Source Code

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Anonymity and the fight for the future of the internet Mar 16, 2022

Show notes

Jeff Kosseff’s last book turned out to be pretty prescient. He published “The Twenty-Six Words That Created The Internet,” a deep look at the history and future of Section 230, right as those 26 words became central to the regulatory fight over the future of the internet.

With his next book, Kosseff, a professor at the Naval Academy, may have done the same thing. The book is titled “The United States of Anonymous,” and it deals with the centuries-old argument about whether people should be allowed to say things without having to identify themselves. In the U.S., courts have given a lot of leeway and protection to anonymous speakers, but the internet has changed the equation, and companies and governments alike are still figuring out what to do.

Kosseff joined the Source Code podcast to discuss his new book, how technologies like bulletin boards and Tor and facial recognition are changing the way we think about anonymity, and why he thinks that even though anonymity allows bad people to do bad things, he thinks it’s still worth preserving. And even fighting for.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

The future of 230, the end of PowerPoint, and the fight over military tech Mar 12, 2022

Show notes

Ben Brody joins the show to discuss the state of the Section 230 debate, and why Justice Clarence Thomas wants it to come up in the Supreme Court so badly. Then, Lizzy Lawrence explains why so many startups are eager to disrupt PowerPoint, and why the future of meetings might be more like a late-night show. Finally, Kate Kaye discusses how enterprise companies are working with the military, and why those relationships seem to be worth the downsides.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

The Mac is back, and other notes from Apple's spring event Mar 09, 2022

Show notes

Apple’s latest launch event turned into something of a Mac showcase. And featured much more chip discussion than your average launch event. Protocol’s Caitlin McGarry joins the show to talk about the new Mac Studio, iPad Air, iPhone SE and everything else Apple announced on Tuesday, plus what it all means and why laptops and desktops are suddenly the hottest gadgets on the market.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

How tech responded to Russia — and what happens next Mar 05, 2022

Show notes

Issie Lapowsky joins the show to discuss how Meta, Twitter, YouTube and other platforms have responded to the war in Ukraine, and why their response is so much stronger than in the past. Then, Janko Roettgers dives into the rise and fall of RT, and why so many platforms banned the channel. Finally, Nick Statt explains how video games ended up so important to this crisis — along with a brief diversion into Amazon’s gaming strategy, which finally seems to be working.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

Can Glass build a better Instagram? Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

Social networks don’t feel so … social anymore. Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and the rest seem to be leaning ever further into entertainment, and away from helping people find and chat with people like them. But Glass is hoping to be different. The new photo-sharing social network is determined to find a better, less problematic, more social way to network.

Tom Watson and Stefan Borsje, the co-founders of Glass, have both worked in tech for years, and have seen the pitfalls that come to social apps. So they’ve set out to build Glass very differently. They’re not taking VC money, they’re not prioritizing growth and engagement above all else, and they won’t even show you how many times people liked your photo. In the process, they hope they’re building a place photographers might actually want to be.

Watson and Borsje joined the Source Code podcast to discuss Glass, the state and future of social networking, and what it takes to build something different.

For more on the topics in this episode:

Glass
Tom Watson on Glass
Stefan Borsje on Glass
Glass’ Tom Watson — Om Malik
Get Together: How to build a community with your people, by Bailey Richardson

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

Protocol Live: how to build the metaverse Feb 26, 2022

Show notes

Today we’re bringing you another Protocol Live, this one on a subject near and dear to seemingly everyone in tech: how to build the metaverse. And maybe more important, how to build it right. Protocol’s Nick Statt and Janko Roettgers chatted with a panel of smart metaverse thinkers about the tools, standards, systems and rules for the metaverse, and why it matters so much to get them right from the beginning.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

How VR could change the way we hang out – and fall in love Feb 24, 2022

Show notes

Online dating hasn’t been novel for a few years now. It’s now the most common way people meet, and it’s only becoming more central to the way modern romance works. But the next shift is already beginning, as the internet begins to move out of the social networking phase and into whatever this crypto, metaverse, Web3 thing is going to become.

Dushyant Saraph, Match’s chief product and revenue officer, is in charge of figuring out what that shift looks like for dating and relationships. That means, yes, the metaverse! (Whatever that turns out to mean.) It also means finding ways to foster connection over long distances, on screens and through headphones. It means combining the digital and physical worlds in ways that make sense to users from all sorts of backgrounds and age brackets.

For the final episode in our monthlong series on how tech is shaping dating, love, sex, marriage and what relationships of all kinds look like in an increasingly digital world, Saraph joined the Source Code podcast to talk about VR dating, video chat, why we don’t need legs to have a good time in the metaverse and much more.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

Metamates, Peloton, and the metaverse real estate boom Feb 19, 2022

Show notes

Issie Lapowsky joins the show to talk about Nick Clegg’s new job at Meta, what it means for Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, and what to do about the term “Metamates.” Then Lizzy Lawrence explains what’s next at Peloton, both for the company itself and for the 2,800 people it recently laid off. Finally, Nick Statt explains why metaverse real estate is booming, and what it means for the future of digital spaces.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

White Teslas and WedTok: the future is coming for weddings everywhere Feb 16, 2022

Show notes

After two years of pandemic-induced cancellations, postponements and overall chaos, the wedding industry is back. The Knot estimates that there will be 2.6 million weddings in the U.S alone in 2022, about half a million more than a typical year. As we’ve all gotten used to hybrid meetings and Zoom happy hours, has tech changed weddings forever, too?

Not really, said Esther Lee, a senior editor and wedding expert at The Knot. But tech is changing the way people plan their weddings in a big way, from vendor searches to wedding gifts to the all-important wedding hashtag.

Lee joined the Source Code podcast to talk about Zoom weddings, getting married in the metaverse, how Teslas became the hot getaway car, and much more.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

The all-highlights, gambling-friendly future of sports TV Feb 12, 2022

Show notes

It's Super Bowl weekend! And the Olympics! It's a big time for sports fans, and a big time for TV networks everywhere. There's more money in live sports than ever, but at the same time, the market is clearly starting to shift. That change starts with young fans, who would much rather watch and share highlights than sit through three hours of football and commercials.

Buzzer's Bo Han is trying to capitalize on that change, and help leagues and networks alike to adjust to the new reality. He joined the show to discuss how how younger fans interact with the teams and players they love, how gambling and fantasy are changing sports, and why the Super Bowl remains unstoppable even as the rest of the media changes around it.

For more on the topics in this episode:

For all the links and stories, head to Source Code’s homepage.

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