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FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez Will Fight for Press Freedom--Until Trump Fires Her

WIRED

President Trump probably can't get rid of her yet, but FCC commissioner Anna Gomez still checks her email every day to see if he has. Until then, she wants to stand up for the First Amendment. If you've given much thought to the Federal Communications Commission in recent years, it probably had something to do with Brendan Carr . The group's chairman since 2025, Carr has been on an ongoing, public rampage against freedom of speech: he's gone after late-night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel, threatened to revoke broadcast licenses over Iran war coverage, and targeted networks for their DEI policies. Disturbing as Carr's rhetoric and actions have been, he does count at least one opponent within the agency: Commissioner Anna Gomez, currently the lone Democrat among three FCC commissioners, has been vocal about the damage she thinks the agency is doing to American press freedom--and has repeatedly urged the public and the press, namely major networks like ABC, CBS, and NBC, to fight back. In May, Commissioner Gomez penned a stunning public letter to Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro, wherein she warned that the company--which owns ABC--was being subjected to "a sustained, coordinated campaign of censorship and control, carried out through the weaponization of the FCC's authority as a federal regulator and aimed at pressuring a free and independent press." Gomez urged D'Amaro to fight the actions her own agency was taking, adding that "this is a fight worth having, and one that I am confident you will win." I wanted to talk to Commissioner Gomez about that bold letter, the risks she sees for the media and the American public under the Trump administration, and how she works alongside a chairman with whom she disagrees so fiercely. Gomez, whose FCC term ends this month, was generous enough to sit down and talk about all of it. You can read our conversation below, or listen to it on the podcast platform of your choice. KATIE DRUMMOND: Welcome, Commissioner Gomez. Thank you for being here. It's great to be here. I want to start, before we talk more about Disney and your letter and all the rest of it, with a very basic question for our listeners. What is your agency's basic role?


UK's top AI regulator quits after 'inappropriate' humour

BBC News

UK's top data and AI regulator quits after'inappropriate' humour John Edwards, the UK's information commissioner, has resigned following a workplace investigation. I have accepted that there have been occasions where I exercised poor judgement and made attempts at humour that were inappropriate and caused offence, he said in a statement on Friday. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is responsible for regulating AI in the UK and also oversees data protection regulation and the freedom of information law. Edwards' resignation was confirmed by the government, which said it had come after an independent probe that took place regarding allegations made against him. The government expects the highest standards of conduct from all senior leaders in public life, said a spokesperson for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).


'Irresponsible': backlash as Utah approves datacenter twice the size of Manhattan

The Guardian

Petitioners react as the Box Elder county commission announces approval of a large datacenter on 4 May 2026 in Tremonton, Utah. Petitioners react as the Box Elder county commission announces approval of a large datacenter on 4 May 2026 in Tremonton, Utah. 'Irresponsible': backlash as Utah approves datacenter twice the size of Manhattan A plan to create one of the world's largest datacenters, a gargantuan project spanning an area more than twice the size of Manhattan, has provoked a furious public backlash in Utah amid concerns over its vast energy use and impact upon the state's stressed water supplies. The Stratos artificial intelligence datacenter footprint will cover more than 40,000 acres (62 sq miles) over three sites in Box Elder county in north-western Utah. The facility will require about 9GW of power, which is more than the entire state of Utah currently consumes, and suck up a significant amount of water in an area that has been hit by severe drought in recent years.


Data centers are amazing. Everyone hates them.

MIT Technology Review

In these politically divisive times, there's one thing we all agree on--we don't want a giant data center in our backyard. Behold, the hyperscale data center! Massive structures, with thousands of specialized computer chips running in parallel to perform the complex calculations required by advanced AI models. A single facility can cover millions of square feet, built with millions of pounds of steel, aluminum, and concrete; feature hundreds of miles of wiring, connecting some hundreds of thousands of high-end GPU chips, and chewing through hundreds of megawatt-hours of electricity. These facilities run so hot from all that computing power that their cooling systems are triumphs of engineering complexity in themselves. But the star of the show are those chips with their advanced processors.


AFP developing AI tool to decode gen Z slang amid warning about 'crimefluencers' hunting girls

The Guardian

Federal police say they have identified 59 alleged offenders as being in these online networks and have made an unspecified number of arrests. Federal police say they have identified 59 alleged offenders as being in these online networks and have made an unspecified number of arrests. Australian federal police will develop an AI tool to decode gen Z and Alpha slang and emojis in an effort to crackdown on sadistic online exploitation and "crimefluencers". The AFP commissioner, Krissy Barrett, used a speech at the National Press Club on Wednesday to warn of the rise of online crime networks of young boys and men who are targeting vulnerable teen and preteen girls. The newly appointed chief outlined how the perpetrators, who are overwhelmingly from English-speaking backgrounds, were grooming victims and then forcing them to "perform serious acts of violence on themselves, their siblings, others or their pets".


Man fined 340,000 for deepfake pornography of prominent Australian women in first-of-its-kind case

The Guardian

The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, took Anthony Rotondo to court in 2023 after he replied to a removal notice, saying it meant nothing to him as he was not an Australian resident. The eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, took Anthony Rotondo to court in 2023 after he replied to a removal notice, saying it meant nothing to him as he was not an Australian resident. Watchdog applauds'strong message' after federal court orders Gold Coast man Anthony Rotondo to pay for posting deepfake images to a now-defunct website Fri 26 Sep 2025 06.02 EDTLast modified on Fri 26 Sep 2025 06.21 EDT A man who posted deepfake pornographic images of prominent Australian women has been slapped with a hefty fine as a "strong message" in a first-of-its-kind case. The federal court ordered Anthony Rotondo, also known as Antonio, to pay a $343,500 penalty plus costs on Friday after the online regulator eSafety Commissioner brought a case against him almost two years ago. Rotondo admitted to posting the images on a website called MrDeepFakes.com,


She was almost deported as a child. Now she holds a key post overseeing the LAPD

Los Angeles Times

The new president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, Teresa Sรกnchez-Gordon, is a former L.A. County judge who says her upbringing in an undocumented family gives her a unique perspective on the current challenges facing the LAPD.


Letters from Our Readers

The New Yorker

Readers respond to John Seabrook's piece on floods, Eyal Press's article on the National Restaurant Association, and Adam Gopnik's essay on the history of gambling in New York. John Seabrook's piece on the increasing frequency and formidable power of river flooding is both moving and scientifically instructive (" The Flood Will Come, " July 28th). I served as Vermont's commissioner of health for eight years, during which time I participated in the state's annual flood-disaster response, and I believe it's important to expand the public-safety discussion so that it includes the protection of human health and wellness. Climate change poses the biggest threat to public health, and storms and floods have abundant immediate impacts: drinking-water contamination; mold damage to homes and businesses; the spread of infectious disease; soil erosion that affects food quality; and limitations on recreation, transportation, and medical-care access. Climate change is also a major source of stress on the population's mental health, and on the country's already fragile mental-health system.


Social Security stronger under Trump, critics pushing 'false' narrative, commissioner says

FOX News

Social Security Administration Commissioner Frank Bisignano provides an update on the agency's work on'The Claman Countdown.' President Donald Trump's pick to head the nation's Social Security apparatus, Commissioner Frank Bisignano, told Fox News Digital that criticisms of the Trump administration's approach to Social Security are politically motivated and misleading. Democrats have expressed a wide range of concerns about Social Security under the current administration, including claims the Trump administration is making it more difficult for seniors and people with disabilities to access their benefits. The Trump administration's critics have also expressed concern that the president is seeking to privatize the program and is exaggerating fraud concerns to justify sweeping reforms. Democrats in Congress have gone as far as launching a "Social Security War Room" to coordinate their efforts to fight back.


America's AI watchdog is losing its bite

MIT Technology Review

It found that the security giant Evolv lied about the accuracy of its AI-powered security checkpoints, which are used in stadiums and schools but failed to catch a seven-inch knife that was ultimately used to stab a student. It went after the facial recognition company Intellivision, saying the company made unfounded claims that its tools operated without gender or racial bias. It fined startups promising bogus "AI lawyer" services and one that sold fake product reviews generated with AI. These actions did not result in fines that crippled the companies, but they did stop them from making false statements and offered customers ways to recover their money or get out of contracts. In each case, the FTC found, everyday people had been harmed by AI companies that let their technologies run amok.