musk and his newest baby ’ s grandmother engage in online beef .
But we ’ ll get to that in a minute .
What does it take to make Bezos envious ?
First , I would like to turn my opera glasses to one of my favorite types of content : billionaire-on-billionaire rivalry .
I am thinking of Musk ’ s rivalry with Jeff Bezos , the other billionaire who resists shelter-in-place orders and owns a private space company .
Remember how Bezos got bounced out of NYC ?
It was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the corporate version of The Bachelor going , with the idea that the winning contestant would get a factory instead of a marriage .
Much like The Bachelor , the entertainment value for us plebs is just watching a bunch of thirsty cities embarrass themselves .
Business types call this sort of thing a “ bake-off , ” but having actually participated in bake-offs , I can tell you they tend to be less desperate and more fun .
What does it take to make Bezos envious ?
Government subsidies , baby .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nevada , $ 750 million out of New York , and a comparatively piddling $ 15.6 million out of California .
Anyway , when Bezos was pursuing HQ2 , pressuring municipalities into “ bake-offs ” of perks , it was Musk he had in mind .
I mention this because Musk has a new bake-off going , for a Cybertruck factory .
Right now , the finalists are , reportedly , Austin , Texas and Tulsa , Oklahoma .
( Nashville , Tennessee may also be in contention ; then again , maybe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear that incentives will play a role in which city he chooses — though other considerations he ’ s cited include logistics costs and the type of workforce that can be supplied .
Now , Texas , Oklahoma , and Tennessee ( I guess ) all do have some things in common .
Texas ’ governor , state House of Representatives , and state Senate are Republican .
The same is true of Oklahoma .
Also Tennessee .
Now , you may recall that Musk donates across the political aisle — an absolutely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to secure power — in California , to Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein and Republican Representative Kevin McCarthy , for instance .
Also among the direct recipients of his donations : Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma , Senator Ted Cruz of Texas , Representative John Carter of Texas , and Representative Lamar Smith of Texas .
Texas is already important for SpaceX ; it ’ s building its Starship in Boca Chica and a rocket testing spot in McGregor .
Politics is about kissing babies and kissing asses Musk ’ s donations give him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s got connections to powerful political figures who may be able to persuade ambitious local politicians to take him seriously .
This isn ’ t a guarantee of course ; Amazon donated heavily in New York , but managed to insult local officials by cutting them out of the loop .
Politics is about kissing babies and kissing asses .
So of course slighting the local politicians led to a rebellion among those politicians , who blew up the attempt at a New York HQ2 in spectacular , embarrassing fashion .
Already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Will Tesla moving to Texas cost more than it ’ s worth ?
” The Tulsa World , on the other hand , is telling its readers that “ Like Tesla , Tulsa is ready to grow and innovate.
” Seriously , Tulsa is looking a little desperate : Although it ’ s not just Tulsa looking desperate , in fairness : Well , Amazon also got a bunch of thirsty shit from cities , too .
It ’ s possible Musk will also have a gnarly surprise when he closes on a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in politics — since there is , you may recall , a pandemic on .
It is possible some people will be upset about taxpayer money supporting a large corporation rather than , you know , taxpayers .
But it ’ s also possible that the massive spike in unemployment makes luring good jobs to your hometown much more popular .
When the pandemic is on , all bets are off .
Which , I guess , brings us back to Musk ’ s Twitter account .
Like most everything else in America @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a partisan divide .
Trust in scientists has grown during the pandemic — but along partisan lines , with Democrats accounting for most of the change , Pew found .
Just 27 percent of Republicans trust scientists , according to that poll — a number that hasn ’ t budged since last year .
Some 69 percent ( nice ! )
of Democrats believe social distancing measures are helping to reduce coronavirus spread a lot , compared to just 49 percent of Republicans .
( A majority of both groups will allow that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . )
And so it ’ s maybe worth noticing that Sandy Garossino , mother of Grimes and grandmother of X Æ A-12 Musk , is upset about a bit of politics that ’ s designed to appeal to the right .
I don ’ t know whether that ’ s because Musk deeply believes the stuff he tweets , he ’ s trolling , he ’ s trying to keep federal Republicans happy , or he ’ s trying to play ball with two Republican states to get himself some subsidies .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ t really matter .
What does matter is the amount of subsidies Oklahoma and Texas will offer — and whether Musk will , once again , be the subject of Jeff Bezos ’ envy .
It ’ s funny , in a way .
Bezos doesn ’ t make stupid tweets that will cost him millions of dollars .
( He does make an absolutely wild amount of money . )
He bought himself The Washington Post in lieu of engaging in press criticism .
Bezos is so confident that when AMI contacted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrote a blog post in response that essentially said , “ Go ahead , leak them.
” This guy ’ s the fucking Death Star .
And he ’ s envious of Elon Musk .

Meltdown May is continuing apace, as Elon Musk and his newest baby’s grandmother engage in online beef. But we’ll get to that in a minute.
What does it take to make Bezos envious?
First, I would like to turn my opera glasses to one of my favorite types of content: billionaire-on-billionaire rivalry. I am thinking of Musk’s rivalry with Jeff Bezos, the other billionaire who resists shelter-in-place orders and owns a private space company. Remember how Bezos got bounced out of NYC? It was part of a Musk-inspired effort to get the corporate version of The Bachelor going, with the idea that the winning contestant would get a factory instead of a marriage. Much like The Bachelor, the entertainment value for us plebs is just watching a bunch of thirsty cities embarrass themselves. Business types call this sort of thing a “bake-off,” but having actually participated in bake-offs, I can tell you they tend to be less desperate and more fun.
What does it take to make Bezos envious? Government subsidies, baby. Musk got $1.3 billion out of Nevada, $750 million out of New York, and a comparatively piddling $15.6 million out of California. Anyway, when Bezos was pursuing HQ2, pressuring municipalities into “bake-offs” of perks, it was Musk he had in mind.
Now, Texas, Oklahoma, and Tennessee (I guess) all do have some things in common. Texas’ governor, state House of Representatives, and state Senate are Republican. The same is true of Oklahoma. Also Tennessee. Now, you may recall that Musk donates across the political aisle — an absolutely classic tactic for entrenched interests and industrialists to secure power — in California, to Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein and Republican Representative Kevin McCarthy, for instance. Also among the direct recipients of his donations: Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, Representative John Carter of Texas, and Representative Lamar Smith of Texas. Texas is already important for SpaceX; it’s building its Starship in Boca Chica and a rocket testing spot in McGregor.
Politics is about kissing babies and kissing asses
Musk’s donations give him a toehold in these states. He’s got connections to powerful political figures who may be able to persuade ambitious local politicians to take him seriously. This isn’t a guarantee of course; Amazon donated heavily in New York, but managed to insult local officials by cutting them out of the loop. Politics is about kissing babies and kissing asses. So of course slighting the local politicians led to a rebellion among those politicians, who blew up the attempt at a New York HQ2 in spectacular, embarrassing fashion.
Seriously, Tulsa is looking a little desperate:
Although it’s not just Tulsa looking desperate, in fairness:
Well, Amazon also got a bunch of thirsty shit from cities, too. It’s possible Musk will also have a gnarly surprise when he closes on a location — gnarly surprises are always possible in politics — since there is, you may recall, a pandemic on. It is possible some people will be upset about taxpayer money supporting a large corporation rather than, you know, taxpayers. But it’s also possible that the massive spike in unemployment makes luring good jobs to your hometown much more popular. When the pandemic is on, all bets are off.
Which, I guess, brings us back to Musk’s Twitter account. Like most everything else in America, the coronavirus response has taken on a partisan divide. Trust in scientists has grown during the pandemic — but along partisan lines, with Democrats accounting for most of the change, Pew found. Just 27 percent of Republicans trust scientists, according to that poll — a number that hasn’t budged since last year. Some 69 percent (nice!) of Democrats believe social distancing measures are helping to reduce coronavirus spread a lot, compared to just 49 percent of Republicans. (A majority of both groups will allow that social distancing helps at least a little.)
And so it’s maybe worth noticing that Sandy Garossino, mother of Grimes and grandmother of X Æ A-12 Musk, is upset about a bit of politics that’s designed to appeal to the right. I don’t know whether that’s because Musk deeply believes the stuff he tweets, he’s trolling, he’s trying to keep federal Republicans happy, or he’s trying to play ball with two Republican states to get himself some subsidies. In some sense, it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the amount of subsidies Oklahoma and Texas will offer — and whether Musk will, once again, be the subject of Jeff Bezos’ envy.