This fall marks the 25th anniversary of the US launch of the first-gen Toyota Prius — a car that, arguably, has done more to more to shift the market away from fossil fuels than any other single vehicle (more on that in a minute). That means that, in many states, you can now get “antique” or “historic” plates for a modern hybrid.

If that sounds appealing to you, here’s what it might cost to keep that OG Prius on the road for many more years to come.

Türkiye’s response to post-pandemic inflation is a cautionary tale of how political pressure for low interest rates can create macroeconomic instabilities. While central banks worldwide raised interest rates to combat inflation in 2021-2023, Turkish authorities pursued the opposite strategy: cutting real rates to deeply negative levels while implementing financial engineering tools, FX interventions, and financial repression to stabilize markets. The centerpiece was a novel FX-protected deposit scheme (KKM) that guaranteed depositors against currency depreciation, shifting exchange rate risk to the government balance sheet. We provide a detailed account of this policy experiment and develop a theoretical model focusing on how KKM functions and creates vulnerabilities. Our model reveals that pressure to keep interest rates below inflation-targeting levels can lead to an interconnected destabilizing sequence. Low rates generate inflation, current account deficits, and exchange rate depreciation. KKM provides partial stabilization by effectively raising rates for savers while maintaining low rates for borrowers. However, this creates growing contingent fiscal burdens and vulnerability to self-fulfilling currency and sovereign debt crises. This explains additional policies adopted including capital flow management, financial repression, and return to orthodox monetary policy. As central banks worldwide face renewed pressure to set lower policy rates, Türkiye’s experience illustrates the consequences.

That is from a new NBER working paper by A. Hakan Kara and Alp Simsek.

The post Türkiye’s Homemade Crises appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.

       

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HBO Max subscribers will no longer be able to watch CNN from the streaming platform as of November 17, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) informed customers today.

After this date, HBO Max subscribers will still be able to watch some CNN content, including shows and documentaries, on demand.

The CNN Max livestream for HBO Max launched as an open beta in September 2023. Since then, it has featured live programming from CNN's US arm and CNN International, as well as content made specifically for HBO Max.

WBD is pulling HBO Max's CNN channel as it prepares to launch a standalone CNN streaming service, inevitably introducing more fragmentation to the burgeoning streaming industry. The streaming service is supposed to launch this fall and provide access to original CNN programing and journalism, including “a selection of live channels, catch-up features, and video-on-demand programming," a May announcement said.

In a statement today, Alex MacCallum, EVP of digital products and services for CNN, said:

CNN has benefitted tremendously from its two years of offering a live 24/7 feed of news to HBO Max customers. We learned from HBO Max’s large base of subscribers what people want and enjoy the most from CNN, and with the launch of our own new streaming subscription offering coming later this fall, we look forward to building off that and growing our audience with this unique, new offering.

WBD will sell subscriptions to CNN's new streaming service as part of an "All Access" subscription that will include the ability to read paywalled articles on CNN's website.

The CNN cable network has been battling declining ratings since Donald Trump became president, putting more pressure on its upcoming streaming service. Removing CNN's live programming from HBO Max could help build demand and engagement for the new service.

This will be CNN's second attempt at its own streaming service. Its first, CNN+, lasted from March 29 to April 28, 2022, making it the shortest-lived video streaming service ever. Explaining the service's closure at the time, J.B. Perrette, who is currently CEO and president of global streaming and games at WBD, said, "In a complex streaming market, consumers want simplicity and an all-in[-one] service which provides a better experience and more value than stand-alone offerings." Clearly, WBD has reevaluated this logic, especially after being able to beta test CNN streaming without the risks of operating a dedicated service.

Meanwhile, HBO Max subscribers will lose access to a prominent news source while continuing to pay the same price… for now. Last month, WBD CEO David Zaslav hinted at HBO Max price hikes, stating that he thinks HBO Max is currently “way underpriced.”

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Both Google and Apple recently removed Red Dot, an app people can use to report sightings of ICE officials, from their respective app stores, 404 Media has found. The move comes after Apple removed ICEBlock, a much more prominent app, from its App Store on Thursday following direct pressure from U.S. Department of Justice officials. Google told 404 Media it removed apps because they shared the location of what it describes as a vulnerable group that recently faced a violent act connected to these sorts of ICE-spotting apps—a veiled reference to ICE officials.

The move signals a broader crackdown on apps that are designed to keep communities safe by crowdsourcing the location of ICE officials. Authorities have claimed that Joshua Jahn, the suspected shooter of an ICE facility in September and who killed a detainee, searched his phone for various tracking apps. A long-running immigration support group on the ground in Chicago, where ICE is currently focused, told 404 Media some of its members use Red Dot.

“Ready to Protect Your Community?” the website for Red Dot reads. “Download Red Dot and help build a stronger protection network.”

The site provides links to the app’s page on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. As of at least Friday, both of those links return errors. “This app is currently not available in your country or region,” says the Apple one, and “We're sorry, the requested URL was not found on this server,” says the Google one. 

The app allows people to report ICE presence or activity, along with details such as the location and time, according to Red Dot’s website. The app then notifies nearby community members, and users can receive alerts about ICE activity in their area, the website says.

Google confirmed to 404 Media that it removed Red Dot. Google said it did not receive any outreach from the Department of Justice about this issue and that it bans apps with a high risk of abuse. Without talking about the shooting at the ICE facility specifically, the company said it removed apps that share the location of what it describes as a vulnerable group after a recent violent act against them connected to this sort of app. Google said apps that have user generated content must also conduct content moderation.

Google added in a statement that “ICEBlock was never available on Google Play, but we removed similar apps for violations of our policies.”  

Google’s Play Store policies say the platform does not allow apps that “promote violence” against “groups based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability age, nationality, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, caste, immigration status, or any other characteristic that is associated with systemic discrimination or marginalization,” but its published policies do not include information about how it defines what types of groups are protected.

Red Dot did not respond to a request for comment.

On Thursday Apple told 404 Media it removed multiple ICE-spotting apps, but did not name Red Dot. Apple did not respond to another request for comment on Friday.

On Thursday Joshua Aaron, the developer of ICEBlock, told 404 Media “I am incredibly disappointed by Apple's actions today. Capitulating to an authoritarian regime is never the right move,” referring to Apple removing his own app. ICEBlock rose to prominence in June when CNN covered the app. That app was only available on iOS, while Red Dot was available on both iOS and Android.

“ICEBlock is no different from crowd sourcing speed traps, which every notable mapping application, including Apple's own Maps app, implements as part of its core services. This is protected speech under the first amendment of the United States Constitution,” Aaron continued. “We are determined to fight this with everything we have. Our mission has always been to protect our neighbors from the terror this administration continues to reign down on the people of this nation. We will not be deterred. We will not stop. #resist.”

That move from Apple came after pressure from Department of Justice officials on behalf of Attorney General Pam Bondi, according to Fox. “ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line that cannot be crossed. This Department of Justice will continue making every effort to protect our brave federal law enforcement officers, who risk their lives every day to keep Americans safe,” Bondi told Fox. The Department of Justice declined to comment beyond Bondi's earlier comments.

The current flashpoint for ICE’s mass deportation effort is Chicago. This week ICE raided an apartment building and removed everyone from the building only to ask questions later, according to local media reports. “They was terrified. The kids was crying. People was screaming. They looked very distraught. I was out there crying when I seen the little girl come around the corner, because they was bringing the kids down, too, had them zip tied to each other," one neighbor, Eboni Watson, told ABC7. “That's all I kept asking. What is the morality? Where's the human? One of them literally laughed. He was standing right here. He said, 'f*** them kids.’”

Brandon Lee, communications lead at Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, told 404 Media some of the organization’s teams have used Red Dot and similar apps as a way of taking tips. But the organization recommends people call its hotline to report ICE activity. That hotline has been around since 2011, Lee said. “The thing that takes time is the infrastructure of trust and training that goes into follow-up, confirmation, and legal and community support for impacted families, which we in Illinois have been building up over time,” he added.

“But I will say that at the end of the day it's important for all people of conscience to use their skills to shine some light on ICE's operations, given the agency's lack of transparency and overall lack of accountability,” he said, referring to ICE-spotting apps.

In ICEBlock’s case, people who already downloaded the app will be able to continue using but will be unable to re-download it from the Apple App Store, according to an email from Apple Aaron shared with 404 Media. Because Red Dot is available on Android, users can likely sideload the app—that is, install it themselves by downloading the APK file rather than from the Play Store.

The last message to Red Dot’s Facebook page was on September 24 announcing a new update that fixed various bugs.

Update: this piece has been updated to include a response from the Department of Justice.

Under pressure from the Department of Justice (DOJ), Apple removed crowdsourcing apps used to alert users about federal immigration activity in their area from the company's app store on Thursday. The developer of ICEBlock—one of the apps removed—is determined to fight for the app, which he says is protected speech under the First Amendment. 

At the direction of United States Attorney General Pam Bondi, the DOJ asked Apple to remove ICEBlock, which the Trump administration claims puts Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in danger by allowing users to anonymously report officers' presence. "ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line that cannot be crossed," Bondi told Fox News in a statement. 

Joshua Aaron, ICEblock's software developer, told CNN that he launched the platform to fight back against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown and help users avoid interactions with ICE. But controversy was stoked in early July after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said her agency was "working with the Department of Justice" to potentially prosecute CNN for reporting on the app and "actively encouraging people to avoid law enforcement." 

Controversy flared again after FBI Director Kash Patel released details in September that Joshua Jahn, who is suspected of opening fire at an ICE facility in Dallas last month, used apps that "tracked the presence of ICE agents." Although Patel didn't name ICEBlock, the well-known app was painted as a danger to federal agents. 

But Aaron has steadfastly defended the app as protected speech, akin to flagging police speed traps. "ICEBlock is no different from crowd sourcing speed traps, which every notable mapping application, including Apple's own Maps app, implements as part of its core services," he told 404 Media following the app's removal. "This is protected speech…we are determined to fight this with everything we have." It is unclear at this time how Aaron plans to challenge Apple's ruling. 

In the email Aaron received announcing the app's removal, reviewed by 404, Apple said that upon re-evaluation, the ICEBlock violated guidelines "because its purpose is to provide location information about law enforcement officers that can be used to harm such officers individually or as a group"—based on "information provided to Apple by law enforcement." 

The First Amendment protects ICEBlock in the same way it protects apps like Google Maps and Waze, and prohibits the federal government from infringing on the app's development and use. However, Apple is a private company and not limited in the same way. Needless to say, the DOJ's indirect interference on ICEBlock—and its 1.1 million users—through private companies like Apple is deeply troubling. 

"I am incredibly disappointed by Apple's actions today," Aaron told 404. "Capitulating to an authoritarian regime is never the right move."

The post Apple Removed ICEBlock From App Store Under DOJ Pressure appeared first on Reason.com.