Media clips

My clips from television and radio are included below, as well as my quotes and citations. Want to talk? Contact me here.

Selected television and radio clips

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Fox Business: 53% of students admit to using ChatGPT to write essays

Fox 5 DC: Twitter tries to stop misinformation, but will it work?
Three weeks after booting former President Trump from the platform that helped give rise to his 2016 presidential campaign, Twitter is rolling out a new feature aimed at policing misinformation on the site. Birdwatch is rolling out in earnest, and Will Rinehart from the Center for Growth and Opportunity joined Jim on the Final 5 to explain what it means, and will it actually work?

Fox 5 DC: Tick-tock for TikTok
President Trump’s call to shut down the popular social video app TikTok could set up a precedent for other companies doing business in America. Will Rinehart from the Center for Growth and Opportunity at the Utah State University joined Jim on The Final 5 to break down the President’s recent executive order, and how that could alter how the government handles private business.

CSPAN’s Washington Journal
How did federal regulations impact the early U.S. coronavirus response?

CSPAN’s Washington Journal
Congress wants to take on the biggest players in the tech industry. In this segment from CSPAN’s Washington Journal, I discuss the antitrust hearings.

CNBC Closing Bell
President Trump took a swipe at Amazon on Twitter. On Closing Bill, I discussed if Amazon’s growth could make it a target for antitrust issues.

Tony Katz Show on 93.1 Indy
I explain a big concern with breaking up social media: “In terms of the overall impact of regulation on the consumer, that’s a bit of an unknown, Tony. I’m sure it will make some lawyers wealthy and it will certainly create a number of headaches for the companies and the regulators themselves, but in terms of actual benefit to the consumer, that’s unclear to me at this point.”

Big tech antitrust hearings - Will Rinehart on Legal Talk Network

Contract tracing and tech companies – Will Rinehart on American Radio Journal

Podcasts

https://regproject.org/free-lunch-podcast-e41/

Conferences and panels

JMI Encryption Townhall
On this Townhall virtual event, JMI’s Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation, Andrea O’Sullivan chats with a host of panelists about encryption and data privacy.

Debate: Should the U.S. Copy the EU’s New Privacy Law?
The European Union’s new privacy law, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), went into effect on May 25, 2018. Since then, a number of privacy advocates have called for the United States to follow suit and pass its own comprehensive data protection legislation that meets or exceeds the standards in the GDPR. Yet critics of the GDPR maintain that these regulations would impose significant costs on the economy and degrade the consumer experience online. Pressure is mounting for lawmakers to take a position, and the Trump administration is considering its own set of privacy principles that it may send to Congress. ITIF held a no-holds-barred debate about what the future of U.S. privacy law should look like, moderated by Axios Managing Editor Kim Hart. YouTube video.

Scaling Innovation: Why We Should Preserve the Consumer Welfare Standard in Antitrust Policy
Should antitrust law combat big firms? For the last 40 years, antitrust policy has been guided by what is known as the consumer welfare standard, which generally allows companies to pursue mergers or any other market strategies they may choose, absent harm to consumers or anticompetitive conduct. But some activists have advocated for going back to a time when government actively pushed back against the formation of large firms, an approach championed in the early 20th century by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. Today’s neo-Brandeisians worry about what they see as undue concentrations of economic and political power among large corporations, and they hope to prop up small businesses. They largely discount the economic efficiencies and innovation that large companies can generate, and they urge policymakers to abandon the consumer welfare standard in favor of expanding the scope of antitrust to include a host of other, often conflicting and ill-defined goals. YouTube video.

Inside Source’s panel on access to free data plans
Technology and consumer analysts talked about access to broadband and free data plans. “Free data plans,” also known as “zero rating,” refer to an internet service provider partnering with certain content providers to exempt their traffic from counting against a subscriber’s monthly data plan. Panelists agreed that having a system in place in which low-income families do not have to worry about exceeding their data plan limit would be one way to increase broadband access. CSPAN video available

The Future of Speech Online
The Center for Democracy & Technology, in partnership with the Charles Koch Institute and the Newseum Institute, held a one-day symposium on the future of speech online. It explored the most pressing issues around free speech online today, and celebrate the 20th anniversary of the historic Supreme Court decision in Reno v. ACLU, which extended First Amendment protections to expressive activity online.

Media mentions in outlets and publications

Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission Considers Leasing Broadband System Along Toll Road
Will Rinehart, director of technology policy for the nonprofit known as the American Action Forum that studies government operations, said the turnpike’s public-private partnership to use broadband for profit is “unique.” Potential lease customers include major providers such as Verizon and small businesses such as a vehicle towing company or a plumber with a dozen employees, he said.

If You Like Small Businesses You Shouldn’t Like Net Neutrality
Net Neutrality proponents claim that the regulations are “crucial” for small businesses. However, the fact is small businesses will bear much of the brunt, as Will Rinehart at the American Action Forum discovered:
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) admits at least 90 percent of the businesses that will be burdened by the new utility-style network neutrality regulations will be small businesses. As required by law, the FCC must estimate the effect the new rules will have on small business. In total, 20,640 companies will be affected, of which 18,532 are considered small businesses by the Small Business Administration. The new rules will invariably impose new compliance costs on businesses, which will hit small businesses like rural internet service providers (ISPs) and wireless carriers the hardest.

Do the tech masters of the universe need to be tamed?
As American Action Forum tech policy analyst Will Rinehart writes in a recent report: Instead of creating a productivity and startup boom like adherents would want, rewriting the antitrust rules would be a tax on productivity and labor. The European experience serves as a warning. Stronger antitrust won’t result in a startup boom or an upswell of productivity in the rest of the industry, but rather will act as a drag on technological adoption. To achieve better overall productivity gains, a different set of tools is needed. As the OECD noted, “well-designed framework policies can aid productivity diffusion by sharpening firms' incentives for technological adoption and by promoting a market environment that reallocates resources to the most productive firms.” Nearly everyone who has studied these phenomena comes to the same conclusion. We need to aid information diffusion, help workers skill sets, foster research and development collaboration, and sharpening firms' incentives for technological adoption, not punish those who are at the frontier.

Poverty Wages? Uber Drivers Make $37 Per Hour on Average, Survey Finds
After trawling through two websites where Uber and Lyft drivers congregate to swap stories and share tips—specifically, the “UberDrivers” subreddit on Reddit.com, and the website UberDrivers.net—Rinehart collected a year’s worth of information on how much specific drivers earned on the job. After taking Uber’s cut out of the equation, the median hourly payout per hour came out to \$37.98, his research shows. That’s not the whole story, of course. He found wide variance in how much drivers earned. One payout resulted in the driver pocketing just \$2.23 per hour, while another driver made \$472 per hour. Payouts over \$100 are not common, he says, but they did occur, and payments cluster around the \$37 mark.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/analysis-whats-at-stake-for-consumers-if-the-fcc-ends-net-neutrality/ar-BBFssv9

https://newsok.com/article/5580182/fccs-regulatory-debates-should-include-economic-reality

http://broadbandbreakfast.com/2017/11/why-the-democrats-40-billion-broadband-deployment-plan-misses-the-mark/

https://statescoop.com/verizon-asks-fcc-to-preempt-states-on-internet-privacy

https://morningconsult.com/2015/07/01/with-fcc-regulating-privacy-internet-industry-braces-for-whats-next/

http://www2.itif.org/2017-broadband-populism.pdf

https://readplaintext.com/its-tech-week-at-the-white-house-here-are-7-tech-policy-recommendations-7e8a8f4f73d9

https://charleskochinstitute.swoogo.com/FutureOfSpeech/speaker/6643/will-rinehart

https://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/the-gig-economy-research-and-policy-implications/

http://thehill.com/regulation/303293-study-nycs-airbnb-ban-costs-500m

https://www.hudson.org/research/12154-telecommunications-transactions-and-the-public-interest

https://spectator.org/harvard-report-paints-inaccurate-picture-of-municipal-broadband-network-pricing/

The EU’s GDPR: A Balancing Act Between Privacy And Prosperity

Labor and employment roundup

Trump needs to do more to get more Americans online https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-needs-get-americans-online-204614596.html

Social Media Is Making Some Regulators Obsolete https://economics21.org/html/social-media-making-some-regulators-obsolete-1531.html

http://www.coalitionfortheneweconomy.org/blog/2017/05/cost-declining-factor-internet-adoption/

http://sbecouncil.org/2017/08/07/capitol-hill-briefing-aug-10-the-role-of-modern-infrastructure-in-u-s-entrepreneurship-and-small-business-growth/

https://www.watchdog.org/tennessee/tennessee-town-s-broadband-plan-may-face-difficult-hurdles/article_83adeba8-aa97-11e7-8b27-ff728c594b3b.html

http://www.aei.org/events/regulating-the-evolving-broadband-ecosystem/

http://www.govtech.com/network/Pennsylvania-Turnpike-Commission-Considers-Leasing-Broadband-System-Along-Toll-Road.html

https://thelibertarianrepublic.com/buzzfeed-wants-fear-facebooks-algorithms/

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2018/08/27/equitable-broadband-access-requires-reform/

https://www.thefencepost.com/news/aei-aaf-rural-broadband-is-complicated/

https://sports.yahoo.com/expect-apple-amazon-google-get-grilled-congress-week-140115873.html

https://theweek.com/articles/810634/congress-needs-nerd?utm_source=links&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=twitter

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2018-11-13/big-tech-impact-alibaba-record-50-companies-podcast

http://www.aei.org/publication/rural-broadband-its-complicated/

https://www.aei.org/multimedia/will-rinehart-big-tech-broadband-access-and-artificial-intelligence/

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2018/02/26/freedomworks-declares-digital-day-of-action-to-protect-internet-freedom/

https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/interiors-proposed-foia-limits-may-be-illegal-watchdogs-say

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2019/01/31/465687/building-progressive-infrastructure/

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/big-tech-is-more-competitive-than-elizabeth-warren-thinks

https://morningconsult.com/2019/03/07/house-unlikely-to-pick-up-a-senate-data-privacy-bill-democratic-aide-says/

https://morningconsult.com/2019/02/20/nearly-half-of-voters-support-california-governors-data-dividend-plan/

DETOUR Act Would Target ‘Deceptive’ Edge Practices

Data Privacy: Challenges, Opportunities, and the Prospects for Legislation in the U.S.

Meet the Conservatives Who Don’t Want To Break Up Big Tech

Measured Against Facebook’s Revenue, FTC’s $5 Billion Fine Falls Short of Record

https://iapp.org/news/a/us-lawmakers-consider-whether-your-data-should-be-a-property-right/

https://springboardccia.com/2020/03/13/setting-the-record-straight-debunking-the-myth-of-the-kill-zone/

https://www.aei.org/economics/the-cranky-elites-who-hate-big-tech-and-the-normal-people-who-love-them/

https://www.progressivepolicy.org/publication/10-myths-about-big-tech-antitrust/

Cited in ModernHealthCare

Mentioned in Morning Tech

Ji Suk Yi’s show on WGN

Is Tech using a Kill zone for competitors? Marketplace (syndicated nationwide)

Mentioned in FCC Report & Order on C-Band

Cited in “In Fight Over 5G Future, Sen. Kennedy Sides With Democrats Against FCC Auction”

ECFS Filing on 5.9

Regulatory Timeline of COVID-19 - The Lars Larson Show (Syndicated on 85 radio stations nationwide

Regulatory Timeline of COVID-19 - The John Batchelor Show (Syndicated on 275 radio stations nationwide

Regulatory Timeline of COVID-19 - POTUS (XM Radio)

Washington Journal CSPAN

Cited in “Don’t Combine COVID-19 Treatments of Government Spending and Internet”

Federal News Network

Featured on Cato Daily Postcast

Featured on Pelican Center’s Pelicast

External publication: “There aren’t luddites in a quaratine”

Lars Larson Show

Liquid Lunch

Will coronavirus kill Uber, Lyft rideshare business? Fox Business

The sharing economy and COVID-19 - Will Rinehart on Fox 5

The sharing economy and COVID-19 - Will Rinehart on POTUS (XM Radio)

The sharing economy and COVID-19 - Will Rinehart on Freedom Works Radio

Apple and Google Tracing App – Will Rinehart on KNSI Radio

The Case For Contact Tracing Apps Built On Apple And Google’s Exposure Notification System

Trump’s feud with Twitter – Will Rinehart on the John Batchelor Show (syndicated in 275 radio stations nationwide)

Trump’s feud with twitter - Will Rinehart on Freedomworks Radio

Apple Stock May Still Be a Bargain, Depending upon Your Strategy

Lars Larson Show

Does the Federal Broadband Definition Reflect Real-World Need?

The Challenges with Data Ownership

LArs Larson Show

FB, Twitter, and President Trump - Will Rinehart on Fox Business’ Varney & Co.

TikTok Ban in the US – Will Rinehart on KUSI TV (San Diego, California)

TikTok Ban in the US – Will Rinehart on the John Batchelor Show

Should we ban TikTok in the US? - Will Rinehart on Freedom Works Radio

“Technology scholar Will Rinehart has estimated these services to be worth $9,900 annually per user."

Section 230 and big tech censorship - Will Rinehart on Sean Hannity

Google Antitrust case- Will Rinehart on Sirius XM POTUS with Tim Farley

Google officially charged with antitrust by Justice Department- Will Rinehart cited on MarketWatch

The Republican Antitrust Suit Against Google Is a Progressive Dream- Will Rinehart cited on Reason

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24808209

https://www.ibtimes.com/uber-eats-vs-uber-rides-which-one-brought-more-money-3077762

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?cites=13399845400146517001&as_sdt=20005&sciodt=0,9&hl=en

Citations

Footnote 428 in the FCC’s Restoring Internet Freedom Order

Footnote 27 in the FCC’s Thirteenth Section 706 Report Notice of Inquiry

Page 9 in the Chamber of Commerce’s Brief Before the Supreme Court in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira

Footnote 152 in the CRS’s report on The Office of Technology Assessment: History, Authorities, Issues, and Options

Morgan Reed’s testimony on “Competition in Digital Technology Markets: Examining Self-Preferencing by Digital Platforms” before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights

Courtney E. Martin’s “The New Better Off: Reinventing the American Dream” book

Jared Meyer’s “How Progressive Cities Fight Innovation” book

Roger Kimball’s “Saving the Republic: The Fate of Freedom in the Age of the Administrative State” book

Cited in Expanding Opportunity An Agenda for All Californians 2017 Business Issues and Legislative Guide

Regulating Innovation A Response to Ian Ayres and Amy Kapczynski, Innovation Sticks: The Limited Case for Penalizing Failures to Innovate

Digital Platforms and the Leverage Problem

Earning Income in the Sharing On-Demand Economy

Regime Uncertainty for Developers of Coronavirus Tests