This academic paper concludes that targeted Web ads are bad for consumers because they offer (slightly) higher prices and less well-known products than search ads.  It’s a questionable conclusion that was picked up The New York Times under the headline “If It’s Advertised to You Online, You Probably Shouldn’t Buy It. Here’s Why.”

After years of inaction, governments are taking stronger measures to control online information – a cure that might be worse than the disease.  Increasingly-authoritarian India has prohibited social media from sharing false information and set up its own fact-checking unit as the arbiter of truth.   And increasingly-authoritarian Arkansas is joining Utah in passing a law that gives parents closer control over their kids’ online activities.

The U.S. Senate has passed a bill that could potentially ban TikTok in the U.S. if its Chinese owner, ByteDance, does not sell its holdings within a year. The bill now goes to the President Biden, who has said he will sign it. Court challenges are likely to follow.