Choose your location
The Markup
The Tech at ‘Cop Con’: Cigarette Carton Trackers, VR for School Shootings, and ‘Peacekeeper Batons’
Last month, thousands of police descended on San Diego for the annual conference of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. As police leadership from around the world gathered to network and share insights about their work over a long weekend, nearly 700 companies and organizations set up shop in the city convention center’s cavernous exposition hall, pitching their latest products to law enforcement’s top decision-makers.
The Problems Biden’s AI Order Must Address
On Monday, the Biden administration released details of an expansive executive order that represents America’s first concerted attempt to control the use and application of artificial intelligence. The order’s stated aim is to protect Americans from misuses of AI technology, including privacy violations, fraud, and cybersecurity threats. As part...
How to Use Reported Crime Data to Actually Prevent Crime
Hello World is a weekly newsletter—delivered every Saturday morning—that goes deep into our original reporting and the questions we put to big thinkers in the field. Browse the archive here. Hi everyone,. It’s Markup reporter Aaron Sankin again. In early October, I published an investigation into a predictive...
The Markup Wins Scripps Howard Innovation Award
The Markup’s investigative series on internet disparities, “Still Loading,” has won the Scripps Howard Excellence in Innovation award. “The Markup story was an innovative project from start to finish,” the announcement said. “The final product illuminated the effects of systemic racism and ultimately will have a wide-ranging impact.”
Face Scanning and the Freedom To “Be Stupid In Public”: A Conversation with Kashmir Hill
Hello World is a weekly newsletter—delivered every Saturday morning—that goes deep into our original reporting and the questions we put to big thinkers in the field. Browse the archive here. Hello, friends,. As we move further into autumn, and the leaves start to turn and sweaters and scarves...
Twitter Is Throttling Patreon Links, Creators Say It Undermines Their Livelihood
Twitter is now slowing down traffic on links to the crowdfunding site Patreon, WhatsApp, and at times, Meta’s Messenger app, a Markup analysis confirms. Using a tool launched by The Markup last month, readers discovered that links to these sites were delayed by an average of 2.5 seconds—findings we confirmed.
How Ring Cameras Have the Power to Perpetuate Bias to Police
My name is Lam Thuy Vo and I’m a reporter at The Markup. As you may have seen, this week I published an investigation into the partnerships between Ring, the popular Amazon-owned doorbell camera system, and the Los Angeles Police Department. Across the U.S., more than 2,600 police departments have special access to Neighbors, the social platform connected to Ring, and receive alerts about posts from users describing supposed crimes. You can read about who’s the loudest on these platforms here, how it shows up in police officers’ day-to-day here, and how to make ethical decisions about home security systems here.
How We Investigated Ring’s Crime Alert System for Police Departments
Across the country, more than 2,600 police and close to 600 fire departments have partnerships with Ring, the popular doorbell camera company that was acquired by Amazon in 2018. In 2018 and 2019, Motherboard, the Intercept, and other news organizations first documented the existence of Ring courting law enforcement agencies...
Amazon’s ‘Neighborhood Watch’ Might Be Turning Police Officers Into ‘Reddit Moderators’
This article was copublished with the Los Angeles Times, Insider, and AfroLA. This series was made possible through support from the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network. A Resident Posted a Crime Incident. 3:30 a.m. Stranger trass passing property!!!!. A Resident Posted a Crime Incident. 6:28 a.m. Dude checking for...
Accidental Spies: Amazon Ring Owners May Be Unknowingly Emailing Police
This article was copublished with the Los Angeles Times and AfroLA. This series was made possible through support from the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network. Ed Dorini’s house sits at the end of a cul-de-sac that snakes its way up a hill in the Sun Valley area, one of Los Angeles’s northernmost corners. It’s a small enclave whose residents are a little Whiter and a little wealthier than the rest of the city. In this neighborhood, “people take care of their properties,” said Dorini in an interview in his home.
How to Protect Your Packages—And Your Ethics
We investigated Ring for months. Here are the best privacy options for prospective and existing customers By Lam Thuy Vo. This article was co-published with AfroLA. This series was made possible through support from the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network. As doorbell cameras have become prominent in many parts...
Living in a World of Cyber Threats and God Bots
Hello World is a weekly newsletter—delivered every Saturday morning—that goes deep into our original reporting and the questions we put to big thinkers in the field. Browse the archive here. Hi everyone,. Nabiha Syed here. Last week, I returned from a business trip to a pile of mail...
What Happens When Nurses Are Hired Like Ubers
This article was copublished with The 19th, a nonprofit newsroom covering gender, politics, and policy. Sign up for The 19th’s newsletter here. Shawnika Howell has been a nurse for 13 years, primarily in long-term care, but around the time of the winter 2021 COVID-19 surge, she decided to find some extra work through something new: an app called Clipboard.
Predictive Policing Software Terrible At Predicting Crimes
This article was copublished with WIRED. Crime predictions generated for the police department in Plainfield, New Jersey, rarely lined up with reported crimes, an analysis by The Markup has found, adding new context to the debate over the efficacy of crime prediction software. Geolitica, known as PredPol until a 2021...
How We Assessed the Accuracy of Predictive Policing Software
In the first installment of our series Prediction: Bias, we investigated the use of Geolitica, a software that claims to take historical crime data and predict where and when future crime is most likely to occur. We found the software disproportionately directed officers to patrol neighborhoods with relatively higher percentages of low-income, Black, and Latino residents compared to those cities or counties on the whole. Our analysis was based on data produced by Geolitica and provided directly to police departments in 38 jurisdictions across the U.S. Geolitica was formerly known as PredPol until 2021.
Our Pixel Hunt Project Keeps Paying Dividends
Reporter Colin Lecher here. I’m back today to tell you a little about the huge, ongoing change we’ve spurred from one of our long-running investigations: Pixel Hunt. Back at the beginning of last year, we announced that we wanted to investigate a little-examined bit of code called the Meta Pixel. The code allows website operators to track their visitors and transmit data on their behavior to Facebook. The code can track pageviews, what someone purchased, what they clicked, or even what they entered into a form.
Amazon Ranks Its Own Products First, FTC Lawsuit Says
Amazon routinely ranks its own products ahead of items from competitors, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said in an antitrust lawsuit—echoing the findings of a 2021 investigation by The Markup. Amazon Puts Its Own “Brands” First Above Better-Rated Products. Amazon’s search results are biased in the company’s...
Dropout Risk System Under Scrutiny After The Markup Report
Hello World is a weekly newsletter—delivered every Saturday morning—that goes deep into our original reporting and the questions we put to big thinkers in the field. Browse the archive here. Hi there,. It’s me, Tara García Mathewson, back in the Hello World rotation to get you thinking about...
The Markup
523+
Posts
2M+
Views
The Markup is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates how powerful institutions are using technology to change our society.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.