Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 39
Summary
Bill and Seb have been shortlisted in the Technology category for the Press Gazette British Journalism Awards, on Tuesday 10 December at the Hilton Bankside, alongside freelance investigative journalist Duncan Campbell. Computer Weekly has published the treasure trove of leaked documents – which have also been disclosed to US congressman David Cicilline, chairman of the Congress House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law, after Facebook ignored a request, first reported by AP, from the committee to provide them. As Bill and freelance journalist Crina Boros, in a 5,000-word comprehensive narrative, make clear, the documents show how Facebook undermined rivals, such as WhatsApp, in bid to dominate global messaging. And Seb reports on how early Facebook investor Roger McNamee has suggested his former mentee Mark Zuckerberg’s attitude towards surveillance capitalism is a by-product of Silicon Valley’s toxic culture and business practices. It emerged, just before recording, that Labour’s shadow small business minister, Bill Esterson, has back-tracked on comments he made earlier in the week suggesting Labour would scrap an extension of the IR35 reforms to the private sector if it won the General Election.