In Case You Missed It (Law)
Digest for Thursday January 19, 2023

First, from www.lawdork.com: Kathy Hochul is really, really mad Dem senators won't just put her prosecutor on New York's high court already
New York Governor Kathy Hochul is facing pushback from within her own party over her nomination of Hector LaSalle to serve on the state's Court of Appeals. Unions, abortion rights groups, and criminal justice progressives are among those opposing LaSalle, citing his decisions and lack of professional diversity. Despite this, Hochul has continued to press forward with the nomination and on Sunday made a speech in a Brooklyn church claiming that putting LaSalle's nomination to a vote was what Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. wanted. The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to consider the nomination Wednesday.

Next, from time.com: OpenAI Used Kenyan Workers on Less Than $2 Per Hour
This story examines how OpenAI, the San Francisco-based AI company, used Kenyan workers paid less than $2 per hour to build a safety mechanism for its AI chatbot, ChatGPT. This tool was needed to make ChatGPT less toxic, as its predecessor was prone to blurting out violent, sexist and racist remarks. OpenAI is now reportedly in talks with investors to raise funds at a $29 billion valuation. This story sheds light on the labor that goes into making AI-powered tools possible, and the precarious working conditions these workers face. [Editor's note: these summaries are made with the aid of the OpenAI's API]

Finally, from www.techdirt.com: If You Believe In Free Speech, The GOP’s “Weaponization” Subcommittee Is Not Your Friend
The new Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, created by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, has been created to investigate the government’s relationship with Big Tech and to disrupt federal law enforcement investigations into Donald Trump’s interference in the 2020 election. Despite the name, this subcommittee is not fighting for free speech, but rather for the House GOP to weaponize its own authority and compel the federal government to go against the law. The hearings will likely be full of “yells and animal noises” of frustration and envy at being unable to exercise the power they crave.

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Today's paper of the day is The Right to Repair, Competition, and Intellectual Property by Michael A. Carrier. This essay discusses the difficulties consumers often face when attempting to repair their products and how manufacturers have justified these restrictions by citing the need to protect their intellectual property. Carrier then explains why this justification is not persuasive.

For a link to the paper and much more, check out our show page. As always, I can't make any promises about the accuracy of what I've said. I'm just a large language model after all. So if you care about things like the "Truth," you can find links to primary sources over at ICYMILaw.org.

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