Intentionally or not, big brands help…

Take, for instance, a story that falsely claimed former President Barack Obama had banned Christmas cards to overseas military personnel. Despite debunking by The Associated Press and other fact-checking outlets, that article lives on at "Fox News The FB Page," which has no connection to the news channel although its bears a replica of its logo.

Tech’s power shifts as Obama fades to Trump

Internet companies have stormed onto D.C.'s lobbying scene, opening up in-house shops and hiring established lobbyists to gain influence. Google, Amazon and Facebook increased their spending on Washington lobbyists over the last eight years and are closing the gap overall with the telecommunications industry, an older power in the capital.

Trump tells anxious tech leaders: ‘We’re here to help’

To continue reading up to 10 premium articles, you must register , or sign up and take advantage of this exclusive offer: Apple CEO Tim Cook, right, and PayPal founder Peter Thiel, center, listen as President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with technology industry leaders at Trump Tower in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016. NEW YORK - President-elect Donald Trump, who faced fierce opposition from some Silicon Valley leaders during the election campaign, strove to assure the titans of tech on Wednesday that his administration is "here to help you folks do well."

Google Publicly Reveals 8 Secret FBI Requests

Freed by security reforms adopted by Congress last year, Google yesterday published the redacted contents of eight National Security Letters it received from the Federal Bureau of Investigation between 2010 and 2015 requesting information on 21 user accounts. U.S. government agencies can use NSLs to request certain types of information about the activities of users of Internet services and other communication services.

Google extends conservative outreach

Alphabet's Google is racing to hire more conservatives for its lobbying and policy arm, trying to get a foothold in President-elect Donald Trump's Washington after enjoying a uniquely close relationship with the administration of President Barack Obama. In the weeks since the Nov. 8 election, Google has ramped up efforts to hire Republican lobbying firms and in-house lobbyists to change the composition of its Washington office, according to three lobbyists with knowledge of the matter.

Fake news stories? That’s a surprise to some55 minutes ago

As Election Day approached, so-called fake news seemed everywhere: intentionally false stories dressed up as news reports, misleading social-media posts, clickbait headlines, hyperpartisan opinion posing as fact. Among the false stories' claims: Pope Francis endorsed Donald Trump, the NYPD was investigating Bill Clinton for sex with underage girls, and ISIS called for Muslims in America to vote for Hillary Clinton.

Caught in the Trump maelstrom, New Balance turns to damage control

Ever since customers called for a boycott after the company's vp of communications said it looked forward to working with President-Elect Trump - and a Neo-Nazi blogger called the shoes "the official shoes of white people" - the Boston-based shoe company has been doing damage control. For the curious who Google "New Balance" and "Trump," the first result they get is a sponsored search ad encouraging customers to "read the facts" before they boycott the shoe.

Google Also Gets Fooled by Fake Election News

Google's search engine highlighted an inaccurate story claiming that President-elect Donald Trump won the popular vote in last week's election, the latest example of bogus information spread by the internet's gatekeepers. The incorrect results were shown Monday in a two-day-old story posted on the pro-Trump "70 News" site.

Media rushes to discount claims of Google bias

Mainstream media outlets this week moved to discount Donald Trump's allegation that Google manipulated search results to favor Hillary Clinton, and called it a "conspiracy" contrived by the Russian media, ignoring similar reports that appeared in American media and discounting the fact that the researcher behind the claim supports Clinton. The media effort began on Wednesday evening, when Donald Trump cited an opinion survey from Google that showed him leading the presidential race, and alleged that the result was remarkable because Google had manipulated search results to favor Clinton.

A mystery solved: Secret burial site of Supreme Court Justice…

Back to her best! Youthful RenA e Zellweger, 47, wears one-shoulder satin dress with sexy thigh-split as she greets fans at Bridget Jones' Baby premiere... 12 years after the last movie was released Driver, 20, who pulled up in an SUV and 'shot a 13-year-old girl dead and wounded her friend as they walked home from school' is arrested Siri set to control your home: Apple to launch app to take on Amazon and Google in the battle for the smart house Samsung DIDN'T officially recall Galaxy Note 7: Consumer Reports slams phonemaker for failing to make exploding battery issue official The final resting place of U576: German U-Boat is found 30 miles off the coast of North Carolina 72 years after it sank during Nazi campaign of terror - and 44 sailors are entombed inside Brutal legacy of the Vietnam War: US bombs are still littering the fields and homes of Laos four decades after the ... (more)

Feds turn to space experts NASA for small-drone traffic plan

As the unmanned aircraft industry continues to evolve, the United States is depending on its space agency to help manage small drone traffic close to the Earth. NASA is currently entering the second phase of a four-step plan to draw up rules of the skies for drones that weigh 55 pounds or less and fly no higher than 500 feet.

Google Excludes Trump From List Of Active Presidential Campaigns

Google omitted Donald Trump from the list of current active campaigns when internet users plug in the search term "presidential candidates." Google's search engine, the foundation of their business, includes a feature that triages certain browsing results to the top of the list.

The most popular convention speaker on Monday night isn’t who you think it is

Donald Trump is joined by his wife Melania as he speaks during a news conference at the Trump National Golf Club Westchester, Tuesday, June 7, 2016, in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. Trump had promised a convention soaked in celebrity, a different kind of convention. And so we get an opening night during which Americans who tune in will hear from celebrities from "Duck Dynasty's" Willie Robertson to former sitcom actor Scott Baio.

Advertiser Says He Can Prove Google Cheats

Google promises that fewer than 10 percent of hits on its pay-per-click AdWords Program are invalid or fraudulent, though nearly half are, bringing Google billions of dollars in unjust profits each year, an advertiser claims in a class action. Gurminder Singh sued Google on July 1, alleging breach of contract, breach of faith and failing to prevent click fraud, in Federal Court.

Google Improves Its Medical Symptoms Search Results

The new algorithm gives users a list of related conditions when they search their medical symptoms. Google will also give an overview description for individual symptoms and self-treatment options, the tech giant explained in a blog post.

Kids on the menu! Baby goat is heading to a supermarket near you…

Pictured: The gunman who walked up to The Voice star Christina Grimmie as she signed autographs after concert and shot her dead Oklahoma teen, 17, dies after his eight-foot-deep sand tunnel collapses on top of him at the beach while on vacation in Florida 'The end': Fan outrage at poor taste tweet shared on the Voice star Christina Grimmie's Twitter just hours after she was shot dead in Florida 'It is a disgrace that Google would do that' Trump takes aim at search engine over claims it fixed results to help Hillary Clinton Charlotte's first royal wave: Princess is pretty in pink as she makes her Buckingham Palace balcony debut alongside brother George during Queen Elizabeth's official 90th birthday celebrations The Queen of pearls: Of all the dazzling jewellery she owns, a pair of pearl earrings, given to her by her beloved grandmother are the Queen's favourite Right Royal recycling! ... (more)