739: The Thin Black Line

Meta fined $375M for child safety failures. Musk lost 3 lawsuits in a week. Sam Altman compared to a Nazi. Netflix raised prices again. The Pentagon can't quit Claude. Reddit wants your face scan. Star Trek's streaming era is over. But the thin black line holds! 🎙️

Sponsors:

DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.

SquareSpace - go to squarespace.com/GRUMPY for a free trial. And when you’re ready to launch, use code GRUMPY to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.

SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!

1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1password

Show notes at https://gog.show/739

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hdhHiOaclu0

FOLLOW UP

Polymarket is cracking down on insider trading with updated rules

https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/polymarket-is-cracking-down-on-insider-trading-with-updated-rules-163928655.html

Judge temporarily blocks Pentagon's 'supply chain risk' designation for Anthropic

https://abcnews.com/Technology/judge-temporarily-blocks-pentagons-supply-chain-risk-designation/story?id=131453267

IN THE NEWS

Jury rules against Meta, orders $375 million fine in major child safety trial

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/jury-rules-against-meta-orders-375-million-fine-in-major-child-safety-trial-224215209.html

Jury rules against Meta and YouTube in social media addiction case

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/jury-rules-against-meta-and-youtube-in-social-media-addiction-case-181344860.html

Elon Musk loses big in court; X boycott perfectly legal

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/03/elon-musk-loses-big-in-court-x-boycott-perfectly-legal/

Elon Musk misled investors during his Twitter takeover, jury finds

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/elon-musk-misled-investors-during-his-twitter-takeover-jury-finds-232033028.html

Elon Musk Will Have to Face the Music in Lawsuit Over DOGE's Government Overreach

https://gizmodo.com/elon-musk-will-have-to-face-the-music-in-lawsuit-over-doges-government-overreach-2000737413

OpenAI reportedly plans to double its workforce to 8,000 employees

https://www.engadget.com/ai/openai-reportedly-plans-to-double-its-workforce-to-8000-employees-161028377.html

Sam Altman Thanks Programmers for Their Effort, Says Their Time Is Over

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/sam-altman-thanks-programmers-over

Sam Altman Confronted At Oscars Party Over Pentagon Deal

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/sam-altman-confronted-oscar-pentagon-deal

R.I.P. Sora (2024-2026)

https://gizmodo.com/r-i-p-sora-2024-2026-2000737664

Disney's Sora Disaster Shows AI Will Not Revolutionize Hollywood

https://www.404media.co/disneys-openai-sora-disaster-shows-ai-will-not-save-hollywood/

The Tech Bubble Might Finally Be Popping

https://slate.com/technology/2026/03/ai-openai-sam-altman-disney-sora-shutdown.html

Elon Musk announces Terafab project he claims will be the 'largest chip manufacturing facility ever'

https://www.engadget.com/science/elon-musk-announces-terafab-project-he-claims-will-be-the-largest-chip-manufacturing-facility-ever-171718545.html

Trump Rewards Big Tech's Biggest Bootlickers With Seats on AI Policy Board

https://gizmodo.com/trump-rewards-big-techs-biggest-bootlickers-with-seats-on-ai-policy-board-2000738006

Pinterest CEO says teens under 16 should be banned from social media (but not Pinterest)

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/pinterest-ceo-says-teens-under-16-should-be-banned-from-social-media-but-not-pinterest-211630443.html

Reddit is weighing identity verification methods to combat its bot problem

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/reddit-is-weighing-identity-verification-methods-to-combat-its-bot-problem-195814671.html

APPS & DOODADS

Bambu Lab A1

https://bambulab.com/en-ca/a1

Twitter turned 20 and I feel nothing

https://www.engadget.com/social-media/twitter-turned-20-and-i-feel-nothing-140000602.html

FCC Bans All New Routers Not Made in America

https://gizmodo.com/fcc-bans-all-new-routers-not-made-in-america-2000737176

MEDIA CANDY

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/star-trek-starfleet-academy/

‘Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’ to End With Season 2 (EXCLUSIVE)

https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/star-trek-starfleet-academy-canceled-season-2-1236696816/

'Starfleet Academy' Deserved Better Than This

https://gizmodo.com/star-trek-starfleet-academy-cancelation-paramount-2000737569

Shrek Forever After

https://www.netflix.com/title/70117295

Daredevil: Born Again S2

https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-85e7a914-c8e6-41db-95df-c740dc2cf1b7

Shrinking

https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/shrinking/umc.cmc.apzybj6eqf6pzccd97kev7bs

The Pitt

https://www.hbomax.com/shows/pitt-2024/e6e7bad9-d48d-4434-b334-7c651ffc4bdf

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Official Teaser | HBO Max

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIu4sFKGi6E

Stephen Colbert to write next ‘Lord of the Rings’ movie after leaving late night

https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/25/entertainment/colbert-lord-of-the-rings-hnk

Supreme Court rejects Sony's attempt to kick music pirates off the Internet

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/03/supreme-court-rejects-sonys-attempt-to-kick-music-pirates-off-the-internet/

Netflix raises prices for every subscription tier by up to 12.5 percent

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/03/netflix-increases-prices-for-all-plans-by-up-to-2-per-month/

AT THE LIBRARY

Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor

https://amzn.to/4bvyNjN

CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS

A celebration of Karl Wallinger’s Life & Music

https://www.worldparty.net/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.