Policy

As reported by the New York Times and CNBC, FCC chair Brendan Carr has followed up on a previous threat against Disney in a new letter (pdf). Now he says its enforcement bureau will investigate to see if it’s “violating FCC equal employment opportunity regulations by promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”

In July, Carlos Watson was convicted on fraud charges for misleading investors with falsified financial records, inflated audience numbers, and made-up business deals. The New York Times reported in 2021 that his co-founder, Samir Rao, had impersonated a YouTube exec on a call with bankers about a potential $40 million investment.

Journalist Ken Klippensten obtained an internal memo directing employees to conduct a “social media review” of foreign students applying for visas, and must flag any online posts or screenshots “advocating for, sympathizing with, or persuading others to endorse [or] support” a terrorist organization. The directive is seemingly aimed at students who participated in pro-Palestine – or as the memo specifically characterized it, “pro-Hamas” – campus protests.

Less than three months after the BitMEX crypto exchange was hit with a $100 million fine for money laundering – and hours after he pardoned ex-Nikola CEO Trevor Milton for defrauding investors in his EV company – Trump issued pardons to Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Dalo and Samuel Reed, CNBC reported Friday. The three men had previously pled guilty to several felony charges related to money laundering and failure to police the exchange.

The Trump administration announced 20,000 layoffs at the US Department of Health and Human Services, part of a drastic restructuring of the agency that includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and that oversees Medicare and Medicaid.

Is Tesla really cooked? Watch as The Verge transportation editor, Andrew Hawkins, walks us through how Elon Musk’s unprecedented takeover of the federal government has transformed public opinion of his car company into something increasingly toxic instead of futuristic, with some owners suddenly selling their cars even at a loss.

Gov. Spencer Cox (R) has signed the App Store Accountability Act, a law that will put the onus on app store operators like Apple and Google to verify users’ ages and get parents’ consent for their kids to download apps. It’s a model that app developers including Meta, X, and Snap have applauded and are pushing to be adopted across the country.

Rep. Ritchie Torres and the House Democrats, who are reportedly drafting a bill entitled “The HOUTHI PC SMALL GROUP Act” that would criminalize the use of unsecured messaging apps to send classified information. (Per Axios, it’s an acronym for “Homeland Operations and Unilateral Tactics Halting Incursions: Preventing Coordinated Subversion, Military Aggression and Lawless Levies Granting Rogue Operatives Unchecked Power.”)

While claiming that The Atlantic “is going to be out of business soon,” Trump commented on the Signal group chat scandal in a Newsmax interview Tuesday night.

CIA director John Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, FBI Director Kash Patel, and others are testifying today before the House Intelligence Committee. Unsurprisingly, a good amount of the hearing is centered around Signalgate, with most questions coming from Democrats. Watch a recording below.

A day after The Atlantic EIC Jeffrey Goldberg revealed he’d been inadvertently included in a group message on Signal where Trump admin officials discussed details of an upcoming military strike, CBS News reports on an NSA warning from February that the app isn’t approved for “nonpublic unclassified” information. Despite testimony today that no classified material was shared, the NSA noted the danger posed by Russian phishing campaigns attempting to add a linked device and bypass Signal’s encryption for surveillance.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has ramped up his campaign against soft drinks by launching a drive to ban food stamp recipients from using them to purchase that addictive, bubbly sweetness. Meanwhile, The Bulwark’s Will Sommer has detected what looks like the latest campaign in the curious world of MAGA paid sponcon: right-wing influencers suddenly defending soda against government regulations.

Our classic EMAILS shirt, which we’ve been selling on and off since 2017, is officially back in the store. It has always meant everything to everyone, but you know, sometimes it’s more relevant than ever.

The South Korean conglomerate’s US investment includes a new $5.8 billion steel plant in Louisiana, which is set to create 1,400 jobs and supply Hyundai’s auto plants in Alabama and Georgia. The company also plans to invest $6 billion to expand partnerships with AI, autonomous driving, robotics, and air mobility companies in the US.