Cobun Zweifel-Keegan

@cobun.bsky.social

1808 Followers 1058 Following

Privacy, data protection, AI governance. Translating policy to practice. Some friction is good friction. D.C. policy lawyer by day, Colorado forest creature by night. (he / him)

Cobun and Eric in front of a Sasquatch at the international cryptozoology museum.
Amazon Said to Make a Bid to Buy TikTok in the U.S.
Press release: California Privacy Protection Agency names Tom Kemp as Executive Director (March 14, 2025)
Leila Fadel: Senator, I want to start with a longtime issue for you. Big Tech's access to private data of American citizens. Meta, OpenAI, Amazon, Google, X. Are you pushing for more specific regulations on these companies? Sen. Josh Hawley: I think the fact that they can take our data without our knowledge, they can sell it without our permission, they can market it without our control — all of these are huge problems. We should give every single American the right to go to court and to sue these companies when they violate our property rights, when they take it from us without our consent and without any form of compensation. And also when they harm our children, when our kids are exposed to sexually exploitative material, we ought to be able to go to court and sue these companies. Right now, we can't. And that needs to change.
At one point, two of the leaders — Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel — apologized to the families of children who died or were seriously harmed because of social media. Some advocates and families appreciated the move, hoping changes might unfold in the coming months. But by the end of last year, much of the legislation on kids’ online safety failed to make it past the finish line amid pushback, largely from the House. Meanwhile, tech executives now seem closer than ever to the White House orbit, stoking advocates’ concerns that they could have President Trump’s ear regarding their business interests.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York has been a strong advocate for addressing the climate crisis and fighting to create a more just economy. Representative Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts is in his third term. He’s prioritized promoting clean energy, lowering health care costs, and ending gun violence. Representative Troy Carter of Louisiana has focused on environmental justice, mental health, and health equity during his four years in the House. Representative Rob Menendez of New Jersey has pushed to modernize our nation’s crumbling infrastructure and increasing affordability for American families. Representative Kevin Mullin of California has fought to strengthen climate resilience and to build an economy that works for everyone. Representative Greg Landsman of Ohio has been a strong advocate for children and families over his entire career, including his two years in Congress. And Representative Jennifer McClellan of Virginia is also in her second term in the House and has focused on combating the climate crisis and preserving reproductive health care.
ENABLING TECHNOLOGICAL LEADERSHIP “American leadership must extend into the development and deployment of emerging technologies. By removing burdensome regulations and encouraging innovation, we will make sure that our economy can outcompete the Chinese Communist Party. “Our leadership in artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, and wireless technologies will create jobs and unlock a generation of growth and prosperity.
B&W photo of a night-time scene with a giant light-up winter star resting in Franklin Park, illuminating a snowy landscape, with the Washington Post building in the background.
Even on Facebook, a platform where people do not commonly hide behind pseudonyms, the somber announcement by UnitedHealth Group that it was “deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our dear friend and colleague” was met with, as of this writing, 80,000 reactions; 75,000 of them were the “haha” emoji.
Microsoft Copilot generated image using the prompt: imagine a stylized version of a US government position known as the "AI Czar". A humanoid robot with four arms and stylized gears all over its body looks a bit like a Kennedy and is dressed in American flag covered suits with two big flags flying behind.
Brussels city center. A statue of a man on horseback is backlit by the rising sun and reflected in a large puddle. The morning light touches the tops of buildings with a clear winter sky behind.
Marietje Schaake on the DPC main stage, turning to point to her slide, which features Donald Trump with a caption "Waking up to the tech coup"
Commissioner Reynders speaking at the podium of Data Protection Congress main stage.
Cobun stands in front of the Brussels conference venue in a winter jacket and wearing a tie with a print of eyeballs and other surveillance themes.
A lone piece of luggage waits on the platform with the stark reds and faded whites of the Brussels IC Train. The digital display shows the next train to Brussel-Zuid, underneath a large analog clock.
List of speakers on the panel
A handwritten poem in a little brown notebook on top of the Color of Surveillance program. In the future Will there be strangers? Will there be wondering? Or guessing? Or half remembering? Or will there be knowing? Knowing who and what you did last summer, blood type, phenotype, favorite Pokemon. Which is stranger—wondering about a stranger? Or never meeting one?
October on the subway, roses at my side kids being loud. One skinny girl with a cap and a pretty smile gets up to give me her seat and takes this chance to sit on her friend’s lap. I read the paper and look over at these girls. So free and easy they are laughing laughing. I look at the pink pink roses and how I say I am not a romantic and how this whole roses thing is going to ruin my reputation against romance. I watch the girls. I watch the skinny girl in boy’s clothes and pretty smile flirt with all the other girls. So free and easy they are laughing laughing. And the man next to me, he is also watching watching. And the man next to me, he leans over and says to me: Hey Miss, Hey Miss, that’s too pretty to be a boy, right? As if somehow that thought disgusts him. As if he wants some agreement about this disgust. And me I am just relieved that he knows that I am a Miss and not a pretty boy. So I just shrug and I say nothing because it is 1997 and I am still afraid. Afraid to say what does a she look like and what does a boy look like. And what does too pretty look like and what is your problem exactly. And I don’t know whether his disgust is that he thinks girls who look like boys should be beat up or boys who look like girls should be beat up because, in fact, we know, they both are. I only know that I was relieved that he did not know my pink pink roses were for a girl and somehow I have this safety of passing and I think to myself: You all sitting there laughing laughing sitting there on your sixth grade girlfriend’s lap so free and easy, laughing laughing, be safe my handsome girls, be safe my pretty boys.
Top view of a paper cup of coffee and a program for Georgetown Law's Color of Surveillance conference with the theme "Surveillance / Resistance." The program features an illustration of a dandelion plant blooming through a cracked ground.
AI generated image. I am walking down a rocky slope following a narrow path along the side of a cliff. In the near distance is a churning hydro power plant, with a massive waterfall coursing through its spillway.
A view of the National Capitol Columns in the DC arboretum, rows of columns disembodied from any building with only blue sky in the background and grass in the foreground. A couple of people provide scale near the base of the columns.