Trump Links His Push for Greenland to Not Winning Nobel Peace Prize; The New York Times, January 19, 2026

Jeffrey Gettleman and Henrik Pryser Libell , The New York Times; Trump Links His Push for Greenland to Not Winning Nobel Peace Prize

In a text, President Trump told Norway’s prime minister that he no longer felt obliged to “think purely of Peace” and that the U.S. needed the island for global security.

"President Trump is now claiming that one reason he is pushing to acquire Greenland is that he didn’t win the Nobel Peace Prize, according to a text message he sent to Norway’s prime minister over the weekend.

Jonas Gahr Store, Norway’s leader, received the text message on Sunday, an official in the prime minister’s office said on Monday.

“Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America,” Mr. Trump wrote in the message, which was first published by PBS.

In the message, Mr. Trump also questioned Denmark’s claim to Greenland, saying, “There are no written documents,” and adding, “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland. Thank you!”"

AI companies will fail. We can salvage something from the wreckage; The Guardian, January 18, 2026

 Cory Doctorow, The Guardian; AI companies will fail. We can salvage something from the wreckage

"The growth narrative of AI is that AI will disrupt labor markets. I use “disrupt” here in its most disreputable tech-bro sense.

The promise of AI – the promise AI companies make to investors – is that there will be AI that can do your job, and when your boss fires you and replaces you with AI, he will keep half of your salary for himself and give the other half to the AI company.

That is the $13tn growth story that Morgan Stanley is telling. It’s why big investors are giving AI companies hundreds of billions of dollars. And because they are piling in, normies are also getting sucked in, risking their retirement savings and their family’s financial security.

Now, if AI could do your job, this would still be a problem. We would have to figure out what to do with all these unemployed people.

But AI can’t do your job. It can help you do your job, but that does not mean it is going to save anyone money...

After more than 20 years of being consistently wrong and terrible for artists’ rights, the US Copyright Office has finally done something gloriously, wonderfully right. All through this AI bubble, the Copyright Office has maintained – correctly – that AI-generated works cannot be copyrighted, because copyright is exclusively for humans. That is why the “monkey selfie” is in the public domain. Copyright is only awarded to works of human creative expression that are fixed in a tangible medium.

And not only has the Copyright Office taken this position, they have defended it vigorously in court, repeatedly winning judgments to uphold this principle.

The fact that every AI-created work is in the public domain means that if Getty or Disney or Universal or Hearst newspapers use AI to generate works – then anyone else can take those works, copy them, sell them or give them away for nothing. And the only thing those companies hate more than paying creative workers, is having other people take their stuff without permission...

AI is a bubble and bubbles are terrible.

Bubbles transfer the life savings of normal people who are just trying to have a dignified retirement to the wealthiest and most unethical people in our society, and every bubble eventually bursts, taking their savings with it."

Publishers seek to join lawsuit against Google over AI training; Reuters, January 15, 2026

Blake Brittain , Reuters; Publishers seek to join lawsuit against Google over AI training

"Publishers Hachette Book Group and Cengage Group asked a California federal court on Thursday for permission to intervene in a proposed class action lawsuit against Google over the alleged misuse of copyrighted material used to train its artificial intelligence systems.

The publishers said in their proposed complaint that the tech company "engaged in one of the most prolific infringements of copyrighted materials in history" to build its AI capabilities, copying content from Hachette books and Cengage textbooks without permission...

The lawsuit currently involves groups of visual artists and authors who sued Google for allegedly misusing their work to train its generative AI systems. The case is one of many high-stakes lawsuits brought by artists, authors, music labels and other copyright owners against tech companies over their AI training."

‘60 Minutes’ is finally airing the shelved ‘Inside CECOT’ segment; CNN, January 18, 2026

Brian Stelter, CNN ; ‘60 Minutes’ is finally airing the shelved ‘Inside CECOT’ segment

"Nearly a month after CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss triggered a scandal by shelving a “60 Minutes” story about Venezuelan men deported by the US to a hellish prison in El Salvador, the story is airing on Sunday evening.

Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, who defended the story and alleged “corporate censorship” by Weiss last month, recorded a new beginning and ending to the segment to incorporate the additions Weiss wanted.

But the report itself, titled “Inside CECOT,” remained the same as it was on the day Weiss delayed it."

More Immigrants Detained by ICE Recount Harsh and Cruel Treatment; Mother Jones, January 18, 2026

Katie Herchenroeder, Mother Jones; More Immigrants Detained by ICE Recount Harsh and Cruel Treatment

"As the Trump administration’s deportation campaign continues to bring fear and upheaval to Minneapolis, more immigrants are sharing their stories of detainment and harsh treatment when being apprehended at their homes, while driving, and at work. Tensions continue to rise as federal immigration agents target people who they claim are in the country without legal status, as well as protestors filling the streets to demand accountability for Homeland Security’s often violent tactics, including ICE agent Jonathan Ross’ killing of Renée Good in her car. 

This week, according to reporting from the Minnesota Star Tribune, federal agents detained three workers from a family-owned Mexican restaurant hours after the agents themselves dined at the establishment. The agents reportedly followed the workers after the workers closed up for the night and took them into custody. That was not the first time ICE agents have gone to a local business as customers before arresting someone who works there. 

During a Saturday press conference, a recently released man described a different form of callousness by ICE. Garrison Gibson, 38, said that agents showed up to his house multiple times, eventually smashing open the door with a battering ram. After armed agents took him from his home Gibson says, they reveled in his detainment. 

“They took trophy pictures with their personal phones,” he said, adding, “like one stood by me on the right side of me. One stood on the left side of me. And they went, like, thumbs up and took pictures with their personal phones.”"

Fears Iran's internet shutdown could lead to 'extreme digital isolation'; BBC, January 18, 2026

Joe Tidy,BBC cybersecurity correspondentand

Farshad Bayan,BBC Persian

, BBC; Fears Iran's internet shutdown could lead to 'extreme digital isolation'

 "Iran is 10 days into one of the most extreme internet shutdowns in history, with 92 million citizens cut off from all internet services and even disruption to phone and text messaging.

The Iranian government cut off services on 8 January, apparently to stifle dissent and prevent international scrutiny of a government crack down on protesters.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the internet was cut off in response to what he described as externally directed "terrorist operations".

The government has not said when internet services will return, but new reports suggest that, behind the scenes, the authorities may be making plans to restrict it permanently. 

On 15 January, the news website IranWire reported that government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani told journalists that international web access will not be available until at least the Iranian New Year in late March. 

Internet freedom observers at FilterWatch believe the government is hastily implementing new systems and rules to cut Iran off from the international internet."

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN BLASTS TRUMP AT SURPRISE BENEFIT GIG: ‘ICE SHOULD GET THE F-CK OUT OF MINNEAPOLIS’; Rolling Stone, January 18, 2026

ANDY GREENE, Rolling Stone;  BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN BLASTS TRUMP AT SURPRISE BENEFIT GIG: ‘ICE SHOULD GET THE F-CK OUT OF MINNEAPOLIS’

"Springsteen had no such concerns, and shortly before playing “The Promised Land” with Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers, he delivered some frank remarks. “I wrote this song as an ode to American possibility,” he said. “Right now we are living through incredibly critical times. The United States, the ideals and the value for which it stood for the past 250 years, is being tested like it has never been in modern times. Those values and those ideals have never been as endangered as they are right now.”

He continued, “If you believe in the power of law and that no one stands above it, if you stand against heavily-armed masked federal troops invading an American city, using gestapo tactics against our fellow citizens, if you believe you don’t deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest, then send a message to this president, as the mayor of the city said: ICE should get the fuck out of Minneapolis. This song is for you and the memory of the mother of three and an American citizen, Renee Good.”"

Google Engineer Disputes AI Secrets in China Espionage Trial; Bloomberg Law, January 12, 2026

 Isaiah Poritz, Bloomberg Law; Google Engineer Disputes AI Secrets in China Espionage Trial

"Former Google LLC engineer Linwei Ding on the first day of his criminal trial pushed back on allegations that he stole over 100 valuable AI trade secrets from the tech giant to start a business in China, arguing that the documents he copied don’t meet the legal definition of a trade secret."

Matthew McConaughey Trademarks ‘Alright, Alright, Alright!’ and Other IP as Legal Protections Against ‘AI Misuse’; Variety, January 14, 2026

 Todd Spangler, Variety ; Matthew McConaughey Trademarks ‘Alright, Alright, Alright!’ and Other IP as Legal Protections Against ‘AI Misuse’

"Matthew McConaughey’s lawyers want you to know that using AI to replicate the actor’s famous catchphrase is not “alright, alright, alright.”

Attorneys for entertainment law firm Yorn Levine representing McConaughey have secured eight trademarks from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office over the last several months for their client, which they said is aimed at protecting his voice and likeness from unauthorized AI misuse."

On James Talarico The Democratic Senate candidate is campaigning on his faith.; The New York Times, Believing Newsletter, January 18, 2026

Lauren Jackson, The New York Times, Believing Newsletter; On James Talarico: The Democratic Senate candidate is campaigning on his faith.

"James Talarico has been taking classes to become a Presbyterian minister. And he wants you to know it.

At packed rallies, on Joe Rogan’s show and to his nearly two million Instagram followers, Talarico is constantly repeating his religious bona fides. He cites Scripture from memory and uses it to give theological answers to political questions. Even his campaign slogan has biblical roots. “It’s time to start flipping tables,” he says, referencing Jesus’s wrath in response to corruption at the temple in Jerusalem.

I’ve been watching Talarico for months, and I’ve been most struck by how deft he is at fusing philosophy with policy. He speaks often about compassion, care and even love. Not as a lofty ideal, but as something urgent. Something measurable.

“I believe love is a force as real as gravity,” he said in a long interview that aired on “The Ezra Klein Show” last week. “Love to me is the most powerful thing in the universe. It is not weak, it is not neutral, it is not passive. It doesn’t paper over disagreement.”"

ESDEEKID CALLS OUT THE CHAINSMOKERS OVER ‘4 RAWS’ REMIX; Billboard, January 3, 2026

 Jessica Lynch, Billboard; ESDEEKID CALLS OUT THE CHAINSMOKERS OVER ‘4 RAWS’ REMIX

"UK rapper EsDeeKid has publicly called out The Chainsmokers after the duo shared a remix of his track “4 Raws” that he says was released without his approval.

In a post on X on Jan. 2, EsDeeKid wrote that the remix was “getting NUKED,” writing, “that chainsmokers remix is getting NUKED mate wow please. don’t remix my sh– and think it’s cool to post to all DSPs.”"

Public Shame Is the Most Effective Tool for Battling Big Tech; The New York Times, January 14, 2026

 Jessica Grose , The New York Times; Public Shame Is the Most Effective Tool for Battling Big Tech

"It might be harder to shame the tech companies themselves into making their products safer, but we can shame third-party companies like toymakers, app stores and advertisers into ending partnerships. And with enough public disapproval, legislators might be inspired to act.

In some of the very worst corners of the internet might lie some hope...

Without more public shaming, what seems to be the implacable forward march of A.I. is unstoppable...

As Jay Caspian Kang noted in The New Yorker recently, changing social norms around kids and tech use can be powerful, and reforms like smartphone bans in schools have happened fairly quickly, and mostly on the state and local level."

Library offering two hybrid workshops on AI issues; University of Pittsburgh, University Times, January 16, 2026

 University of Pittsburgh, University Times; Library offering two hybrid workshops on AI issues

"Next week the University Library System will host two hybrid AI workshops, which are open to all faculty, staff and students.

Both workshops will be held in Hillman Library’s K. Leroy Irvis Reading Room and will be available online.

Navigating Pitt's AI Resources for Research & Learning: 4-5 p.m. Jan. 21. In this workshop, participants will learn about all the AI tools available to the Pitt community and what their strengths are when it comes to research and learning. The workshop will focus on identifying the appropriate AI tools, describing their strengths and weaknesses for specific learning needs, and developing a plan for using the tools effectively. Register here.

Creating a Personal Research & Learning Assistant: Writing Effective Prompts: 4-5 p.m. Jan. 22. Anyone can use an AI tool, but maximizing its potential for personalized learning takes some skills and forethought. If you have been using Claude or Gemini to support your research or learning and are interested in getting better results faster, this workshop is for you. Attend this session to learn strategies to write effective prompts which will help you both ideate on your topic of interest and increase the likelihood of generating useful responses. We will explore numerous frameworks for crafting prompts, including making use of personas, context, and references. Register here."

Copyright laws need to modernize to include fan-made edits; The Miami Hurricane, January 14, 2026

 Marissa Levinson, The Miami Hurricane; Copyright laws need to modernize to include fan-made edits

[Kip Currier: Unfortunately, this University of Miami's student newspaper's Op-Ed -- Copyright laws need to modernize to include fan-made edits -- contains staggeringly inaccurate interpretations and assertions about copyright law and fair use. 

No one wanting to make informed decisions on copyright-related matters should rely on the writer's cherry-picked aspects of copyright law that are then stitched together to make wildly erroneous conclusions.

Copyright literacy is essential.]

 

[Excerpt]

"I can’t even count the amount of times I’ve been scrolling through my saved folders on TikTok, Instagram or X to watch video edits of clips from my favorite TV shows, only to find nothing but a shell of what once used to be there, with a body of text over it. It reads: “This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim.” 

Video edits of shows and movies, which are often paired with trending songs as the audios, have gained traction on social media platforms among hundreds of fan bases. Navigating this new age of fan-generated edits comes with confusion. As copyright laws based on precedent aren’t current enough to guide regulations on this new type of content, video edits deserve to be protected under copyright law.

Are edits legal?

Fan-made video edits range from less than 30-seconds to a few minutes long. This poses the question of whether they are legal in terms of copyright. The law gives copyright the “power ‘to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Investors the exclusive Right to their Respective Writings and Discoveries,’” according to Article 1, Section 8 of the United States Constitution. 

This means, under the Copyright Act of 1976, “original works of authorship fixed in tangible medium of expression” are protected. According to the four exemptions of the copyright law, video edits are protected by the first amendment and therefore, should be legal to publish."

Nobel Prize committee says Machado decision to give Trump award doesn’t change who won; The Hill, January 16, 2026

SOPHIE BRAMS, The Hill; Nobel Prize committee says Machado decision to give Trump award doesn’t change who won

 "The committee that awards the Nobel Prize said Friday that the physical symbols of the prize — a medal and diploma — can be given away, but the honor itself is “inseparably linked” to the winner.  

“The medal and the diploma are the physical symbols confirming that an individual or organisation has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The prize itself – the honour and recognition – remains inseparably linked to the person or organisation designated as the laureate by the Norwegian Nobel Committee,” the committee said in a statement."

MLK Day concert held annually at the Kennedy Center for 23 years is relocating; NPR, January 14, 2026

 Elizabeth Blair, NPR ; MLK Day concert held annually at the Kennedy Center for 23 years is relocating

"Let Freedom Ring, an annual concert in Washington, D.C., celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr., has been a signature event at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for more than 20 years. Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and Chaka Khan have performed, backed by a choir made up of singers from D.C.-area churches and from Georgetown University, which produces the event.

But this year's event, headlined by actor and rapper Common, will not be held at the Kennedy Center...

Composer Nolan Williams Jr., Let Freedom Ring's music producer since 2003, also says he has no regrets that the event is moving.

"You celebrate the time that was and the impact that has been and can never be erased. And then you move forward to the next thing," said Williams.

This year, Williams wrote a piece for the event called "Just Like Selma," inspired by one of King's most famous quotes: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

Williams says sometimes the quote is "interpreted in a passive way."

"The arc doesn't just happen to move. We have to be agents of change. We have to be active arc movers, arc benders," said Williams. "And so throughout the song, you hear these action words like 'protest,' 'resist,' 'endure,' 'agitate,' 'fight hate.' And those are all the action words that remind us of the responsibility that we have to be arc benders."

Trump pardons South Bay businesswoman convicted of fraud after he granted her clemency once before; The San Diego Union-Tribune, January 16, 2026

ALEX RIGGINS , The San Diego Union-Tribune; Trump pardons South Bay businesswoman convicted of fraud after he granted her clemency once before

"For the second time in five years, President Donald Trump has granted clemency to twice-convicted South Bay businesswoman Adriana Isabel Camberos, this time issuing her and her brother full and unconditional pardons of their fraud convictions after commuting her previous fraud sentence in 2021.

Camberos, 55, was first convicted in 2016 of taking part in a fraud scheme with her husband and others that involved selling counterfeit 5-Hour Energy drinks. She was about halfway through her 26-month prison term in that case when Trump commuted her sentence on the last day of his first term. Unlike a full pardon, that action set her free from prison but didn’t wipe out her conviction.

But in 2023, federal prosecutors in San Diego alleged that Camberos and her brother, Andres “Andy” Enrique Camberos, were operating a new fraud scheme that netted them tens of millions of dollars by selling discounted products meant to be sold in Mexico in the more lucrative U.S. market.

A San Diego federal jury later convicted the siblings on eight fraud counts. Among the jury’s findings was that the siblings committed wire fraud just 42 days after Trump first granted Adriana Camberos clemency."

Martha Graham Dance Company Won’t Celebrate Centennial at Kennedy Center; The New York Times, January 16, 2026

 Michaela Towfighi , The New York Times; Martha Graham Dance Company Won’t Celebrate Centennial at Kennedy Center

"The Martha Graham Dance Company said on Friday that it would not perform at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts this spring as part of the troupe’s centennial tour across the United States.

“The Martha Graham Dance Company regrets that we are unable to perform at the Kennedy Center in April,” it said in a statement. “We hope to perform at the center in the future.”

The company did not give a reason for the withdrawal. But several artists and groups have pulled out of Kennedy Center events since its board of trustees voted last month to add President Trump’s name to the building."

Microsoft Shuts Down Library, Replaces It With AI; Futurism, January 16, 2026

 Frank Landymore, Futurism; Microsoft Shuts Down Library, Replaces It With AI

"Does Microsoft hate books more, or its own workers? It’s hard to say, because The Verge reports that the multitrillion dollar giant is gutting its employee library and cutting down on digital subscriptions in favor of pursuing what’s internally described as an “AI-powered learning experience” — whatever in Clippy’s name that’s supposed to mean."

Microsoft is closing its employee library and cutting back on subscriptions; The Verge, January 15, 2026

Tom Warren, The Verge; Microsoft is closing its employee library and cutting back on subscriptions

"Microsoft is closing its physical library of books and cutting employee subscriptions. It's part of cost cutting and a move to AI."

Adviser in Anne Frank case suggests VPNs alone don’t break copyright borders; Courthouse News Service, January 15, 2026

 EUNSEO HONG , Courthouse News Service; Adviser in Anne Frank case suggests VPNs alone don’t break copyright borders

"The dispute centers on a clash between the Anne Frank Fonds, which holds the copyright for certain versions of her diary in the Netherlands, and a group of academic and cultural institutions that published a comprehensive scholarly edition of the manuscripts online. While the diary entered the public domain in several EU countries in 2016, including Germany, Belgium and Italy, copyright protection in the Netherlands runs until 2037.

To account for that divide, the publishers limited access where the diary is still protected, using geoblocking and on-screen warnings. The Fonds challenged that setup, arguing that the possibility of access through VPN services was enough to make the publication unlawful in the Netherlands.

Rantos rejected that logic, warning that tying liability to the mere possibility of circumvention would make territorial copyright unworkable online.

“It is common ground that, in both the virtual and real world, no security measure is absolutely inviolable,” he wrote, underscoring that EU law does not expect publishers to do the impossible.

In his view, copyright responsibility turns on a publisher’s conduct, not on every workaround devised by determined users, unless the safeguards are intentionally flimsy or built to be easily defeated.

Stef van Gompel, a professor of intellectual property law at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, said the advocate general got it right in drawing a clear line between a publisher’s actions and what users might do to get around them. Treating VPN workarounds alone as a copyright violation, he said, would stretch the law too far.

“Otherwise, this would mark the end of online territorial licensing of copyright in the EU and jeopardize the free flow of information online,” van Gompel said. He warned that otherwise, works published where they are in the public domain could end up effectively off-limits online “if the work is still in copyright in any other country in the world.”"

Alabama library denied funding because it won’t move classic book ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’; AL.com, January 15, 2026

 

• Williesha Morris

, AL.com; Alabama library denied funding because it won’t move classic book ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’

"In a meeting fraught with crosstalk and tension, the Alabama Public Library Service board voted to withhold state funding to the Fairhope Public Library. The library kept some flagged books, including “The Handmaid’s Tale,” in its teen section instead of moving them to the adult’s section...

At issue is about $22,000 in state funding. Since the showdown began, the library has raised more than $100,000 in community donations. 

Fairhope librarians must move the following “sexually explicit” books to the adult section to receive state funding:

• “Beyond Magenta” by Susan Kuklin
• “Crank” by Ellen Hopkins
• “Doing” It by Hannah Witton
• “Identical” by Ellen Hopkins
• “Lighter Than My Shadow” by Katie Green
• “Shine” by Lauren Myracle
• “Sold” by Patricia McCormick
• “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood
• “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas
• “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky

Most of these books have appeared on banned book lists for years, including lists created by conservative groups like Clean Up Alabama and Moms for Liberty...

This is the first time that the state library board denied funding based on book placement. In 2024, the board decided to update the state code mandating libraries move books that were “inappropriate” for children to the adult section."