Politics

Facebook is considering a prohibition on political ads on its platforms, according to multiple media reports. If the social media giant made such a move, it would be a significant about-face to the company’s long-held laissez-faire approach to political ads and political speech more broadly, coming just months ahead of the 2020 U.S. elections. Facebook

The U.S. Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are investigating whether popular app TikTok failed to comply with a 2019 agreement to protect children’s privacy. In May, advocacy groups including the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood asked the FTC to examine whether TikTok failed to delete videos and personal data from users aged 13

Facebook kicked Roger Stone, the Donald Trump associate who faces prison time after being convicted of seven felonies, off Facebook and Instagram. The company said it had found evidence that Stone was behind a network of fake accounts in the U.S. designed make themselves appear “more popular than they were.” The company said it “identified

Uzo Aduba knows about transformation. She was practically unrecognizable as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren, her breakout role on “Orange Is the New Black” that earned her two Emmys. Now the 39-year-old actor might be headed back to the awards circuit with “Mrs. America” for portraying the late Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman to be

Hong Kong’s new National Security Law gives the city’s police enhanced powers and greater reach into cyberspace. The Special Administrative Region’s government put into effect Article 43 of the new law on Monday night when it gazetted a range of new measures. Its objective is “preventing, suppressing and imposing punishment for any acts and activities

Massively popular video sharing app TikTok may pull out of Hong Kong within a matter of days. “In light of recent events, we’ve decided to stop operations of the TikTok app in Hong Kong,” a company spokesman told the Reuters news agency. The source said the move was made because it was not clear if

Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and Google said Monday they have “paused” their processing of requests for user data from Hong Kong law enforcement agencies, days after Beijing’s controversial new national security law came into force in the territory. WhatsApp is “pausing” reviews “pending further assessment of the impact of the National Security Law, including formal human-rights

Kanye West’s Yeezy, STX Entertainment, New Regency and Laemmle Theatres are among the companies that received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, according to data released by the Small Business Administration on Monday. STX received $2-5 million on April 9, shortly before it announced it would merge with India’s Eros International. The company indicated that

The U.K. government has unveiled a £1.57 billion ($1.96 billion) support package for the country’s beleaguered arts sector. U.K. Chancellor Rishi Sunak tweeted news of the package on Sunday evening: “We’re introducing a world-leading £1.57 billion rescue package to help cultural, arts and heritage institutions weather the impact of coronavirus.” The lifeline follows months of

There’s never a bad time for finding wisdom that heals our wounds and helps us chart a path through the rough patches of life, but so far, 2020 seems an uncommonly rich opportunity for us to plumb wellsprings of personal growth, a time when necessity is quite the mother for all kinds of inventions and

Big Tech’s four biggest executives may soon be in the congressional hot seat, with the CEOs of Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Google set to appear before a House Judiciary Committee hearing as part of its antitrust investigation. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Apple’s Tim Cook, and Google’s Sundar Pichai (who also is chief exec

Jeffrey Epstein’s long-time confidante and ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell has been arrested in connection with an investigation into the disgraced financier. According to NBC News, which was first to report the news, the British national was arrested on Thursday morning. She was taken into custody and is expected to appear in federal court later Thursday. Citing

As the coronavirus infection rate rises across Los Angeles County, the city of West Hollywood has instituted a fine for people who are on city streets without a face mask or covering. The city said Wednesday it would issue an “administrative citation” to those who are not conforming. The citation will be $250 for first-time

Another one of Donald Trump’s tweets has run afoul of copyright laws. On Wednesday, Twitter pulled down a photo Trump posted of himself included in a June 30 tweet, after the New York Times Co. filed a DMCA takedown request reporting the president’s post as infringing its copyright. “Media not displayed: This image has been

Amid surging COVID-19 transmission rates, California Governor Gavin Newsom has ordered the closure of dine-in restaurant service and movie theaters in Los Angeles County and 18 other counties for three weeks. Newsom announced the closures Wednesday, two days ahead of the Fourth of July weekend, at his daily news conference in Sacramento. He also said

For Diane Guerrero, taking on the role of Crazy Jane in HBO Max’s “Doom Patrol” isn’t as easy as just playing a kooky character from a comic book series. Jane actually has 64 personalities, the result of childhood sexual trauma. “It’s like, ‘Of course I’m doing this role. It’s because I am’ — and this

In an interview on a new episode of Luminary’s Black List Podcast, hosted by Black List co-founder Franklin Leonard and Black List community director Kate Hagen, Spike Lee voices his agreement with growing calls to remove statues and iconography commemorating the Confederate States of America. “F— that flag,” Lee said. “That flag, to me, [makes

Reacting to a surge in COVID-19 cases, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has ordered all movie theaters closed for 30 days, along with bars, nightclubs, gyms and water parks. Ducey made the announcement during a news conference with the executive order going into effect at 8 p.m. Monday. “This will help relieve stress on our health

UPDATED: California Governor Gavin Newsom warned on Monday that he may halt reopenings in Los Angeles County and six other counties due to high transmission rates of COVID-19. Later on Monday, Los Angeles County officials ordered beaches and bike paths closed for the Fourth of July weekend. Later on Monday, Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti

Twitch has temporarily kicked Donald Trump off the streaming service, citing violations of its policy against “hateful conduct.” In a statement, Amazon-owned Twitch said, “Hateful conduct is not allowed on Twitch. In line with our policies, President Trump’s channel has been issued a temporary suspension from Twitch for comments made on stream, and the offending

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered all bars in several counties, including Los Angeles, to shut down again due to the rising number of coronavirus cases. Other counties’ bars forced to close include Fresno, Imperial, Kern, Kings, San Joaquin and Tulare. Newsom added that bars in Contra Costa, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, Santa

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has issued a strong endorsement of Disney’s decision to delay its planned July 17 reopening its Disneyland theme park and resort in Anaheim. “I want to compliment Disney and their team for making that determination,” Newsom said Thursday at an hour-long midday news conference. “They noted that the state had ceased offering guidelines

Former TV host-turned-filmmaker Jon Stewart used a Wednesday night visit to Stephen Colbert’s “A Late Show” to first dig at, and then warm to, presidential candidate Joe Biden. “Biden was not my guy. Wasn’t even in the top four,” Stewart said. “I was more of a Sanders moron.” “But having watched him on (Colbert’s “A

The Democratic nominating convention will be dramatically scaled down this year, without the customary parties and with state delegations advised to stay home, the organizing committee announced on Wednesday. The committee unveiled plans for a “convention across America,” which will be anchored in Milwaukee but feature content from satellite locations around the country. “(C)onvention organizers

Donald Trump is in Twitter’s penalty box — again. On Tuesday morning, Trump posted a tweet that said, “There will never be an ‘Autonomous Zone’ in Washington, D.C., as long as I’m your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!” Twitter later in the day applied a warning on Trump’s tweet,

Don Lemon painted a simple reminder as he congratulated the 2020 graduating class of Point Scholars. During the virtual ceremony on Tuesday, Lemon said, “You are stepping up and stepping forward to create a more just and fair tomorrow.” The CNN anchor said, “Your future is full of promise.” Lemon was just one of the

The Georgia film tax credit, long one of the world’s most generous subsidies for the entertainment industry, could be on the chopping block as the state pares spending to respond to an unprecedented budget crisis. Last Friday, the state Senate passed $2.6 billion in cuts, including more than $1 billion in cuts to K-12 education.

UPDATED: Facebook and Twitter on Friday both removed a video posted by President Donald Trump — which was faked to appear as if it had aired on CNN — after receiving a copyright-infringement claim. “We received a copyright complaint from the rights holder of this video under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and have removed

Donald Trump tweeted a video doctored with fake CNN chyrons — which never aired on the news network — and then bizarrely claimed that the bogus clip was evidence of “fake news.” In Trump’s tweet posted June 18, the video shows two small boys, one Black and one white. It’s edited to make it falsely

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday against the Trump administration’s attempt to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which allowed non-citizens brought to this country illegally as children to apply for protection from deportation. In a 5-4 ruling written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court said the government’s justification for ending the