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GOP and industry agree: Tech has a messaging problem
The government and the technology industry agree: They need to do a better job educating the public. During a policy forum hosted by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) at the Republican National Convention this week, members of Congress and several industry veterans admitted they have not done enough to dispel myths around technology, nor have they found the proper way to push Americans toward degrees in STEM fields. Congressman Blake Farenthold from Texas said "everyone still wants an MBA," even though you'd probably make more money with a degree in engineering.
Republican platform highlights the importance of privacy
In the wake of countless scandals, from Bush-era warrantless wiretaps to Obama-age metadata collection, the Republican party has decided to put renewed focus on citizen privacy. Multiple sections of the party's platform, which lays out its agenda for the next four years, call for strengthening privacy protections both against the government and private businesses. It even particularly calls out the need to protect the information of farmers and ranchers in the age of "big data." On the specific challenges around encrypted data and communication, however, the GOP leaves itself plenty of wiggle room when it comes to accessing such information.
Republican party embraces next-gen wireless and IoT
In 2012 the GOP's official platform didn't say much about broadband. In fact, in the 62-page, roughly 30,000-word document detailing the party's various policy stances, the word "broadband" only appeared once. In 2016, things are a little different. The platform dedicates far more space to talk of expanding internet access. It even calls for reforms that would help the Internet of Things "thrive."
GOP platform praises NASA's ability to foster innovation
The Republican party has officially adopted its platform (warning: PDF) for the 2016 election season. And inside is some slightly surprising praise for NASA and talk of investing in it as a means to foster innovation. Specifically the GOP called the agency (along with the Department of Defense) critical to maintaining the country's edge in space. Of course, the specifics of the language are very carefully chosen. The platform doesn't whole-heartedly embrace a government-driven path to space-based dominance. Instead it calls out the agencies, as well as their public-private partnerships with the likes of SpaceX, that it claims have saved tax payers money.
BuzzFeed and Washington Post turn to robots for RNC coverage
Both the Washington Post and Buzzfeed have sent robots to cover the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Call it forward thinking, call it a gimmick, inventive, desperate... doesn't matter. But it's happening, and both outlets couldn't be prouder of their efforts to modify their news gathering process and bring additional interactivity to their reporting.
Peter Thiel to speak at the Republican National Convention (updated)
Peter Thiel, the Silicon Valley investor and PayPal co-founder, is set to speak an the upcoming Republican National Convention. According to a list of speakers and guests obtained by The New York Times, Thiel is scheduled to appear on the fourth night of the GOP's event -- the same evening as Donald Trump is expected to accept the party's formal nomination. The two will be joined on stage that night, Thursday, July 21st, by Republican Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, Florida Governor Rick Scott, former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow and others. As always, the list is subject to change before the event.
Apple won't assist the Republican convention due to Trump
Apple has made a number of firm political stands ever since Tim Cook took the helm, and it's not about to back down any time soon. Politico sources (backed by in-the-know journalist John Paczkowski) say that Apple won't provide funding or other support for the Republican Party's July presidential convention due to Donald Trump's policies. Reportedly, his attitudes toward immigrants, minorities and women are beyond the pale -- although Apple has been willing to court Republicans in the past (Cook met with House GOP bigwigs in 2015), Trump is just too extreme for the company's tastes. Apple has declined to comment to Politico so far.
