In light of recent nationwide protests over police brutality and systemic racism, we’re putting our normal newsletter on hold this week in order to focus on organizations working to address those issues. Technology policy has a role to play in making sure people can stay connected and informed, and the tech industry has a long road ahead in addressing its own systemic inequality. But we’re spending this time listening to and highlighting organizations that have been working to address these issues on a larger scale, and we encourage you to do the same.

The Big Story: White House executive order threatens bedrock Internet law. President Donald Trump signed an executive order yesterday targeting “censorship” by online companies, a dangerous and misguided move that threatens to undermine the bedrock law that has allowed Internet platforms of all sizes to grow. The directive came after Twitter added fact-checking labels to several of President Trump’s tweets about mail-in ballots earlier this week. 

The Big Story: Congress working to clarify small business loan program. The U.S. Senate this week tried to double the amount of time that recipients of Paycheck Protection Program loans have to spend the emergency funding, even as House Democrats plan to advance legislation next week that would change accessibility requirements and allow PPP loans to be used over an even longer 24-week timeframe.

The Big Story: Broadband access in the time of COVID-19. House Democrats this week introduced the HEROES Act, their proposed $3 trillion coronavirus relief package that includes a dramatic expansion of pandemic-related broadband assistance to help close the digital divide. The inclusion of broadband funding in the proposed relief package comes as policymakers in recent weeks have grown more vocal about the importance of reliable Internet connectivity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Big Story: Amidst pandemic, data privacy debate continues. As the coronavirus pandemic forces people to rely on digital services to abide by statewide stay-at-home orders, the state- and federal-level debate over data privacy rages on.

The Big Story: Lawmakers propose freezing mergers during pandemic. Several congressional Democrats have proposed a temporary halt on certain “big” mergers and acquisitions during the coronavirus pandemic, saying that the outbreak could allow large companies to consolidate their power by buying up smaller firms. While larger tech companies have faced scrutiny in the past for allegedly acquiring potential competitors in order to protect their market share, acquisitions during the COVID-19 pandemic are far more likely to involve larger companies rescuing at-risk startups that would otherwise go out of business. It’s hard to see how blocking these types of acquisitions would promote competition. Efforts to curb what policymakers see as predatory behavior could instead deprive many startups of a critical lifeline they might need to remain in business.