Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

There's a corner of the internet where YouTubers read strangers' obituaries. Why?

"It's quite a tasteless pursuit, but it seems as though it's a pursuit driven by desperation, like they are casting around looking for ways to make money online," WIRED reporter Kate Knibbs said of the YouTube obituary pirates.
Searching the name of a recently deceased person can bring up a flood of these YouTube obituary videos.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

E-commerce and running a business 24/7

Jun 9, 2023
In a world connected via the internet, small businesses are taking advantage of social media to promote their brand.
Remark Glass recycles used bottles and glass to create unique molten products like rock glasses and vases.
Stevie Chris

Congress hasn't had the best record of regulating new tech. Could AI be different?

May 16, 2023
Generative artificial intelligence is advancing quickly, and it's not clear if legislators and regulators can keep up.
Samuel Altman, CEO of OpenAI, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the use and regulation of artificial intelligence.
Win McNamee/Getty Images

How undersea internet cables connect the global economy

The U.S. and China are competing for control over these vital pieces of infrastructure.
Technicians work on undersea cable in December 2005. Undersea internet cables "carry about 99% of all our telecommunications," said James Kraska at the U.S. Naval War College.
Stephan Agostini/AFP via Getty Images

States, communities struggle to meet deadline in broadband funding process

Jan 13, 2023
The deadline is this week to file challenges to FCC maps that will be used to dole out $42.5 billion in funding.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act provides about $42.5 billion in funding to expand broadband access, but the application deadline is fast approaching and some states are looking for more time.
Sandra Mu/Getty Images

Frustrating user-experience tactics can have real harm, "dark pattern" expert says

Aug 10, 2022
Website and app design strategies that trick users can cost consumers time and money, Harry Brignull says.
From hidden fees when booking a rental property, to a subscription that seems impossible to cancel, dark patterns are annoyances that can cost you time and money.
Matt Cardy/Getty Images

Millions of eligible Americans are missing out on broadband internet subsidies

Jan 24, 2022
People without reliable internet access can be hard to reach.
By one estimate, about 30 million American households are missing out on the FCC's monthly subsidy.
Valerie Macon/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Senators grill tech CEOs as both parties fault internet content policies

Oct 28, 2020
Legislation to tighten the oversight of internet content may be coming.
Denis Charlet/AFP/Getty Images

Can the internet help you become a better person?

Oct 28, 2020
On a provocative Reddit forum, millions of strangers can weigh in on questions of right and wrong.
A Reddit forum presents moral questions from people's lives. Strangers post their judgments, which can provide life lessons. Or not.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The days of free, unlimited data may be coming to an end for some internet users

Jul 6, 2020
During the pandemic, some internet providers have been offering service for free and waiving late fees.
During the pandemic, the internet has provided a vital service for people to file for unemployment, or take online classes or order deliveries.
Scott Olson/Getty Images