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Wednesday December 21, 2016

Uber And Snapchat Team Up To Zero In On Your Friends

Uber says Snapchat will get information about the ETA, vehicle type and destination, but no private data, to create special filters for riders. Uber hide caption

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Uber

The Industry

Uber And Snapchat Team Up To Zero In On Your Friends

December 21, 2016 • Now, if you give Uber access to your phone contacts, you could set a person, rather than a location, as a destination of your ride — and get a prompt to Snapchat the waiting friend in the meantime.

Why Aren't There More Women In Tech? A Tour Of Silicon Valley's Leaky Pipeline

Chelsea Beck/NPR

The Industry

Why Aren't There More Women In Tech? A Tour Of Silicon Valley's Leaky Pipeline

December 21, 2016 • We start at an after-school program for middle-schoolers and end at tech companies that try to be front-runners on diversity. Where do girls and women drop out from the tech talent pipeline?

Why Aren't There More Women In Tech? A Tour Of Silicon Valley's Leaky Pipeline

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Sunday December 18, 2016

How One Couple Fought For The Legal Right To Leave A Bad Yelp Review

Scott Eells/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Industry

How One Couple Fought For The Legal Right To Leave A Bad Yelp Review

December 18, 2016 • The lawsuit was one of the cases that inspired the new law — the Consumer Review Fairness Act — that aims to curb one avenue businesses have used to sue customers for posting negative online reviews.

How One Couple Fought For The Legal Right To Leave A Bad Yelp Review

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Wednesday December 7, 2016

Consumer Cost Emerges As Key Issue In Grilling Of AT&T-Time Warner Merger

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson (left) and Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes are sworn in Wednesday before testifying at a Senate committee hearing on the proposed merger of their companies. Evan Vucci/AP hide caption

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Evan Vucci/AP

The Industry

Consumer Cost Emerges As Key Issue In Grilling Of AT&T-Time Warner Merger

December 7, 2016 • A congressional hearing on the proposed $85.4 billion merger focused heavily on questions about the impact on consumer prices and how the companies might use their competitive advantage.

Friday December 2, 2016

For Advertisers, Fake Eyeballs May Be Bigger Problem Than Fake News

Boxes of Kellogg's Frosted Flakes cereal are seen at a store in Arlington, Va. Kellogg's is facing a boycott organized by Breitbart after the cereal giant decided to pull its advertising from the right-wing website. Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

The Industry

For Advertisers, Fake Eyeballs May Be Bigger Problem Than Fake News

December 2, 2016 • Kellogg's and other brands have pulled some online ads because of where they've ended up being displayed. But advertisers may be more worried about sites that generate fake traffic using bots.

For Advertisers, Fake Eyeballs May Be Bigger Problem Than Fake News

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Thursday December 1, 2016

Uber Now Tracks Passengers' Locations Even After They're Dropped Off

In its latest update, Uber gathers user location information even when the app is not open during a ride. Carl Court/Getty Images hide caption

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Carl Court/Getty Images

The Industry

Uber Now Tracks Passengers' Locations Even After They're Dropped Off

December 1, 2016 • Its latest update prompts users to allow Uber access to their location, even when the app isn't in use. Uber says the move will improve service and safety, but it raises worries for privacy advocates.

Wednesday November 30, 2016

No Internet Connection? No Problem. Netflix Adds Offline Viewing

At no extra cost to the user, Netflix subscribers are now able to save select content to their iOS or Android devices. Netflix hide caption

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Netflix

The Industry

No Internet Connection? No Problem. Netflix Adds Offline Viewing

November 30, 2016 • The video streaming giant joins Amazon in offering the option to download videos to mobile devices. It's the latest development in the highly competitive and rapidly changing online streaming market.

Sunday November 27, 2016

As Batteries Keep Catching Fire, U.S. Safety Agency Prepares For Change

Product safety field staff send damaged products, such as this burnt battery pack from a defective electric scooter, to the government testing lab in Rockville, Md. Raquel Zaldivar/NPR hide caption

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Raquel Zaldivar/NPR

Society

As Batteries Keep Catching Fire, U.S. Safety Agency Prepares For Change

November 27, 2016 • The Consumer Product Safety Commission grabbed the spotlight in recalls of hoverboard scooters and Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 phones. It's a tiny agency with a vast oversight of thousands of products.

As Batteries Keep Catching Fire, U.S. Safety Agency Prepares For Change

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Wednesday November 23, 2016

We Tracked Down A Fake-News Creator In The Suburbs. Here's What We Learned

"The whole idea from the start was to build a site that could kind of infiltrate the echo chambers of the alt-right." Fanatic Studio/Getty Images hide caption

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Fanatic Studio/Getty Images

The Industry

We Tracked Down A Fake-News Creator In The Suburbs. Here's What We Learned

November 23, 2016 • "The whole idea from the start was to build a site that could kind of infiltrate the echo chambers of the alt-right," says Jestin Coler, whose company, Disinfomedia, is behind some fake news sites.

We Tracked Down A Fake-News Creator In The Suburbs. Here's What We Learned

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Thursday November 17, 2016

From Hate Speech To Fake News: The Content Crisis Facing Mark Zuckerberg

How does Facebook decide when to take down controversial images and posts? Chelsea Beck/NPR hide caption

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Chelsea Beck/NPR

Analysis

The Industry

From Hate Speech To Fake News: The Content Crisis Facing Mark Zuckerberg

November 17, 2016 • The Facebook chief has an army of subcontractors making editorial judgments about millions of pieces of content — like a media company. But the rules they operate by are complex and contradictory.

From Hate Speech To Fake News: The Content Crisis Facing Mark Zuckerberg

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Tuesday November 15, 2016

Facebook, Google Take Steps To Confront Fake News

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is defending the company against criticism that it doesn't vet fake news in its news feed. Eric Risberg/AP hide caption

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Eric Risberg/AP

Social Web

Facebook, Google Take Steps To Confront Fake News

November 15, 2016 • Facebook is under fire for articles posted on its site that are not true, but go viral anyway. CEO Mark Zuckerberg says fake news isn't a problem, but Facebook is taking steps to block it.

Facebook, Google Take Steps To Confront Fake News

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Monday November 14, 2016

Tech Leaders Vow To Resist Trump, But They Also Hope To Find Common Ground

Aaron Levie, CEO of Box, supported Hillary Clinton and he says he will continue to work and lobby for what he believes. Lisa Lake/Getty Images hide caption

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Lisa Lake/Getty Images

Gadgets & Apps

Tech Leaders Vow To Resist Trump, But They Also Hope To Find Common Ground

November 14, 2016 • With issues ranging from privacy to trade, many leaders find themselves at odds with the president-elect's campaign stances. But CEOs say they'll look for ways to work with his administration.

Tech Leaders Vow To Resist Trump, But They Also Hope To Find Common Ground

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Thursday November 3, 2016

Major Trump Backer's Alleged Positive Comments About Apartheid Stir Anger

Billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel allegedly told two of his classmates at Stanford that he thought South Africa's apartheid was "a sound economic system." Carolyn Kaster/AP hide caption

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Carolyn Kaster/AP

The Industry

Major Trump Backer's Alleged Positive Comments About Apartheid Stir Anger

November 3, 2016 • Silicon Valley billionaire investor Peter Thiel reportedly told two of his classmates at Stanford that he thought South Africa's former apartheid system of government was "a sound economic system."

Monday October 31, 2016

Peter Thiel Stands Out In Silicon Valley For Support Of Donald Trump

While much of Silicon Valley has supported Hillary Clinton, billionaire investor Peter Thiel is backing Donald Trump. "We're voting for Trump because we judge the leadership of our country to have failed," Thiel says. Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

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Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Industry

Peter Thiel Stands Out In Silicon Valley For Support Of Donald Trump

October 31, 2016 • Thiel, a billionaire investor, has caused friction in Silicon Valley, which has largely backed Hillary Clinton. But others who disagree with Thiel's views stand by his right to express them.

Peter Thiel Stands Out In Silicon Valley For Support Of Donald Trump

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Friday October 28, 2016

Big Media Companies And Their Many Brands — In One Chart

Katie Park/NPR

The Industry

Big Media Companies And Their Many Brands — In One Chart

October 28, 2016 • Disney wants to buy much of 21st Century Fox; AT&T is fighting for approval of a merger with Time Warner. Who owns what these days? We built a chart of the many brands of some major media companies.