Government & Communications

Federal workers are on edge after the Trump administration spent its first days dismantling long-held protections for career staffers. There’s another safeguard that government employees worry the Trump administration will kneecap before it even gets off the ground: protecting them from online harassment.

A recent article published by the Russian Foreign Affairs Council (RFAC) claimed that some of organizations that engage in Internet governance have a clear U.S. bias.The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) responded, saying the claims are false. This all sounds like worldwide politics in action, but it raises a good question—who owns the Internet? There is no easy answer to that question.

President Donald Trump has nominated Michael Kratsios to be Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Michael Kratsios is the former Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. He was the Department’s Chief Technology Officer and was responsible for the research, development, and prototyping activities across the DoD enterprise, and was mandated with ensuring technological superiority for the Department of Defense.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr announced the appointment of Acting Bureau leadership as well as the Acting General Counsel and Managing Director. The full list of these appointments is as followed:

The jarring prominence of tech CEOs at President Donald Trump’s inauguration—positioned, as many noted, in front of Trump’s Cabinet picks—represents a massive sea change in American business and its cultural politics. The tech world’s turn to the right post-election has captivated anyone who watched these companies serve as a GOP punching bag for the past several years. There are plenty of good business reasons for any billionaire to want

I have the unique constitutional responsibility for the national security of the United States, the conduct of foreign policy, and other vital executive functions.  To fulfill those responsibilities, I intend to consult with my advisors, including the heads of relevant departments and agencies on the national security concerns posed by TikTok, and to pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans.

This Executive Order establishes the Department of Government Efficiency to implement the President’s DOGE Agenda, by modernizing Federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity. The United States Digital Service is hereby publicly renamed as the United States DOGE Service (USDS) and shall be established in the Executive Office of the President. There shall be a USDS Administrator established in the Executive Office of the President who shall report to the White House Chief of Staff.

Think of the U.S.

Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan released a summary of the agency’s key accomplishments over the last four years that have improved Americans’ everyday lives and stopped illegal consolidation that raises prices and hampers innovation. These accomplishments include:

On Jan 16, the Federal Communications Commission denied four filings that asked the FCC to use the agency's licensing authority to penalize broadcast television stations because of content or coverage aired on the stations. In a statement released alongside the denials, outgoing FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel explained the decision, writing, "The facts and legal circumstances in each of these cases are different. But what they share is that they seek to weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment.