Technology

Amazon Changes ‘Abortion’ Queries

Staff / Truthdig Mar 22, 2006 Until recently, a user who typed in "abortion" received a prompt asking, "Did you mean adoption?" The online retailer has since erased the prompt. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Judge Orders Google to Turn Over Some Data

Staff / Truthdig Mar 14, 2006 A federal judge says he will require the search engine company to provide the government with some search-query data in connection with the Justice Dept.'s attempts to revive an online child pornography law. It's unclear what kind of and how much data the judge will order turned over. That strange shifting underneath your feet? It's the slippery slope we're all sliding down, toward an Orwellian future. Truthdig's Google expert Mark Malseed has the skinny on the implications of this battle. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Google CFO Says Growth Is Slowing

Staff / Truthdig Feb 28, 2006 The 800-pound gorilla's rampage has started to slow down a bit, as evidenced by the chief financial officer's admission that the search company will have to find new ways to boost revenue. Related: Check out Truthdig's eye-opening report on Google's grasp of the intimate details of your life. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Justice Dept. Rejects Google’s Stand on Privacy

Staff / Truthdig Feb 27, 2006 The U.S. government pushes back at the search giant, insisting that a request to examine millions of Internet users' search queries would not violate privacy rights. This could lead to the most fevered technology trial since the Microsoft antitrust case. Check out an excellent Truthdig essay on the issue here. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Companies Will Track You Via Cellphone

Staff / Truthdig Feb 27, 2006 Fresh off the controversy over companies selling your private phone records to third parties, UK companies will now track a user based on a cellphone signal. And a BBC reporter learns that it's ridiculously easy to evade the companies' abuse safeguards. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

…but Gays Don’t Have To Play it Safe in ‘Warcraft’

Staff / Truthdig Feb 14, 2006 The maker of the insanely popular online game says it was wrong to threaten a user with expulsion for advertising a gay-friendly team. | story People take these online universes seriously; Warcraft has apparently seen its share of gay pride marches. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The End of the Internet?

Staff / Truthdig Feb 9, 2006 Jeff Chester at The Nation has an eye-opening report on how big telcos are trying to transform the "free, open and nondiscriminatory Internet of today to a privately run and branded service that would charge a fee for virtually everything we do online." | story Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

A Young Bush Appointee Resigns His Post at NASA

Staff / Truthdig Feb 8, 2006 The 24-year-old presidential appointee tried to hush up a top climate scientist and add the word "theory" to mentions of the Big Bang. | storyAlso, he lied about graduating from Texas A&M. | blog Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Google Blacklists BMW For Gaming Search Results

Staff / Truthdig Feb 7, 2006 The search company discovered that the carmaker was playing a shell game with its Web pages to boost traffic. | story Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Brokeback to the Future

Staff / Truthdig Feb 5, 2006 Check out this hilarious mash-up of "Back to the Future" and "Brokeback Mountain." | video Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

‘State of the Union’ Satire Burns Up Internet

Staff / Truthdig Jan 28, 2006 A hilarious, pitch-perfect satire of the upcoming State of the Union address draws 26,000 viewers in just over 12 hours. | video Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Surprise! The Web Won’t Tear Us Apart

Staff / Truthdig Jan 26, 2006 Turning conventional wisdom on its head (see The Earth, flat; Bush, compassionate), a new study shows that Internet tools like e-mail, webcams and instant messaging actually bring people closer together. | story Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )