EdTechSR Ep 324: Deep Dives into Disinformation

Welcome to episode 324 (“Deep Dives in Disinformation”) of the EdTech Situation Room from April 17, 2024, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week, Dr. Jason Neiffer and Dr. Wesley Fryer discussed a variety of important topics in educational technology and AI’s impact on education, from San Diego, California and Charlotte, North Carolina respectively. Jason opened the episode by sharing his experiences at the ASU + GSV conference, which brought together leaders in education and technology. The discussions at the conference focused heavily on the integration of AI in educational settings and the ethical implications of new technologies. Wes and Jason then delved into the pressing issue of Kremlin-backed actors spreading disinformation through sophisticated AI tools. They discussed the evolution of disinformation tactics and the crucial role of media literacy in combating these threats. The co-hosts explored various other technological updates, including new developments from Google and Microsoft, emphasizing the educational potentials and challenges of these innovations. They also addressed the need for thoughtful integration of AI tools in education, to enhance learning without compromising ethical standards. “Geeks of the Week” featured valuable tools and resources for educators. Among these, Jason highlighted an AI-powered music creation tool, emphasizing its potential to revolutionize educational content delivery. Our show was live-streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as Facebook Live via StreamYard.com. Please follow our @EdtechSR page on Facebook, @edtechsr@mastodon.education on Mastodon for updates, and join LIVE on Wednesday nights if you can. All shownotes are available on edtechSR.com/links. AI Disclosure: An initial draft of this episode summary was generated using youtubetranscript.com and a custom GPT on ChatGPT, as well as options for our show title! Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. Subscribe to our EdTechSR Substack Newsletter!
  2. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  3. Follow EdTechSR on Facebook, Mastodon and Substack!
  4. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  5. Video version on YouTube
  6. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  7. Jason Neiffer (Mastodon: mastodon.cloud/@neif) – aicentrist.com – blog: blog.ncce.org
  8. Wes Fryer (Mastodon: mastodon.cloud/@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  9. Texas will use computers to grade written answers on this year’s STAAR tests (Texas Tribune, 9 April 2024)
  10. Hard Fork Podcast: “A.I.’s Data Wall + a Surprise Privacy Bill + What Happened to the TikTok Ban?” (12 Apr 2024)
  11. AI Music Generation Takes Center Stage: Udio and Suno
  12. Kremlin-backed actors spread disinformation ahead of US elections (ArsTechnica, 17 Apr 2024)
  13. https://substack.com/@katieharbath 
  14. The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness? (Nature; 29 March 2024)
  15. Apple Plans to Overhaul Entire Mac Line With AI-Focused M4 Chips (Bloomberg; 11 April 2024)
  16. Apple is reportedly planning a big AI-focused M4 Mac upgrade (The Verge; 11 April 2024)
  17. Jason’s Geek of the Week: AI Chat Battle!
  18. Wes’ Geek of the Week: StoryGraph
EdTech Situation Room: Episode 324” (CC BY 2.0) by Wesley Fryer

EdTechSR Ep 257 Elon Buys Twitter

Welcome to episode 257 (“Elon Buys Twitter”) of the EdTech Situation Room from April 27, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Elon Musk’s pending acquisition of Twitter, continued controversy over abusive uses of Apple’s AirTags, Apple’s new DIY phone repair service, and the updated Apple Studio Display webcam. On the Google Front, the trademark filing for the “Pixel Watch,” a new policy to remove search results “that dox you,” and the end of Ohio State University’s iPad 1:1 program were also discussed. BigTech bills moving through the US Congress, Ukrainian hacks of Russian IT infrastructure, and advanced drones in the Ukraine – Russian war were topics rounding out this week’s show. Geeks of the Week included Resilio File Sync, a video of a Chinese done warning on a residential balcony, and a new “Speed of Creativity” podcast. Check out our shownotes for links to all the articles we discussed, and subscribe to our Substack to receive all the links we discussed and also didn’t have time to talk about in this week’s show in your email inbox! Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. Subscribe to our EdTechSR Substack Newsletter!
  2. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  3. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  4. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  5. Video version on YouTube
  6. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  7. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  8. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  9. Apple’s AirTags keep being tagged in domestic abuse cases (Digital Trends; 8 April 2022)
  10. Apple’s DIY repair service is now available in the US (The Verge; 27 April 2022)
  11. Here’s what the updated Apple Studio Display webcam looks like (The Verge; 27 April 2022)
  12. Google files trademark for ‘Pixel Watch’ ahead of device’s launch (9 to 5 Google; 22 April 2022)
  13. Google files trademark for Pixel Watch name (Verge, 22 April 2022)
  14. Google may now remove search results that dox you (The Verge; 27 April 2022)
  15. Ohio State University ends program to give iPads to new students (9 to 5 Mac; 27 April 2022)
  16. The Senate bill that has Big Tech scared (Wired, 9 April 2022)
  17. Chuck Schumer “Working Closely With Senator Klobuchar” to Whip Votes for Antitrust Bills (Intercept, 27 April 2022)
  18. Elon Musk and the $43 billion bid: all of the updates about his takeover of Twitter (The Verge)
  19. Trump says he won’t leave Truth Social, despite Musk’s Twitter takeover (The Verge; 25 April 2022)
  20. Elon Musk, Twitter’s next owner, provides his definition of “free speech” (ArsTechnica, 27 April 2022)
  21. Russia Is Being Hacked at an Unprecedented Scale (Wired, 27 April 2022)
  22. Ghost: The New Kamikaze Drone Ukraine Will Use to Battle Russia in Donbas (1945, 22 April 2022)
  23. Jason’s Geek of the Week: Resilio File Sync
  24. Wes’ Geek of the Week: Chinese Balcony Drone Threat and Podcast478: Updates and Classroom Favorites

EdTechSR Ep 254 ChromeOS Oh My

Welcome to episode 254 (“ChromeOS Oh My”) of the EdTech Situation Room from March 30, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Google / ChromeOS news, Microsoft news, Apple news, technology headlines from the ongoing war in Ukraine, BigTech / The “Tech Correction,” and one article about Space Force. Geeks of the Week included an excellent Ezra Klein interview with Margaret Atwood, and early bird pricing for NCCE 2022! Check out our shownotes for links to all the articles we discussed, and subscribe to our Substack to receive all the links we discussed and also didn’t have time to talk about in this week’s show in your email inbox! Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes:

  1. Subscribe to our EdTechSR Substack Newsletter!
  2. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  3. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  4. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  5. Video version on YouTube
  6. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  7. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  8. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  9. Chrome OS virtual desks are getting a useful upgrade (About Chromebooks; 24 March 2022)
  10. Cameyo introduces PWA Windows apps for Chrome OS (Chrome Unboxed; 23 March 2022)
  11. Chrome OS: “A better Linux than Linux” so you can forget about Windows (TechRadar, 18 March 2022)
  12. How to identify images in Chrome using Google Lens (Chrome Unboxed; 23 March 2022)
  13. Chrome for Mac, Windows, & CrOS add Side Panel for accessing bookmarks, Reading List [U] (9 to 5 Google; 25 March 2022)
  14. Windows 11 version 22H2: Everything we know about Microsoft’s next big OS update (Windows Central; 23 March 2022)
  15. Microsoft Surface Laptop Se Review: Just Get A Chromebook (The Verge; 25 March 2022)
  16. Apple is reportedly planning a 15-inch MacBook Air (The Verge; 25 March 2022)
  17. Russia is risking the creation of a “splinternet”—and it could be irreversible (Technology Review; MIT Technology Review; 17 March 2022)
  18. How War in Ukraine Roiled Facebook and Instagram (NY Times, 30 March 2022)
  19. TikTok faces investigation into its impact on young people’s mental health (The Verge; 8 March 2022)
  20. Facebook paid GOP firm to malign TikTok (Washington Post, 30 March 2022)
  21. WithFed Up  Google, Conspiracy Theorists Turn to DuckDuckGo (The New York Times; 23 February 2022)
  22. The free speech search engine that never was (Recode; 16 March 2022)
  23. Space Force Gets Roughly 40% Increase in Biden Request (Defense One, 28 March 2022)
  24. Wes’ Geek of the Week: Margaret Atwood on Stories, Deception and the Bible (Ezra Klein Podcast)
  25. Jason’s Geek of the Week: NCCE 2022 Early Bird Pricing Ends THURSDAY!

EdTechSR Ep 248 Rogan Spotify Kerfuffle

Welcome to episode 248 (“Rogan Spotify Kerfuffle”) of the EdTech Situation Room from February 9, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed technology-related news about Microsoft, Apple, The Technology Correction, Google, Security, and Privacy. In this episode, we especially focused on the issues raised with the Joe Rogan and Spotify situation, involving musical artists like Neil Young, who threatened and then removed all their music from Spotify’s library in protest of the platform’s support for Rogan and disinformation. Check out our shownotes for links to all the articles we discussed, and subscribe to our Substack to receive all the links we discussed and also didn’t have time to talk about in this week’s show in your email inbox! Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. Subscribe to our EdTechSR Substack Newsletter!
  2. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  3. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  4. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  5. Video version on YouTube
  6. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  7. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  8. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  9. Microsoft Surface Laptop SE vs Chromebooks: A limited but capable competitor (About Chromebooks; 7 February 2022)
  10. Every M1 Mac is due for a 2022 refresh with faster M2 chip, new designs (MacWorld; 8 February 2022)
  11. Apple will introduce new iPhone, iPad on March 8 (ArsTechnica, 7 Feb 2022)
  12. Meta’s threat to close down Facebook and Instagram in Europe backfires as EU leaders embrace shutdown: ‘Life would be very good without’ (City AM; 9 February 2022)
  13. Facebook loses users for the first time in its history (The Washington Post; 2 February 2022)
  14. FB Stock (Google)
  15. The Spotify-Rogan saga highlights the distinction between publishers and platforms (Tech Crunch; 9 February 2021)
  16. Spotify to Pull Neil Young’s Music After Artist’s Objections to Joe Rogan (Hollywood Reporter, 26 Jan 2022)
  17. Spotify Publishes Content Guidelines in Response to Rogan Kerfluffle
  18. Everything you need to know about the bill that could blow up the app store (The Verge, 9 Feb 2021)
  19. LumaFusion, a popular video editor on iOS, is coming to Android in the ‘first half’ of 2022 (9 5o 5 Google; 9 February 2022)
  20. Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra’s massive screen makes it basically an Android laptop (CNet; 9 February 2022)
  21. Chrome OS 98 Offers A Screen Capture Update, A New Virtual Desk Shortcut, And More (Chrome Unboxed; 8 February 2022)
  22. Reports Of Declined Chromebook Shipments Disregard The Bigger Picture (Chrome Unboxed; 1 February 2022)
  23. Google still thinks 3 years of updates provide a ‘great experience’ ahead of cutting off Pixel 3 (9 to 5 Google; 25 January 2022)
  24. YouTube CEO: More Creators Are Making At Least $10K a Year (Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan 2022)
  25. Google account hacks drop 50% for 150 million who got 2-factor login (CNet; 8 February 2022)
  26. Hacker Circulates Fake, Malware-Laden Windows 11 Installer (PC Magazine; 9 February 2022)
  27. Russia could cyberattack Ukraine — again — and disrupt the entire world (NPR, 29 Jan 2022)
  28. Phishing Simulation Study Shows Why These Attacks Remain Pervasive (Dark Reading, 7 Feb 2022)
  29. Lawmakers call on feds to drop Clearview AI facial recognition contracts (Verge, 9 Feb 2022)
  30. IRS stops requiring selfies after facial recognition system is widely panned (ArsTechnica, 7 Feb 2022)
  31. Health sites let ads track visitors without telling them (ArsTechnica, 7 Feb 2022)
  32. Wes’ Geeks of the Week: Teach With Chrome Series by ⁦@GoogleForEdu⁩ (free online learning starts Feb 22! – “Coded Bias” Netflix documentaryControl-F Project
  33. Jason’s Geek of the Week: Vista Create

EdTechSR Ep 246 Metaverse Rising

Welcome to episode 246 (“Metaverse Rising”) of the EdTech Situation Room from January 19, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed new Apple rumors about Mac Pro computers and a “portless” iPhone 14. New metaverse patents by WalMart and Meta (the company formerly known as Facebook) as well as the enormous challenges of moderating social media and the emerging metaverse specifically were highlighted. The Democratic bill to address surveillance capitalism by “banning online surveillance advertising” was discussed. A new study showing we’re spending a third of of our waking hours looking at our smartphone screens, A really fast ARM processor for Chromebooks, and fast new HP Chromebooks were also highlighted. The health and wellness app “Welltory” and the recent cyberattack against Albuquerque Public Schools were topics rounding out the show. Geeks of the Week included Podchaser.com, the Chrome extension OneTab and the amazing “Moonrise Podcast” from the Washington Post. Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Please sign up for our NEW SubStack newsletter to receive all our show links each week in your inbox, including links we are not able to discuss on edtechsr.substack.com. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. Subscribe to our EdTechSR Substack Newsletter!
  2. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  3. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  4. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  5. Video version on YouTube
  6. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  7. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  8. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  9. Smaller Mac Pro with Apple Silicon to join Mac mini refresh in 2022 (Apple Insider; 2 January 2022)
  10. The iPhone 14 Is Unlikely to Be Portless, Here’s Why (Mac Rumors; 8 January 2022)
  11. Report: Apple Headset not an ‘all-day device,’ creating a metaverse ‘off limits’ (9 to 5 Mac; 9 January 2022)
  12. Walmart is getting serious about the metaverse (The Verge; 16 January 2022)
  13. How will Facebook keep its metaverse safe for users? (Financial Times, 12 Nov 2021)
  14. Facebook patents reveal how it intends to cash in on metaverse (Financial Times, 17 Jan 2022)
  15. The true cost of Amazon’s low prices (Recode, 13 Jan 2022)
  16. Democrats unveil bill to ban online ‘surveillance advertising’ (The Verge; 18 January 2021)
  17. We’re Spending a Third of Our Waking Hours Staring at Our Phones (PC Magazine; 12 January 2022)
  18. Mediatek’s New Kompanio 1380 ARM Processor Is Really, Really Fast [Video] (Chrome Unboxed; 19 January 2022)
  19. HP Unveils “Fortis” Brand For Blended Learning With Two Chromebooks In Tow (Chrome Unboxed; 18 January 2022)
  20. Welltory packs a lot of science into its app to measure your stress levels (TechCrunch, 8 Aug 2017)
  21. Albuquerque Schools Cancel Classes After Cyber Attack (Government Technology; 13 January 2022)
  22. Jason’s Geek of the Week: podchaser.com
  23. Wes’ Geeks of the Week: OneTab and Moonrise Podcast (Washington Post)

EdTechSR Ep 237 Fixing Social Media

Welcome to episode 237 (“Fixing Social Media”) of the EdTech Situation Room from November 3, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed an amazing Wall Street Journal article featuring 12 Internet and cultural visionaries on “How to Fix Social Media.” Other articles on the social media / “tech correction” topic included “Facebook’s Lost Generation,” Facebook’s name change to “Meta,” the impact of Zuckerberg’s dream to transform the web into a “Ready Player One” VR playground. The financial impact of Apple’s iPhone privacy changes, Google’s policy to remove under-18 photos from search results, the debut of MacOS Monterey, and reasons you do NOT need the new MacBook Pro were also topics of discussion. The long awaited (for Jason) arrival of MacOS M1 processor native Google Drive for Desktop, the death of iMovie Theater, Google’s facilitation of work/life separation on Android devices, and Google Calendar’s option to schedule “Focus Time” were also highlighted. The arrival of Adobe PhotoShop on the web for Chromebook users, powerful, web-based image editing tools, and Geeks of the Week including a new NASA astronaut bio video, a “Parent University” slideshow about online influencers, and the “Mindful Schools” website as “geeks of the week” rounded out this weeks’ show. Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  2. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  3. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  4. Video version on YouTube
  5. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  8. How to Fix Social Media (Wall Street Journal, 29 Oct 2021)
  9. Facebook’s Lost Generation (The Verge; 25 October 2021)
  10. Facebook changes its company name to Meta (CNN; 29 October 2021)
  11. Mark Zuckerberg Sets Facebook on Long, Costly Path to Metaverse Reality (WSJ, 26 Oct 2021)
  12. Snap, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube lose nearly $10bn after iPhone privacy changes (Financial Times, 31 Oct 2021)
  13. You can now ask Google to remove images of under-18s from its search results (The Verge; 27 October 2021)
  14. macOS Monterey is now available to download (The Verge; 25 October 2021)
  15. You Don’t Need the New MacBook Pro (LifeHacker; 19 October 2021)
  16. Google Drive for desktop updated with full Apple M1 Mac support (9 5o 5 Google; 22 October 2021)
  17. iMovie no longer supports sharing to iMovie Theater (Apple Support)
  18. Google will make it easier to separate your work and personal life on Android (The Verge; 21 October 2021)
  19. Google Calendar will let you schedule ‘Focus time’ to work uninterrupted (9 to 5 Google; 20 October 2021)
  20. Adobe Photoshop officially comes to the web today w/ public beta, works on Chromebooks (9 5o 5 Google; 26 October 2021)
  21. Image Editing Tools on “Student Authors” page maintained by Wes
  22. Wes’ Geeks of the Week: Meet Artemis Team Member Kayla Barron (3 min NASA video) and “Online Influencers and Social Media”
  23. Jason’s Geek of the Week: Mindful Schools

EdTechSR Ep 224 Stores Watch You

Welcome to episode 224 (“Stores Watch You”) of the EdTech Situation Room from July 21, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the extent of retail facial recognition and why it matters, Automattic’s acquisition of PocketCasts, the recent FTC ruling supporting the “Right to Repair,” and ongoing proposals for “Big Tech Regulation” / “The Tech Correction.” Additional topics highlighted included useful iOS apps for sketchnoting, Chromebook advice, improvements in Zoom for ChromeOS, the increased national focus on vaccine disinformation and more. Please see our shownotes for links to all these articles and resources! Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links. Stay savvy and safe!

Shownotes

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  2. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  3. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  4. Video version on YouTube
  5. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  8. Popular Podcast App Pocket Casts Joins Automattic (The WordPress Blog; 21 July 2021)
  9. From Macy’s to Albertsons, facial recognition is already everywhere (Recode; 19 July 2021)
  10. Fight for the Future Database
  11. The MAGA-targeted “Freedom Phone” has a breathtaking amount of red flags (ArsTechnica, 20 July 2021)
  12. “Right wing apps” Newsmax, OANN, Parler, and Rumble
  13. New Florida law doesn’t require university students, faculty and staff to register political views (PolitiFact, 25 June 2021)
  14. Twitter suspends Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for spreading covid-19 misinformation (Washington Post, 20 July 2021)
  15. The Best iPad Drawing Apps (That Aren’t Adobe Fresco) (Lifehacker; 30 June 2021)
  16. FTC unanimously adopts Right to Repair policy to reduce restrictions from manufacturers like Apple (9to5Mac, 21 July 2021)
  17. YouTube will make Unlisted videos uploaded before 2017 private next month (9 to 5 Google; 23 June 2021)
  18. Here’s why I can’t pick the best Chromebook (About Chromebooks, 8 July 2021)
  19. Zoom will get a more functional app for Chromebooks next week; PWA will be in Play Store (9 to 5 Google; 26 June 2021)
  20. Twitter May Start Labeling Your Tweets Based on How Wrong You Are (Gizmodo, 31 May 2021)
  21. Right or Left, You Should Be Worried About Big Tech Censorship (EFF; 16 July 2021)
  22. Twitter for iOS begins testing dislike button for some users (9to5Mac, 21 July 2021)
  23. Alarming number of Americans think vaccines contain microchips to control people (The Hill, 19 July 2021)
  24. ‘Facebook isn’t killing people’: Biden softens his attack over vaccine misinformation. (NY Times, 19 July 2021)
  25. A federal judge upholds Indiana University’s vaccination requirement for students (NY Times,  20 July 2021)

EdTechSR Ep 218 Facebook’s Doom Looms

Welcome to episode 218 (“Facebook’s Doom Looms”) of the EdTech Situation Room from May 5, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the decision of the Facebook Oversight Board to maintain (for now) Donald Trump’s ban on the platform, Section 230 and possible tech company regulation by the US Congress, and “the normalization of deviance” on Facebook. Twitter’s AI bot flagging ‘mean tweets,’ Facebook’s plea to users to allow life tracking on iOS 14.5, Signal’s jarring (and revealing) advertisement campaign on Facebook, and China’s efforts to dominate the global electric car market were also discussed. A new CRISPR-challenger for gene editing, a decade old Dell security flaw, AirTags and privacy, and news from the ongoing Apple vs. Epic lawsuit were topics rounding out the show. Geeks of the Week included some recommended Star Wars videos on YouTube and Hacker News. Please see our shownotes for links to all these articles and resources! Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links.

Shownotes

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  2. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  3. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  4. Video version on YouTube
  5. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  8. Facebook ban on Trump upheld by Facebook Oversight Board, but decision opens door to his possible return (USA Today, 5 May 2021)
  9. Trump ban: Republicans threaten to break up Facebook after Oversight Board decision (Fox News, 5 May 2021)
  10. Video: ‘Nightmare situation for Facebook’: What the Trump ruling means (CNN, 5 May 2021)
  11. Good Riddance, Donald Trump? (OpEd by Kara Swisher, NYT, 5 May 2021) – via @pgeorge
  12. Section 230 (English WikiPedia)
  13. Facebook and the Normalization of Deviance (New Yorker, 2 May 2021)
  14. Twitter begins to show prompts before people send ‘mean’ replies (NBC News, 5 May 2021)
  15. Donald Trump’s ‘social media platform’ has launched and it’s just a blog (The Verge; 4 May 2021)
  16. Facebook encourages iOS 14.5 users to enable tracking so its apps remain ‘free of charge’ (9 to 5 Mac; 2 May 2021)
  17. Signal Tries to Run the Most Honest Facebook Ad Campaign Ever, Immediately Gets Banned (Gizmodo; 4 May 2021)
  18. As Cars Go Electric, China Builds a Big Lead in Factories (NY Times, 4 May 2021)
  19. Harvard scientists create gene-editing tool that could rival CRISPR (Engadget, 1 May 2021)
  20. Dell security flaw from 2009 affects ‘hundreds of millions’ of PCs: How to fix it (PC Magazine; 5 May 2021)
  21. How to Set Up Every iOS 14.5 Feature Worth Knowing About (LifeHacker; 5 May 2021)
  22. AirTag review: An easy-to-use item tracker empowered by a network of a billion iPhone users (9 to 5 Mac; 4 May 2021)
  23. I tracked my kid with Apple’s Airtags to test its privacy features (CNN; 5 May 2021)
  24. The Epic vs. Apple Hearing Is Already a Disaster (Gizmodo, 3 May 2021)
  25. As Epic case begins, senior Google engineer undermines one of Apple’s arguments (9 to 5 Mac; 3 May 2021)
  26. Wes’ Geeks of the Week: Celebrating May the 4th in a Galaxy Far, Far Away and Star Wars 1978 Remix (Lubbock, Texas)
  27. Jason’s Geek of the Week: Hacker News

EdTechSR Ep 215 Advertising is Complicated

Welcome to episode 215 (“Advertising is Complicated”) of the EdTech Situation Room from April 14, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Google’s new advertisement targeting technology initiative, privacy and advertisement-opt out tools, and Google search’s new product review prioritization changes. Slowdowns with AMD Ryzen Chromebooks. videoconferencing improvements in Chrome 90, and Google Lens OCR capabilities coming to the desktop were also highlighted. The continued advance of Moore’s Law and artificial intelligence, Apple’s upcoming “Spring Loaded” event predictions, Tim Cook’s “flea market” opinion of Epic Games’ lawsuit, and the new FCC speed test app were discussed. The importance of a ‘digital will’ and 23 year old coder who kept QAnon online were articles rounding out this week’s show. Geeks of the Week included a video on selecting a backyard BBQ smoker and the image background removal tool, remove.bg. Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links.

Shownotes

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  2. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  3. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  4. Video version on YouTube
  5. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  8. Google Is Testing Its Controversial New Ad Targeting Tech in Millions of Browsers. Here’s What We Know. (EFF, 20 March 2021) and amifloced.org
  9. Google’s FLoC Is a Terrible Idea (EFF, 3 March 2021)
  10. Google Ad Personalization Settings
  11. Jumbo Privacy
  12. YourAdChoices Advertising Opt Out (be sure to disable ad blockers before visiting / running this)
  13. Digital Advertising Alliance’s Self-Regulatory Principles
  14. Google Search now prioritizing in-depth research when ranking product reviews (9 to 5 Google; April 8 2021)
  15. AMD Ryzen Chromebooks Suffering Massive Slow-downs When Not Plugged In (ChromeUnboxed; 14 April 2021)
  16. Chrome 90 Should Make Your Video Calls A Bit Smoother (ChromeUnboxed; 14 April 2021)
  17. Google Lens expands beyond mobile and comes to desktop web with OCR in Google Photos (9 to 5 Google; 11 April 2021)
  18. A new era of innovation: Moore’s Law is not dead and AI is ready to explode (SiliconAngle; 10 April 2021)
  19. Apple officially announces Spring Loaded event for April 20th (The Verge; 13 April 2021)
  20. Tim Cook: Epic wants to turn the App Store into a ‘flea market’ (9 to 5 Mac; 12 April 2021)
  21. The FCC wants you to test your internet speeds with its new app (The Verge; 12 April 2021)
  22. Who will deal with your online presence when you die? How to create a ‘digital will’ (Guardian, 10 April 2021)
  23. A 23-Year-Old Coder Kept QAnon Online When No One Else Would (Bloomberg, 14 April 2021)
  24. Wes’ Geek of the Week: [VIDEO] Which Backyard BBQ Smoker / Grill Should I Buy?! (37 min)
  25. Jason’s Geek of the Week: www.remove.bg – Quick and Dirty Background Eraser for Images

EdTechSR Ep 213 Order Chromebooks NOW

Welcome to episode 213 (“Order Chromebooks NOW”) of the EdTech Situation Room from March 31, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed remote work post-pandemic, continuing electronic component shortages, proliferating firmware attacks, and President Biden’s new nationwide infrastructure package. AT&T’s lobbying efforts to perpetuate the digital divide (prevent a nationwide fiber rollout and keep “high speed Internet” definitions low at 10 Mbps), pundit dreams of a widened scope for Facebook’s Oversight Board, and Facebook’s proposed regulatory changes of Section 230 were also highlighted. The surprisingly small number of people responsible for most of the global anti-vaccination disinformation, the promise of USI styluses for Chromebooks, improvements to Google Drive search, and the challenges of long-term Android updates on smartphones were discussed as well. Google’s plans to refrain from April Fools Day video pranking for a second consecutive year, controversy over Amazon’s new biometric mandates for delivery drivers, and Parler’s recent user lessons on legal free speech, and a delightful Twitter bracket for “the greatest product of all time” (won by Google search) were topics rounding on the show. Geeks of the week included an article about The Louvre’s digitization of 482,000 Artworks, and the disturbing (but important) article by Lyz Lenz, “When The Mob Comes.” Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links.

Shownotes

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
  2. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter!
  3. Audio podcast feed (Subscribe with iTunes or Stitcher)
  4. Video version on YouTube
  5. Check out our video podcast feed and subscribe to our YouTube Channel (episodes also in this YouTube playlist)
  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – wesfryer.com/after
  8. Remote Work Is Here to Stay. Manhattan May Never Be the Same (NY Times, 29 March 2021)
  9. Apple supplier Foxconn warns that component shortages will last until 2022 (The Verge; 30 March 2021)
  10. Firmware attacks are on the rise and you aren’t worrying about them enough (ZD Net; 31 March 2021)
  11. Biden plans to connect every American to broadband in new infrastructure package (The Verge; 31 March 2021)
  12. AT&T lobbies against nationwide fiber, says 10Mbps uploads are good enough (arsTechnica; 29 March 2021)
  13. If Mark Zuckerberg won’t fix Facebook’s algorithms problem, who will? (Recode / Vox, 26 March 2021)
  14. Mark Zuckerberg proposes limited 230 reforms ahead of congressional hearing (The Verge, 24 March 2021)
  15. 12 people are behind most of the anti-vaxxer disinformation you see on social media (Mashable, 24 March 2021)
  16. The Current State Of USI Pens On Chromebooks (Chrome Unboxed; 30 March 2021)
  17. Google Drive Adds New Search Operators To Make Finding Specific Files Much Easier (Chrome Unboxed; 26 March 2021)
  18. Fairphone suggests Qualcomm is the biggest barrier to long-term Android support (arsTechnica; 25 March 2021)
  19. Google cancels April Fools (The Verge, 31 March 2021)
  20. Amazon driver quits, saying the final straw was the company’s new AI-powered truck cameras that can sense when workers yawn or don’t use a seatbelt (Business Insider; 19 March 2021)
  21. Amazon is asking drivers to sign a ‘biometric consent’ form — or lose their jobs (The Next Web, 24 March 2021)
  22. Parler explains ‘free speech’ to angry users after sharing Capitol riot posts with the FBI (Mashable, 28 March 2021)
  23. ‘Greatest product of all time’ bracket: Google Search beats Windows in finals [Updated] (9 to 5 Google)
  24. “When The Mob Comes” by Lyz Lenz (@lyzl)