Technology was a mere footnote in previous election cycles, but the 2024 US elections are happening in the wake of the very contentious TikTok ban bill. At the same time, this electoral cycle may be the most divorced from substantive policy than any other cycle in living memory. Still, the federal government is in a regulatory mood, and the question of which political party controls the White House after January 2025 will determine tech policy issues ranging from net neutrality to the rapidly expanding scope of tech antitrust.
In the meantime, the specter of misinformation —particularly AI-generated misinformation —looms over an election that is particularly vulnerable to rhetorical attacks on the legitimacy of the democratic process.
Here’s all our 2024 election coverage in one place.
TODAY, 2:43 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
The first presidential debate was very bad.
Here’s a summary that includes tech policy issues and also some of the most unhinged stuff we heard tonight.
Things mentioned:
China, tariffs, semiconductor chips, Charlottesville, the border, “space age materials,” the Green New Deal, environment, election “fraud,” opioids, Twitter(???), having sex with p*rn stars, Hunter Biden laptop, golf handicaps(??????)
Things not mentioned:
TikTok, Facebook, FISA warrantless surveillance, EVs, intellectual property, broadband policy, artificial intelligence (thank god!!!)
All the tech news from the 2024 election
Sarah Jeong
TODAY, 2:34 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
In case you were wondering, this debate is supposed to run 90 minutes plus ad breaks.
Googled that for you because we’re all thinking the same thing. And yes it has now been slightly over 90 minutes since the start.
The Rules for the Biden-Trump Presidential Debate on CNN
[The New York Times]
TODAY, 2:31 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
“Will you accept the results of the election?”
It was a yes or no question.
There were a lot of words said, none of which was exactly a yes. Instead, Trump reminded us he still hasn’t really accepted the results of the past election.
TODAY, 2:27 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
Maybe Trump reminding us about his relationship to Twitter in the aftermath of January 6th is not the best move?
On account of, you know, Twitter permanently suspending his account for inciting violence.
TODAY, 2:23 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
Biden is gassing up what his administration has done for the semiconductor industry, likely a reference to the CHIPS Act.
“I convinced Samsung to invest billions of dollars in the United States,” Biden adds.
Where the CHIPS Act money has gone
Emilia David
TODAY, 2:20 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
To be clear, America’s opioid epidemic doesn’t stem from migrants coming over the border.
As Gaby noted earlier this year:
The overwhelming majority of fentanyl seized by Customs and Border Protection — more than 90 percent — is smuggled through official border crossings by US citizens, not by migrants making unauthorized border crossings.
CBP wants to use AI to scan for fentanyl at the border
Gaby Del Valle
TODAY, 2:19 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
What is Trump going to do to help Americans struggling with opioid addiction?
Uh, China, tariffs, not exactly answering the question...
TODAY, 2:11 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
FYI, undocumented immigrants can’t get Social Security! Or Medicare!
But a lot of them pay into both. Billions, even!
TODAY, 2:11 AM UTC
Justine Calma
What are Trump’s environmental numbers?
He says he had the best. He tried to roll back more than 100 environmental protections while in office. Is that what he’s bragging about in the debate?
TODAY, 2:07 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
We had Steve Jobs, Johnny Cash, H2O.
Now we have no jobs, no cash, and no H2O.
TODAY, 2:05 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
CNN asks what the candidates would do about climate change.
They got back answers about immigration, HBCUs, insulin, and clean air and water (which is not the same as climate change).
TODAY, 2:01 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
“Green New Scam” isn’t as catchy as Trump’s usual quips.
They should’ve workshopped it, is all I’m saying. Green New Steal, maybe?
(In any case, Congress has not actually passed a Green New Deal.)
TODAY, 1:53 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
Really baffling Trump line about how Charlottesville is made up / debunked.
Does he mean, like... that it happened? I don’t know. What a time to cut to ads.
TODAY, 1:47 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
In the middle of a back-and-forth about Jan. 6, Trump namedrops the city of Portland, Oregon.
Just gonna throw out this old Verge feature about the Portland van snatchings.
TODAY, 1:33 AM UTC
Gaby Del Valle
Hunter Biden’s laptop has entered the presidential debate.
“51 intelligence agents said that the laptop was Russia disinformation,” Trump said. “It wasn’t. That came from his son Hunter — it wasn’t Russia disinformation.”
TODAY, 1:30 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
Trump calls The Atlantic a third-rate magazine.
Trump is extremely sore about The Atlantic’s reporting that he said a cemetery for soldiers was full of “suckers” and “losers,” calling it a lie that was printed in “a third-rate magazine.”
TODAY, 1:18 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
It is, frankly, very difficult to follow any of this.
Was that a reference to tariffs on goods from China? Was that a commitment to drilling for oil? What on earth was that line about Medicare?
TODAY, 12:27 AM UTC
Sarah Jeong
The first presidential debate is on tonight.
The Verge will not be doing a shot every time someone says “TikTok,” but we’ll be posting our live commentary here.
All the tech news from the 2024 election
Sarah Jeong
Jun 27
Wes Davis
How to watch Biden vs. Trump in the first 2024 presidential debate
The first debate of the 2024 presidential race will see sitting President Joe Biden and his challenger, former President Donald Trump, face off in CNN’s Atlanta studio. They come into the debate with Trump tracking slightly ahead in mostpollingaverages, with the gap narrowing in recent weeks after Trump’s felony convictions.
It will be an unusual debate. There won’t be an audience, and the network says it will mute candidates’ mics when it’s not their turn to speak. The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) instituted a similar policy for the final 2020 Trump and Biden debate, which ended up being far calmer than the chaotic, interruption-filled first one that year. This time, the call was made by CNN, which organized this debate, rather than the nonprofit CPD, which has taken on that duty since 1988.
Read Article >
May 23
Gaby Del Valle
Political consultant behind the Joe Biden deepfake robocalls faces $6 million fine
Image: Laura Normand / The Verge
The Federal Communications Commission has proposed imposing multimillion-dollar fines on the political consultant responsible for the robocall campaign that used an AI-generated deepfake of President Joe Biden’s voice — and on the telecom company that facilitated the calls.
Longtime Democratic operator Steve Kramer faces a $6 million fine from the FCC, while Lingo Telecom could be fined $2 million. The FCC announced the proposed penalties on Thursday, calling the Lingo fine a “first-of-its-kind enforcement action.”
Read Article >
May 22
Gaby Del Valle
Political ads could require AI-generated content disclosures soon
Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images
The chair of the Federal Communications Commission introduced a proposal Wednesday that could require political advertisers to disclose when they use AI-generated content on radio and TV ads.
If the proposal is implemented, the FCC will seek comment on whether to require on-air and written disclosure of AI-generated content in political ads and will propose to apply these disclosure requirements to certain mediums. In a press release, the FCC notes that the disclosure requirements wouldn’t prohibit such content but would instead require political advertisers to be transparent about their use of AI.
Read Article >
May 20
Lauren Feiner
Election officials are role-playing AI threats to protect democracy
Photo by Ash Ponders for The Verge
It’s the morning of Election Day in Arizona, and a message has just come in from the secretary of state’s office telling you that a new court order requires polling locations to stay open until 9PM. As a county election official, you find the time extension strange, but the familiar voice on the phone feels reassuring—you’ve talked to this official before.
Just hours later, you receive an email telling you that the message was fake. In fact, polls must now close immediately, even though it’s only the early afternoon. The email tells you to submit your election results as soon as possible — strange since the law requires you to wait an hour after polls close or until all results from the day have been tabulated to submit.
Read Article >
May 15
Lauren Feiner
Senate committee passes three bills to safeguard elections from AI, months before Election Day
Photo by Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images
The Senate Rules Committee passed three bills that aim to safeguard elections from deception by artificial intelligence, with just months to go before Election Day. The bills would still need to advance in the House and pass the full Senate to become law, creating a time crunch for rules around election-related deepfakes to take effect before polls open across the country in November.
The vote happened on the same day that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and three bipartisan colleagues released a roadmap for how Congress should consider regulating AI. The document lays out priorities and principles for lawmakers to consider but leaves the crafting of specific bills to the committees.
Read Article >
May 13
Lauren Feiner
RFK Jr. sues Meta for ‘election interference’ after it temporarily removed a campaign video
Photo by Lev Radin / Pacific Press / LightRocket via Getty Images
Independent presidential candidate and anti-vaccine advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is suing Meta for allegedly violating the First Amendment and engaging in “election interference” because it removed a video about him.
The lawsuit is not likely to advance far, considering that the First Amendment bars the government — not companies — from censoring speech. Plus, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act effectively insulates online platforms from being sued for how they choose to remove or limit content on their sites.
Read Article >
Apr 22
Lauren Feiner
The great conundrum of campaigning on TikTok
Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo from Getty Images
Joe Biden faces the camera, casually dressed for a US president in khaki slacks and a quarter zip. He jovially answers a series of questions about the Super Bowl happening that day: Chiefs or Niners? Jason Kelce or Travis Kelce? And finally: Trump or Biden?
“Are you kidding? Biden,” the president says with a smile.
Read Article >
