Makena Kelly
The Verge
New York, NY, United States
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Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
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Past articles by Makena:
Congress rolls out new bill allowing nationwide TikTok ban
A TikTok ban is closer than it’s ever been following the Tuesday introduction of the RESTRICT Act, a bill that would make it easier for the Biden administration to restrict access to the popular video sharing app. → Read More
Gigi Sohn withdraws her nomination for President Joe Biden’s FCC
Gigi Sohn, President Joe Biden’s nominee for the Federal Communications Commission, has withdrawn her name from consideration after a “dishonest and cruel” campaign against her. → Read More
After Dobbs, Democrats roll out health and location data protections
The UPHOLD Privacy Act aims to resolve lingering concerns over the online safety of abortion-seeking patients. The bill would ban the use of personally identifiable health data from being used for targeted advertising. → Read More
A GOP plan to ban TikTok nationwide advances out of committee
Republicans on the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted to advance a bill on Wednesday that would allow President Joe Biden to ban TikTok from the United States, despite objections from Democrats and civil liberty groups. → Read More
Biden’s $39 billion semiconductor project is open for business
The Commerce Department launched its massive effort to outcompete China in semiconductor manufacturing, offering $39 billion in funding incentives for companies seeking to build manufacturing plants, or fabs, in the US. → Read More
A Signal group is at the center of Bankman-Fried’s latest woes
Prosecutors issued a new superseding indictment describing how SBF conspired to defraud the Federal Elections Commission by using straw donors to promote crypto-friendly regulation. → Read More
Bernie Sanders throws support behind striking YouTube Music workers
Sen. Bernie Sanders threw his support behind striking YouTube Music workers in a letter addressed to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. → Read More
Gigi Sohn returns to Congress for a third try at securing empty FCC chair
Gigi Sohn’s confirmation has been held up by bad-faith Republican attacks on her record. The stalemate has blocked the FCC from tackling net neutrality and expanding high-speed broadband. → Read More
Biden rallies against Big Tech in State of the Union address
President Joe Biden threw his support behind tougher rules regulating Silicon Valley during his Second State of the Union (SOTU), including tougher privacy and child safety rules. → Read More
How to watch President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address
While Biden will likely touch on the Russia-Ukraine war and a variety of economic issues, he’s also expected to call on Congress to better regulate some of the US’s largest tech companies, like Apple, Amazon, Meta, and Google. → Read More
FTC won’t appeal court decision permitting Meta to buy Within
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will not appeal a recent federal court order allowing Meta to purchase VR startup Within, possibly spelling trouble for its challenge against Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard. → Read More
Apple and Google face mounting pressure to remove TikTok from app stores
Sen. Michael Bennet demanded that Apple and Google “immediately” remove TikTok from their app stores in a letter addressed to the companies’ chief executives, Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai. → Read More
White House goes after app store ‘gatekeepers’ Apple and Google
The Biden administration’s sweeping recommendations would be a boon to developers like Epic Games, maker of Fortnite. → Read More
Meta reportedly wins fight to buy VR startup Within
A judge has denied the FTC’s request to block Meta’s acquisition of VR startup Within, which makes the Supernatural fitness app, with a delay for an appeal. → Read More
TikTok CEO to testify before Congress in March
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is expected to appear before Congress in March to face questions from lawmakers over US user safety and security on the popular video app. → Read More
Meta allows Trump back on Facebook and Instagram
Meta said that Trump could be banned once again if he continued to violate its policies. → Read More
Google to shut down spam backdoor for political campaigns
Google plans to end a controversial pilot program that allows political groups to bypass Gmail’s spam filters later this month. Google launched the program to address GOP censorship concerns. → Read More
Senators and Swifties take on Ticketmaster in Washington
Months after Ticketmaster botched sales for Taylor Swift’s most recent tour, a top executive from its parent company, Live Nation, faced scrutiny over its market dominance on Capitol Hill Tuesday from senators and Swifties alike. → Read More
FEC dismisses GOP complaint that Google censored fundraising emails in Gmail
The Federal Elections Commission dismissed a Republican-led complaint that Google’s filters in Gmail unfairly send GOP fundraising emails to spam folders at a higher rate than those from Democrats. → Read More
Parler’s parent company has laid off a majority of its staff
Parlement Technologies, the parent company of “censorship-free” social media platform Parler, has laid off a majority of its staff and most of its chief executives over the last few weeks. The sudden purge of staff has thrown the future of Parler, one of the first conservative alternatives to mainstream platforms, into question. → Read More