technocrit

But this isn’t just about professors; it’s about all of us. This is the most flagrant attack on higher education in my lifetime. Why are politicians reducing public colleges and universities to vehicles of state propaganda? Why are self-proclaimed proponents of free speech turning around and using state repression to enforce speech codes on our campuses? Why can’t we speak openly about our social world in sociology classes? Why are unqualified appointees from the business world dictating to Ph.D.-holding academics how they should teach and which textbooks they must use?

What we really need are people beyond the university itself — the general public — speaking out about how ludicrous this all is. We are now living through an era of state censorship, politically motivated firings, and state-produced propaganda materials. If this isn’t authoritarianism in higher education, I don’t know what is.

Opinion piece by Zachary Levenson is associate professor of sociology at Florida International University. 

EDITED TO ADD (in case some miss my comment)

Imagine the following scenario: You’re teaching Introduction to Sociology at a community college in Florida, and today, you’re trying to explain the well-documented pay gap between men and women in the United States. You check the guidance you just received from your dean, who received instructions via email from the executive vice chancellor of the Florida College System. The instructions state explicitly that explaining “unequal outcomes between men and women” in terms of “institutional sexism” would violate state law.

Chuck Schumer is not only failing to meet the moment by not opposing the war on Iran. He has long been a hawk on Iran among Democrats and Americans who are yearning for peace.

“I don’t like Trump but Iran is bad,” is the siren song of feckless liberals. This moment calls for condemnation of the U.S. and unreserved support for the Iranian people and for their state.

The students, who have not been named because they are minors, are currently on house arrest and face trumped-up felony aggravated assault charges for allegedly injuring McElree during the anti-ICE protest.

On February 20, an unidentified McElree approached students while in plain clothes, shoving one and placing another—now identified as a 15-year-old girl—in a rear naked chokehold before taking her to the ground. Startled students surrounding the man sought to physically prevent the assault. They were arrested and now face felony aggravated assault charges, which, if they are tried as adults, carry a statutory maximum of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $25,000 in Pennsylvania.

The attack and reprisal come as students continue to stage daily protests against ICE and the Trump administration’s anti‑immigrant policies. On Tuesday, students at Philadelphia’s Edison High School staged a walkout. According to ABC News, the “school district says it does not sanction these protests,” potentially opening them up to academic and legal repercussions.

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“The destruction that Kennedy has wrought in one year might take generations to repair, and there is little hope for US health and science while he remains at the helm,” the journal’s editorial board wrote in its latest issue.

Betting company Polymarket and online writing platform Substack announced a partnership this week to further entrench gambling in the world of journalism and, in Polymarket’s words, make journalism “better” with “live markets.”

Substack will now allow writers to embed prediction market data in their articles, with “native tools that make it easier to share, discuss, and debate prediction market data directly on Substack,” as the company’s co-founder and CEO Chris Best said in a post on the platform. Best said a pilot program the company has run since 2024 has led to one in five of Substack’s 250 highest-revenue publications embedding the data.

“Journalism is better when it’s backed by live markets,” Polymarket disturbingly wrote in a post on X announcing the partnership.

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Donald Trump’s attack on Iran may set off a showdown over the president’s authority to declare war. The case could end up in court, giving conservative justices a long-awaited chance to end Congress’s ability to limit presidents’ warmaking powers.

CNN employees reacted with alarm after Netflix abruptly pulled out of the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery, effectively clearing the way for a takeover of the 24/7 cable channel by Paramount Skydance, the media giant run by technology heir David Ellison.

Seven current CNN employees who spoke to NBC News on Thursday night, hours after Netflix announced it would not try to match Paramount’s bid for WBD, expressed a combination of fear and concern. They described the mood inside the company as “shaken” and” depressing.”

American companies are spending enormous sums to develop high-performing AI models. Distillation attacks are attempting to maliciously extract them — and nobody is doing much to stop it.

The United States is attacking Iran because Donald Trump was determined to drag us into war no matter what — and despite repeatedly insisting he would do the exact opposite.