NEW RESOURCES

Illinois News Bureau: New database catalogs police shootings in Illinois to improve accountability. “The Systematic Policing Oversight Through Lethal-Force Incident Tracking Environment project, called ‘SPOTLITE,’ identified more than twice as many police-involved shooting incidents than previously reported by the Illinois State Police, for a total of 694 lethal force incidents involving 734 civilians from 2014-21. Nearly two-thirds of those incidents occurred in Cook County. SPOTLITE includes any incident when police use firearms – including those with nonfatal outcomes – as well as any other use of force that results in a death.”

British Library: New online – September 2022. “We have another four projects that recently went online to highlight this month. Two projects from India, and one each from Cuba and Columbia.”

New-to-me, from Clarion Ledger: Enslaved family history records brought to public light by Mississippi project. “The problem with genealogical research for many African Americans is that before 1870, there were very few records because they were not documented as human beings but as property. However, an ongoing multi-state project enlisting help from three universities and libraries hopes to build a bridge for African American families wanting to trace their roots. The Lantern Project is an effort to scan and make available to the public legal records documenting enslaved persons. Probate records and various other legal records from the early 1800s have been or are being scanned and will be available to people doing family history research or anyone interested.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Mashable: Dictionary.com adds ‘antiwork’ because it, too, does not dream of labor. “For those who dream of a four-day workweek, Dictionary.com feels your pain. And to give you the language to express your woes, it’s added a slew of work related terms — plus a few internet faves, climate terms, and accurate Ukrainian endonyms.”

USEFUL STUFF

How-To Geek: How to Automate Your iPhone Based on Time, Activity, or Location. “Your iPhone can become more efficient with a few simple automations that show relevant information and hide distractions, depending on what you’re doing. Automating your iPhone can help you be more productive at work, get a better night’s sleep, or surface useful reminders at the best possible time.”

AROUND THE INTERNET WORLD

Washington Post: How social media ‘censorship’ became a front line in the culture war. “What people can and can’t say online — and the role of Big Tech in making those calls — has emerged as a critical fault line in American politics. The left cries for content moderation to tamp down disinformation, racism and misogyny. The right decries that as censorship and demands the right to free speech. In recent months, several flash points have brought this battle to the fore.”

The Guardian: ‘The cultural memory of the UK’: unearthing the hidden treasures of the BBC archive. “For years the corporation has been digitising its vast reserve of content, turning up lost footage of everyone from General Eisenhower to Victoria Wood. Meet the team bringing a century of footage back to life.”

The National: ‘Ramy’, ‘Mo’ and the rise of the Arab social media comedy star . “With the new season of Ramy receiving rave reviews, and the recent success of Mo, which stars Mo Amer as the first Palestinian lead character on American television, Arab comedy is enjoying a renaissance. The effect can be seen across the comedy landscape and particularly among an emerging group of Arab comedians who have been carving out large audiences through social media platforms.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

Engadget: Twitter and Instagram lock Kanye West’s accounts after a weekend of antisemitic posts. “Kanye West’s return to Twitter has been short-lived. Less than a day after Elon Musk welcomed him back to the platform, the rapper saw his account suspended for posting an antisemitic message.”

FStoppers: What I Did When My Photos and Articles Were Stolen. “Occasionally, it’s worth Googling your name to see what turns up. When I did it, it showed that a website was plagiarizing Fstoppers articles and stealing my photos too. This is what I did about it.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

University of Hawaii: New Polynesian archaeology journal launched by UH faculty. “In the wake of Hawaiʻi Archaeology Week (September 26–October 2), the University of Hawaiʻi Press joins two non-profit organizations to launch the Journal of Polynesian Archaeology and Research, an open-access title that will soon accept submissions for its inaugural issue.”

Newswise: Online fandom communities can facilitate state censorship, according to new Concordia research. “Authoritarian regimes worldwide have embraced the digital age. And they have been generally effective at limiting the online presence of perceived adversaries within their borders — from intellectual dissidents to transnational activists. However, as a new study published in the journal New Media & Society shows, censorship is not strictly a state-run affair.” Good morning, Internet…

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