Tim Bernard
@timbernard.me
Tech policy, trust & safety. Writings collected at https://timbernard.me.
🧵 on the new TikTok deal memo and what it means for content policy on the platform:
December 19, 2025 at 5:29 PM
🧵 on the new TikTok deal memo and what it means for content policy on the platform:
Reposted by Tim Bernard
As the EU moves toward its first DSA fine against X, major platforms have published their 2025 systemic risk reports. Tim Bernard explores what’s changed since 2024, and what the shifting US–EU political climate reveals about how platforms now frame hate speech, information integrity, and DEI.
Platforms Report to EU Regulators Under DSA With an Eye on US Politics | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard provides analysis of the 2025 DSA systemic risk reports, amid shifting US politics and EU enforcement pressure.
buff.ly
December 18, 2025 at 4:54 AM
As the EU moves toward its first DSA fine against X, major platforms have published their 2025 systemic risk reports. Tim Bernard explores what’s changed since 2024, and what the shifting US–EU political climate reveals about how platforms now frame hate speech, information integrity, and DEI.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
As the EU moves toward its first DSA fine against X, major platforms have published their 2025 systemic risk reports. Tim Bernard explores what’s changed since 2024, and what the shifting US–EU political climate reveals about how platforms now frame hate speech, information integrity, and DEI.
Platforms Report to EU Regulators Under DSA With an Eye on US Politics | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard provides analysis of the 2025 DSA systemic risk reports, amid shifting US politics and EU enforcement pressure.
buff.ly
December 16, 2025 at 8:33 PM
As the EU moves toward its first DSA fine against X, major platforms have published their 2025 systemic risk reports. Tim Bernard explores what’s changed since 2024, and what the shifting US–EU political climate reveals about how platforms now frame hate speech, information integrity, and DEI.
One tidbit here was that Meta claimed (complained?): "we cannot use our classifiers to proactively detect in Facebook groups, due to legal restrictions." Any ideas which law/s Meta is referring to here? @jtlg.bsky.social @daphnek.bsky.social @mathver.bsky.social
New from me @techpolicypress.bsky.social: How far did tech firms' 2025 realignment with the Republican party reach into their systemic risk reports to the European Commission (which hardly anyone even reads)? A fair bit, it turns out.
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
Platforms Report to EU Regulators Under DSA With an Eye on US Politics | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard provides analysis of the 2025 DSA systemic risk reports, amid shifting US politics and EU enforcement pressure.
www.techpolicy.press
December 16, 2025 at 8:17 PM
One tidbit here was that Meta claimed (complained?): "we cannot use our classifiers to proactively detect in Facebook groups, due to legal restrictions." Any ideas which law/s Meta is referring to here? @jtlg.bsky.social @daphnek.bsky.social @mathver.bsky.social
New from me @techpolicypress.bsky.social: How far did tech firms' 2025 realignment with the Republican party reach into their systemic risk reports to the European Commission (which hardly anyone even reads)? A fair bit, it turns out.
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
Platforms Report to EU Regulators Under DSA With an Eye on US Politics | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard provides analysis of the 2025 DSA systemic risk reports, amid shifting US politics and EU enforcement pressure.
www.techpolicy.press
December 16, 2025 at 7:27 PM
New from me @techpolicypress.bsky.social: How far did tech firms' 2025 realignment with the Republican party reach into their systemic risk reports to the European Commission (which hardly anyone even reads)? A fair bit, it turns out.
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
www.techpolicy.press/platforms-re...
Reposted by Tim Bernard
When the deal to sell it closes, TikTok’s share distribution may be consequential for the platform's future content policies. Tim Bernard draws insights from Paddy Leerssen's recent paper, "From Murdoch to Musk: Platform ownership and the political economy of online content governance."
Who Will Own TikTok in the US and Why it Matters for Democracy | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard draws insights from Paddy Leerssen's paper, "From Murdoch to Musk: Platform ownership and the political economy of online content governance."
www.techpolicy.press
December 16, 2025 at 12:46 AM
When the deal to sell it closes, TikTok’s share distribution may be consequential for the platform's future content policies. Tim Bernard draws insights from Paddy Leerssen's recent paper, "From Murdoch to Musk: Platform ownership and the political economy of online content governance."
Now an analysis piece @techpolicypress.bsky.social, summarizing the insights from @pjleerssen.bsky.social's paper and applying them to what we currently know about the TikTok deal: www.techpolicy.press/who-will-own...
December 15, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Now an analysis piece @techpolicypress.bsky.social, summarizing the insights from @pjleerssen.bsky.social's paper and applying them to what we currently know about the TikTok deal: www.techpolicy.press/who-will-own...
While we're still waiting on details of the TikTok deal, this paper by @pjleerssen.bsky.social opens up some crucial questions about platform ownership that are still tbd for any new US TikTok entity. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
November 13, 2025 at 4:30 PM
While we're still waiting on details of the TikTok deal, this paper by @pjleerssen.bsky.social opens up some crucial questions about platform ownership that are still tbd for any new US TikTok entity. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Reposted by Tim Bernard
Platforms are accelerating the transition to AI for content moderation, laying off trust and safety workers and outsourced moderators in favor of automated systems, writes Tim Bernard.
buff.ly/EvVEFfO
buff.ly/EvVEFfO
October 31, 2025 at 1:02 PM
Platforms are accelerating the transition to AI for content moderation, laying off trust and safety workers and outsourced moderators in favor of automated systems, writes Tim Bernard.
buff.ly/EvVEFfO
buff.ly/EvVEFfO
My latest with @techpolicypress.bsky.social piece on a key theme from the @techimpactpolicy.bsky.social's Trust and Research Conference. Includes @dwillner.bsky.social's keynote and presentations from @gligoric.bsky.social, @thejusticecollab.bsky.social's Matthew Katsaros and more.
Platforms are accelerating the transition to AI for content moderation, laying off trust and safety workers and outsourced moderators in favor of automated systems, writes Tim Bernard. The practice raises a host of questions, some of which are now being studied both in universities and in industry.
Researchers Explore the Use of LLMs for Content Moderation | TechPolicy.Press
The subject was a stand-out theme at the Trust and Safety Research Conference, held last month at Stanford, writes Tim Bernard.
www.techpolicy.press
October 30, 2025 at 2:36 PM
My latest with @techpolicypress.bsky.social piece on a key theme from the @techimpactpolicy.bsky.social's Trust and Research Conference. Includes @dwillner.bsky.social's keynote and presentations from @gligoric.bsky.social, @thejusticecollab.bsky.social's Matthew Katsaros and more.
New from me: the downsides of data centers are already being reckoned with by lawmakers across the US, even as competition for the biggest tax breaks continues apace.
For Tech Policy Press, Tim Bernard reviewed over 300 proposed and passed bills related to data centers from across the United States. State legislatures seek to balance investment and jobs with a host of problems for energy infrastructure and impacts on the environment and communities on the other.
Through 300+ Bills, US Lawmakers Juggle Data Center Priorities | TechPolicy.Press
Tech Policy Press reviewed over 300 proposed and passed bills related to data centers from across the United States.
www.techpolicy.press
September 12, 2025 at 1:14 PM
New from me: the downsides of data centers are already being reckoned with by lawmakers across the US, even as competition for the biggest tax breaks continues apace.
Just updated my @techpolicypress.bsky.social article on spyware to add the effective legal moves against FinFisher that were initiated by a complaint by NGOs including @netzpolitik.org, @rsf.org & @ecchr.bsky.social.
Despite a massive judgment against NSO Group, developer of the notorious Pegasus spyware, the battle against surreptitious surveillance software is far from over. For Tech Policy Press, Tim Bernard reviews legal and policy avenues for combating spyware:
Legal and Policy Responses to Spyware: A Primer | TechPolicy.Press
Following a judgment against NSO Group, developer of the notorious Pegasus spyware, Tim Bernard reviews legal and policy avenues for combating spyware.
www.techpolicy.press
July 17, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Just updated my @techpolicypress.bsky.social article on spyware to add the effective legal moves against FinFisher that were initiated by a complaint by NGOs including @netzpolitik.org, @rsf.org & @ecchr.bsky.social.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
I thought the TikTok ban was an idiotic moral panic and a gross curtailment of expressive freedom, but I’m at least as uncomfortable about a scenario where a platform with 170m US users exists entirely on the personal sufferance of Donald Trump (or any president).
A failure of journalism. Neither the push nor the NBC News article notes that THIS IS ILLEGAL. The law allows a one-time delay. That’s it! www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
June 18, 2025 at 1:17 AM
I thought the TikTok ban was an idiotic moral panic and a gross curtailment of expressive freedom, but I’m at least as uncomfortable about a scenario where a platform with 170m US users exists entirely on the personal sufferance of Donald Trump (or any president).
My latest @techpolicypress.bsky.social article:
Despite a massive judgment against NSO Group, developer of the notorious Pegasus spyware, the battle against surreptitious surveillance software is far from over. For Tech Policy Press, Tim Bernard reviews legal and policy avenues for combating spyware: www.techpolicy.press/legal-and-po...
Legal and Policy Responses to Spyware: A Primer | TechPolicy.Press
Following a judgment against NSO Group, developer of the notorious Pegasus spyware, Tim Bernard reviews legal and policy avenues for combating spyware.
www.techpolicy.press
June 16, 2025 at 12:52 PM
My latest @techpolicypress.bsky.social article:
There were a couple of new pieces of information out last week about the TikTok ban (remember that?), so we've updated my @techpolicypress.bsky.social timeline. techpolicy.press/a-tiktok-ban...
A TikTok Ban Timeline: From Rapid Passage to Truce With Trump | TechPolicy.Press
In a dizzying year, the TikTok ban was passed, challenged, upheld and halted. With the app's fate hinging on Trump, Tim Bernard reviews the twists and turns.
techpolicy.press
June 11, 2025 at 7:35 PM
There were a couple of new pieces of information out last week about the TikTok ban (remember that?), so we've updated my @techpolicypress.bsky.social timeline. techpolicy.press/a-tiktok-ban...
Really, Alan Turing Institute?
June 6, 2025 at 12:44 PM
Really, Alan Turing Institute?
If ever a byline bio needed an asterisk...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
May 25, 2025 at 6:04 PM
If ever a byline bio needed an asterisk...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Reposted by Tim Bernard
In a dizzying year, the TikTok ban-or-sale law was passed, challenged, upheld, and halted. Now, as the platform's fate hinges on President Trump's dealmaking, Tim Bernard (@timbernard.me) reviews the twists and turns. A development could come this week, given an April 5 deadline for a deal:
A TikTok Ban Timeline: From Rapid Passage to Truce With Trump | TechPolicy.Press
In a dizzying year, the TikTok ban was passed, challenged, upheld and halted. With the app's fate hinging on Trump, Tim Bernard reviews the twists and turns.
www.techpolicy.press
April 2, 2025 at 2:04 PM
In a dizzying year, the TikTok ban-or-sale law was passed, challenged, upheld, and halted. Now, as the platform's fate hinges on President Trump's dealmaking, Tim Bernard (@timbernard.me) reviews the twists and turns. A development could come this week, given an April 5 deadline for a deal:
Reposted by Tim Bernard
Most researchers don’t believe AGI is coming any time soon. But policy makers are steering policy toward AGI anyway. In this article for Tech Policy Press, a look at the distortions the AGI Frame introduces to policymaking. #ai #criticalai #aipolicy In @techpolicypress.bsky.social
Most Researchers Do Not Believe AGI Is Imminent. Why Do Policymakers Act Otherwise? | TechPolicy.Press
Tech Policy Press fellow Eryk Salvaggio says it is dangerous to the public interest for policymakers to center the pursuit of AGI in AI policy.
www.techpolicy.press
March 19, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Most researchers don’t believe AGI is coming any time soon. But policy makers are steering policy toward AGI anyway. In this article for Tech Policy Press, a look at the distortions the AGI Frame introduces to policymaking. #ai #criticalai #aipolicy In @techpolicypress.bsky.social
My thoughts on Congress's theory about TikTok and misinformation: I don't think that's how any of this works.
Tim Bernard says there is wisdom in the US Supreme Court's choice not to engage with the government's claims that TikTok could be a tool for China to manipulate US politics:
What the Supreme Court Got Right in the TikTok Decision | TechPolicy.Press
Claims about the risk of content manipulation by China were largely ignored by the majority opinion, writes Tim Bernard.
buff.ly
January 29, 2025 at 6:11 PM
My thoughts on Congress's theory about TikTok and misinformation: I don't think that's how any of this works.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
When it comes to the TikTok case, a number of key questions emerge from a review of the petitioners’ and government’s briefs to the Supreme Court, outlined here by @timbernard.bsky.social. How the Justices engage with these questions may give a good indication as to how they will rule.
A Guide to the Supreme Court Oral Arguments on the TikTok Case | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard considers the key arguments likely to play out before the bench.
www.techpolicy.press
January 9, 2025 at 6:19 PM
When it comes to the TikTok case, a number of key questions emerge from a review of the petitioners’ and government’s briefs to the Supreme Court, outlined here by @timbernard.bsky.social. How the Justices engage with these questions may give a good indication as to how they will rule.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
For Tech Policy Press, Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) read a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024 in compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA), including those for Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and X reports.
Reading the Systemic Risk Assessments for Major Speech Platforms: Notes and Observations | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024.
www.techpolicy.press
December 20, 2024 at 8:23 PM
For Tech Policy Press, Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) read a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024 in compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA), including those for Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and X reports.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
For those interested in #DSA VLOP systemic risk reports, here is a good summary for some of the big ones. @timbernard.bsky.social
www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...
www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...
Reading the Systemic Risk Assessments for Major Speech Platforms: Notes and Observations | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024.
www.techpolicy.press
December 20, 2024 at 10:01 AM
For those interested in #DSA VLOP systemic risk reports, here is a good summary for some of the big ones. @timbernard.bsky.social
www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...
www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...
Reposted by Tim Bernard
Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024. Today's update includes TikTok.
Reading the Systemic Risk Assessments for Major Speech Platforms: Notes and Observations | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024.
www.techpolicy.press
December 19, 2024 at 4:09 PM
Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024. Today's update includes TikTok.
Reposted by Tim Bernard
Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024. Today's update includes YouTube. www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...
Reading the Systemic Risk Assessments for Major Speech Platforms: Notes and Observations | TechPolicy.Press
Tim Bernard is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024.
www.techpolicy.press
December 18, 2024 at 3:10 PM
Tim Bernard (@timbernard.bsky.social) is reading a selection of the Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) systemic risk assessments released in late November 2024. Today's update includes YouTube. www.techpolicy.press/reading-the-...