Mass Media Will Make Millions Thanks to the McCutcheon Decision — Here’s How

The companies that control the media stand to benefit the most from the Supreme Court’s latest disastrous decision; a new theory about germs poses the most important challenge to medicine in the 21st century; meanwhile, Microsoft’s new CEO has revolutionized the company. These discoveries and more below.

On a regular basis, Truthdig brings you the news items and odds and ends that have found their way to Larry Gross, director of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. A specialist in media and culture, art and communication, visual communication and media portrayals of minorities, Gross helped found the field of gay and lesbian studies.

How the Latest Supreme Court Ruling Will Mint Millions for Mass Media The same companies which operate on our publicly owned airwaves stand to gain the most from McCutcheon and its earlier obscene counterpart, Citizens United.

Germs Rule the World The new germ theory: Infections play a role in many, many diseases—in ways we’re just beginning to understand.

How a Single Act of Evolution Nearly Wiped Out All Life on Earth Evolution giveth, and, 252 million years ago, evolution nearly tooketh away.

Why Google Maps Gets Africa Wrong From colonial cartographers to digital depictions the continent is being sold short, says Think Africa Press.

Christie’s Gaffe: Stating the Obvious The absurdity of political campaigns in the United States added another chapter recently when New Jersey governor Chris Christie made the “Republican hajj” to Las Vegas.

Is the Oculus Rift Sexist? In the fall of 1997, Danah Boyd’s university built a CAVE (Cave Automatic Virtual Environment) to help scientists, artists, and archeologists embrace 3D immersion to advance the state of those fields.

No, Barack Obama Isn’t Handing Control of the Internet Over to China On March 14, the U.S. government announced that it would seek to relinquish a privileged role in the management of Internet names and numbers.

In a Six-Day Period, Nadella Completely Changed Microsoft In the span of six days, Microsoft’s new CEO Satya Nadella has totally shaken up the company.

Web Turns 25—Amazon.com Turns Nasty When the worldwide web turned 25 recently, the Pew Internet Research Project rightly argued that it is deeply embedded in everyday life, and will become more so.

China’s Puppy Crackdown For as long as Adam Minter can recall, a three-legged miniature poodle and her owners have lived several floors above his Shanghai apartment.