Amazon employees call on the company to stop selling books deemed anti-trans

In 2021, a handful of Amazon employees quit the company over its decision to sell books that suggest kids who identify as transgender are mentally ill. Now, a group of employees is protesting its continued sale of those books by disrupting a Pride event at its headquarters in Seattle. According to The Washington Post, around 30 members of the organization No Hate at Amazon laid on the ground wrapped in trans flags to stop the company’s annual Pride flag-raising tradition. An organizer said: “Amazon does have standing policies against hate speech in its content and technically they say we don’t sell it.” But in truth, those contentious books are still listed on its website.

In a petition the group previously circulated to get Amazon to stop selling anti-trans books, it specifically named two titles: Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters by Abigail Shrier and Johnny the Walrus by American conservative political commentator Matt Walsh. “By continuing to sell and promote anti-trans books and repeating the rhetoric of the anti-trans hate movement, Amazon upper management has allowed the store that we build and operate to be complicit in [the anti-trans] hate movement,” the petition reads.

At least one employee who participated in the event quit the company this week. Senior software engineer Lina Jodoin explained that it’s more than just about the sale of those books, but also about the response they’ve gotten from management when they tried to escalate their concerns. And based on the company’s response to the protest, it will keep on selling those titles.

Amazon spokesperson Brad Glasser told The Post in a statement:

“As a company, we believe strongly in diversity, equity, and inclusion. As a bookseller, we’ve chosen to offer a very broad range of viewpoints, including books that conflict with our company values and corporate positions. We believe that it’s possible to do both – to offer a broad range of viewpoints in our bookstore, and support diversity, equity, and inclusion.”

Meta adds a new ‘Calls’ tab to Messenger

Meta’s Messenger app has become an incredibly popular way to make free voice and video calls. Now, a new design tweak will make the call button (slightly) easier to find. Meta is adding a dedicated tab for audio and video calls to the function bar at the bottom of the app. The new tab will appear alongside “Chats”, “Stories” and “People”, and open up to a list of the user’s contacts, along with separate buttons for voice and video calls. It’s a subtle change, but likely a move to make Messenger seem more like a messaging and calling app in the style of Whatsapp. Prior to the change, users had to open up a separate chat thread with a friend in order to call them. The new feature allows users to dial friends directly,and may also serve as an introduction to those less familiar with Messenger’s calling features.

According to Meta, daily audio and video calling on Messenger has increased by 40 percent since early 2020. The company expanded the features available to its encrypted messaging earlier this year, adding reactions, stickers, message-specific replies and forwarding. Meta’s plan is to eventually make end-to-end encryption the default for Facebook and Instagram in 2023. It’s added a number of AR effects to its video calls, letting users experiment with filters, masks and animations.

As far as free messaging apps go, Messenger has a long list of competitors, including Google Voice, Viber, Signal and WhatsApp, which Meta bought in 2014. While emphasizing the audio and video functions doesn’t do much to make Messenger stand out from the pack, it remains one of the few major apps in this crowded field, other than FaceTime, that doesn’t require a phone number to use.

Update 6/2/22 1:13PM ET: This post has been updated to clarify the 40 percent increase since 2020 pertains to daily calls on Messenger. 

John Madden to appear on cover of ‘Madden 23’

NFL Madden 23 will prominently feature the legendary Oakland Raiders coach and Hall of Famer, John Madden. It will mark the first time Madden has appeared on the cover of the eponymous game series since Madden 2000 in 1999. EA Sports revealed the news in a tweet today, adding that it will release a trailer with a full reveal of the game tomorrow. The three covers released today each pay homage to a different era in Madden’s career: as a coach, a broadcaster and “a video game icon.”

The new title will also pay tribute to the beloved coach within the game itself. The game will feature two versions of Coach Madden leading opposing teams of “All Madden” athletes facing off in the Oakland Coliseum. We’ll also hear from Madden through a series of remastered audio clips that hail from his days as a broadcaster.

Other than that, there’s still a lot that we don’t know about Madden 23, which is expected to release sometime in August. EA hasn’t hinted at any of its new features. Similar to older editions of Madden, there will be three different versions of the game. Most likely there will be a basic version that is priced the lowest, along with two premium bundles with added extras and perks for hardcore Madden fans. For more details, be sure to tune in to EA’s preview of the game, which will air on YouTube tomorrow at 7 am PT/10 am ET.

Discord finally brings text chat to voice channels

Discord’s audio chat has sometimes been a confusing experience — as you can’t type in a voice channel, you often have to switch between channels just to share a link or funny GIF. Clarity is coming at last, though. The service has enabled text chat in voice channels across all platforms. Each channel now includes a dedicated section where you can type to your heart’s content. You don’t have to join the call to participate, either, so you can pop in to offer help without too much disruption.

Voice channels now have the same permissions as regular text chats, so moderators can limit the ability to send messages, stickers and other content. Perks from ‘boosted’ servers, like larger file uploads, will carry over to voice channels.

The feature is free for all servers. It’s available now for servers that haven’t been set to “Community” status (that is, only private-use servers), but managers can opt in if they’re comfortable. All servers will have text enabled by June 29th.

Discord’s move could help reduce confusion, not to mention the proliferation of channels created solely to handle text chat for voice users. To some degree, it’s surprising the hybrid of voice and text wasn’t available before. However, it’s likely to be a welcome change of pace. Critics have accused Discord of focusing too much on Clubhouse-like broadcasts, Premium channel memberships and other features that go beyond the company’s original gaming focus. With text chat in voice channels, Discord is going back to basics with a feature users have wanted for a long time.

Claims process begins in $18 million Activision Blizzard harassment settlement

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has begun accepting claims related to Activision Blizzard’s $18 million settlement with the agency. Starting today, current and former US employees of the publisher who believe they experienced sexu…

NASA chooses two companies to develop next-gen spacesuits

NASA’s going to need new suits to accompany astronauts to the Moon for its Artemis I mission, and now we know who’s going to be making them: Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace. The two companies will develop next-generation suits that’ll be used both for spacewalks on the ISS, in addition to Moon exploration. NASA says it has defined the technical and safety standards around the new “xEMU” equipment (Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit), but it’s up to these partners to deal with “design, development, qualification, [and] certification” as well as building the necessary support equipment.

According to NASA, the new suits could be ready as soon 2025, following testing in either the ISS or a simulated environment. While the space agency is also gearing up for other new equipment, like lunar landers from SpaceX and more companies, having new suits is among its most important tasks for future missions. Currently, astronauts are still relying on space gear designed around 45 years ago for the Space Shuttle program. In an August 2021 report, NASA noted that its xEMU plans likely won’t hit its original 2024 target, and that it has spent around $420 million developing the new suits.

NESN launches streaming service with the Boston Red Sox and Bruins

New England sports fans now have a direct subscription streaming option for Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins games. NESN has unveiled NESN 360, a paid streaming service that enables fans to watch live and on-demand games on their computer or streaming device of their choice. Fans who are already NESN subscribers through their cable provider can access the app for free.

“We believe the direct subscription option will build on NESN’s reach in the region, and will be an excellent complement to the existing, valuable partnerships we have with TV providers to bring NESN to all homes in New England,” said Sean McGrail, NESN’s President and CEO in a statement.

One thing to note is that NESN is pricey — the monthly subscription is $29.99 per month — and fans will still need access to ESPN or other broadcast networks for nationally-syndicated games. The annual subscription is priced at $329.99 per year and also includes 8 tickets to a Red Sox’s game of your choice.

NESN 360 is only the latest move by the world of sports to further embrace streaming. Amazon’s Prime Video is exclusively streaming select New York Yankees games for in-market customers this baseball season. NESN is the first regional sports network to launch a streaming service, but it won’t be the last. Both Sinclair Broadcasting Group and NBC Universal are preparing direct-to-consumer options for the regional sports networks under their ownership, as Deadlinenoted.

NESN 360 is only available in New England, and can be downloaded on your computer, iOS, Android, Apple TV or Roku device. Both annual and monthly subscribers will be billed $1 for their first month. 

For Boston fans who live outside of New England, a better option would be to go with MLB.tv, which has the rights to out-of-market games but blackout rules still apply to your region’s own games. A monthly subscription to MLB.tv is $24.99 a month, and a single team subscription will set you back $99 a year. 

Sheryl Sandberg is leaving Meta after 14 years

Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as Chief Operating Officer of Meta after 14 years as one of Mark Zuckerberg’s top lieutenants at the company. She will remain on the company’s board of directors. 

In a post on Facebook, she said she plans to depart Meta in the fall and that “over the next few months, Mark and I will transition my direct reports.” Javier Olivan, currently Meta’s Chief Growth Officer, will take on the COO role, but his role “will be different from what Sheryl has done,” according to a post from Zuckerberg. “It will be a more traditional COO role where Javi will be focused internally and operationally, building on his strong track record of making our execution more efficient and rigorous.”

Sandberg first joined Facebook in 2008 to help build the company’s now-multibillion-dollar advertising business. During that time, she became one of the most recognizable executives at the social network, first, as the author of best-seller Lean In, which she described as a “sort-of feminist manifesto.” Later, she also became the face of many of Facebook’s biggest scandals, including Cambridge Analytica and the company’s handling of election interference and misinformation. 

“The debate around social media has changed beyond recognition since those early days,” Sandberg wrote on Facebook. “To say it hasn’t always been easy is an understatement.” 

Sandberg said she will spend more time on her foundation and philanthropic work. “I am not entirely sure what the future will bring – I have learned no one ever is,” she wrote.

Sandberg’s departure isn’t the only major shakeup at the top of Meta in recent months. The company’s longtime CTO left last fall, and Zuckerberg elevated Nick Clegg to President of Global Affairs in February. Zuckerberg announced that he is reshuffling several other executives as part of a reorganization to coincide with Sandberg’s departure, and Olivan’s more limited COO role. 

“I think Meta has reached the point where it makes sense for our product and business groups to be more closely integrated, rather than having all the business and operations functions organized separately from our products,” Zuckerberg wrote. 

‘God of War’ leads final trio of free games before PlayStation Plus revamp

Sony is marking the launch of its revised PlayStation Plus by giving away one of its best-known games. The company has revealed that its free PS Plus games for June will include 2018’s God of War — you won’t need a PlayStation 5 just to play Kratos’ father-and-son adventure at no extra charge. The two other freebies, Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, are clearly aimed at younger players.

All three games will be available from June 7th through July 4th. When the updated PlayStation Plus arrives (June 13th in the Americas), the titles will still be free as part of the basic PS Plus Essential tier.

While we wouldn’t bet on Sony continuing to offer this kind of selection going forward, the June lineup suggests the company isn’t in a rush to change its free game strategy. For now, at least, you’ll only need a pricier Extra or Premium plan if you want access to a large library of downloadable and streamable releases.