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At a time when disinformation is running rampant, KOSA will cause social media platforms to remove real journalism. "Texting Congress 1" by afagen is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

Lawmakers in both parties and the White House are pushing the Kids Online Safety Act, or KOSA, a bill that would require online platforms to mitigate harms like anxiety and depression to minors as a solution to the alleged dangers the internet poses to teens. But more than 90 LGBTQ+, human rights, and civil liberties organizations already oppose KOSA, arguing it will make kids less safe.

It will also make kids — and everyone else — less informed, as Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) Deputy Advocacy Director Caitlin Vogus explains in Tech Policy Press:

Many news outlets reach people through social media, and half of Americans say that they use social media sites as a source of news at least sometimes. But if KOSA passes, platforms will strip news from their services as they try to comply with the law.

Some platforms may intentionally remove news content, which they may consider both depressing and anxiety-producing. But even if they don’t remove the news on purpose, platforms will inevitably end up taking it down by accident as they try to moderate other content. Content moderation tools are blunt instruments that don’t understand context or nuance. Platforms will erroneously flag and remove news reports about suicide, eating disorders, illegal drugs, and other topics KOSA covers.

Read more in Tech Policy Press about how KOSA will cause platforms to overremove news content and censor important information that kids need to know.

Fort, a St. Louis toy startup that appeared on ABC’s “Shark Tank” television show and raised millions through a Kickstarter campaign, has had its product recalled.

During September’s focus on suicide prevention in the construction industry, Construction Forum videotaped an interview with Dr. John Gaal, director for the MO AFL-CIO’s Missouri Works Initiative’s Worker Wellness Program. What was to be a short video segment morphed into a 45-minute, wide-ranging discussion with Gaal. We decided to edit it into short segments for […]

From Bluebeam:  Site logistics planning in construction is a bare-bones process, incorporating the planning details required by the authorities—entrances, exits, tracks for the movement of materials—and little more. When your organization becomes more committed to in-depth site logistics, there’s an opportunity to make jobs run more smoothly. Seizing this untapped advantage is a way to […]

U2 has decided to stick around Las Vegas a little while longer. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are extending their U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere residency at The Venetian Resort into…

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A Maryland Heights man was indicted Wednesday on charges he conspired with his cousin and another man to kill his mother to cash in a life insurance policy.

From Construction Business Owner:  Millions of miles of pavements are placed or rehabilitated across the globe every year. Nearly 2.8 million lane-miles of pavement are in the U.S. and are a focus in the effort to lower U.S. greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), according to a February 2023 study from the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub (CSHub). […]

From Illinois Business Journal:  Lewis and Clark Community College’s Godfrey Campus just became a little more accessible – thanks to the gift of several new picnic tables created by Building Futures YouthBuild AmeriCorps students. YouthBuild donated the handmade wheelchair-accessible picnic tables, as well as benches and a brand-new coffee cart for College for Life’s (CFL) […]

From Building Design + Construction: By Scott Martin Recently, I was asked to present to a group of aspiring engineers at the Florida A&M-Florida State University College of Engineering. Below is a summary of the presentation “Secrets of a Structural Engineer” that I gave to the students. More experienced engineers in the AEC industry may […]

Authorities are searching for two "persons of interest" in an East St. Louis convenience store shooting. (Photo provided by: Illinois State Police)

Thursday 10/19 Scream Extreme As a frighteningly fun treat this spooky season, Arkadin Cinema and Bar (5228 Gravois Avenue, 314-221-2173) presents Hysteria Fest 2023 this week, which sees the micro-cinema offering up five nights of scary movies beginning Wednesday, October 18, and running through Sunday, October 22.

From West Newsmagazine:  City staff in Chesterfield are looking to disband the Chesterfield Historic and Landmark Preservation Committee (CHLCP). In lieu of its current form, CHLPC would be disbanded, and its regulatory activities would be assumed by the Architectural Review Board (ARB) and Planning Commission. Other activities such as education and promotion would be taken […]

Paul McCartney kicked off the latest leg of his Got Back tour Wednesday, October 18, in Adelaide, Australia, treating the crowd to a song he hasn’t played in almost 20 years. According…

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Yesterday I mentioned that sales of new homes had fallen over the past couple of years. Today the Wall Street Journal passes along the news that existing home sales have plummeted as well: Home sales fell in September to the lowest rate in 13 years, showing the corner of the economy most weakened by high ...continue reading "Home sales drop to lowest rate in over a decade"

St. Louis Business Journal:  A city of St. Louis board is seeking proposals for retail at a long-vacant manufacturing site in the Mark Twain I-70 Industrial neighborhood. The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority issued a request for proposals for 7800 Goodfellow Blvd., a 16.5-acre site it owns, saying that a “retail-anchored, multiple-use development” would be […]

Florida’s legislative bigots have already been told twice. I guess they need to hear a third time. The state passed a law that outlawed drag shows, resulting in it being sued by a venue that often hosted drag shows, Hamburger Mary’s. The lawsuit claimed the new law violated several rights, first and foremost being the […]

From Facilities Net:  The term “regenerative building” is a little bit of a misnomer. Of course, the term doesn’t mean that buildings themselves – their walls, roofs, materials – regenerate. Rather, a regenerative building refers to one that is able to produce a positive outcome on its environment, whether that means helping regenerate an ecosystem, generating […]

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is one of the most popular enterprise cloud computing solutions, used by businesses around the world to manage data, promote effective communication, secure proprietary information, and more. Professionals who can work and manage AWS platforms are always in high demand, and the Amazon Web Services Technical Training course aims to make […]