ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Facebook is building a massive solar farm in West Texas that's believed to be one of the largest solar projects in the nation and the social media giant's first direct investment in renewable energy. Boston-based renewable energy developer Longroad Energy recently announced it was partnering with Facebook...
New ‘Empty Nesters’ Celebrate with Priceless Photo Shoot
When the time came for the last of their three children to move out, Amy and Randy English decided to immortalize their transformation into "empty nesters." Mission accomplished. Mixing a wonderful sense of humor with the photography talent of their departing daughter, the Mississippi couple created a photo album that...
Graduate’s Video with Father at US-Mexico Border Goes Viral
Dressed in her graduation gown, the high school student shared an emotional celebration with her father on a bridge connecting the United States and Mexico. "It started as not seeing him on Father's Day, then it continued to be a spiral of downhill emotions where I would only see him...
Facebook Isn’t Deleting the Fake Pelosi Video. Should It?
SAN FRANCISCO — When a doctored video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — one altered to show the Democratic leader slurring her words — began making the rounds on Facebook last week, the social network didn't take it down. Instead, it "downranked" the video, a behind-the-scenes move intended to limit its spread....
Facebook Busts Israel-Based Campaign to Disrupt Elections
JERUSALEM — Facebook said Thursday it banned an Israeli company that ran an influence campaign aimed at disrupting elections in various countries and has canceled dozens of accounts engaged in spreading disinformation. Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook's head of cybersecurity policy, told reporters that the tech giant had purged 65 Israeli accounts,...
Facebook Limits Livestreaming Ahead of Tech Summit in Paris
PARIS — A dozen countries and global tech giants including Facebook, Google and Twitter pledged Wednesday to find ways to keep internet platforms from being used to spread hate, organize extremist groups and broadcast terror attacks. World leaders led by French President Emmanuel Macron and tech executives gathered in Paris...
Why Does Facebook Fail to Fix Itself? It’s Complicated
SAN FRANCISCO — The question comes up over and over, with extremist material, hate speech, election meddling and privacy invasions. Why can't Facebook just fix it? It's complicated, with reasons that include Facebook's size, its business model and technical limitations, not to mention years of unchecked growth. Oh, and the...
Why Facebook Makes Americans Feel Politically Polarized
Why is the moderate majority a silent one? It’s not hard to understand why moderate opinions are absent from the ranks of cable television talking heads, satellite radio hosts, and newspaper opinion editorialists. Moderation doesn’t sell. Americans have short attention spans, and conflict is more interesting than cooperation. Inciting anger...
Facebook Bans Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones for Hate Speech
SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook has banned Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones and others from its main service and from Instagram, saying they violated the company's ban against hate and violence. The company said Thursday that it has also banned right-wing extremists Paul Nehlen, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer,...
Hickenlooper Proposing Staggered Federal Minimum Wage Hikes
LAS VEGAS — Democratic presidential candidate John Hickenlooper is proposing a $15 federal minimum wage — with a twist. Rather than unilaterally hiking the wage to $15, the former Colorado governor proposes phasing in the increases depending on an area's cost of living. The most expensive quarter of the country would get...