Dan Patterson

Think of this not as a story about Apple, but about a commentary on Western culture and globalism.

kopoint:

Mike Daisey was a self-described “worshipper in the cult of Mac.” Then he saw some photos from a new iPhone, taken by workers at the factory where it was made. Mike wondered: Who makes all my crap? He traveled to China to find out.

Listen to the Episode -»

In the last decade, Apple has become one of the mightiest, richest and most successful companies in the world, in part by mastering global manufacturing. Apple and its high-technology peers — as well as dozens of other American industries — have achieved a pace of innovation nearly unmatched in modern history. However, the workers assembling iPhones, iPads and other devices often labor in harsh conditions, according to employees inside those plants, worker advocates and documents published by companies themselves. Problems are as varied as onerous work environments and serious — sometimes deadly — safety problems. Employees work excessive overtime, in some cases seven days a week, and live in crowded dorms. Some say they stand so long that their legs swell until they can hardly walk. Under-age workers have helped build Apple’s products, and the company’s suppliers have improperly disposed of hazardous waste and falsified records, according to company reports and advocacy groups that, within China, are often considered reliable, independent monitors.

Full Story on the New York Times -»

kopoint:

In what marks a u-turn for the microblogging company, Twitter has now announced it will censor certain tweets depending on the rules of each country. Prior to this technology being activated, if Twitter blocked a tweet, it was deleted across the service globally. The new system allows it to block tweets which may not comply with a certain country’s laws just in that location, but the messages will be still be live across Twitter around the world.

Full Story on the Telegraph -»

Almost live, social media reports via @Storify.

Curators = Humans

Via @joshsternberg:

Just published a piece on Digiday about how brands are stepping up their curation game and what it means for consumers of content, as well as consumers of the brand.

Brands need to be careful in not only what, but how much they curate. There can’t be articles that make the reader question why…

kopoint:

The KoPoint political team has been hard at work producing independent audio content from the 2012 presidential campaign cycle. Gain greater insight on the American political system by listening to our podcasts and live reports.

Get involved with KoPoint politics.

shortformblog:

• one He’ll likely propose reforming taxes, ending the Bush tax cuts and raising taxes for the wealthy.
• two He’ll likely make another push for the “Buffett Rule,” which would set a minimum tax rate for the super-rich.
• three More tax breaks for big business, in an effort to encourage them to…

(via kopoint)