Digital Future Daily

The “content wars” might be back in Washington, and Big Tech is looking for a way out.

The new regulatory regime under incoming President Donald Trump appears set to take on Big Tech for its alleged silencing of conservative voices — and some technologists think the industry might be able to innovate its way out of the problem.

The innovation in question is a form of “middleware,” software built into tech platforms that gives users the power (and responsibility) that platforms currently wield to moderate and curate their own social media experiences.

A report published this morning opens a window into what middleware might do, and how it could affect the public argument about online content. “Shaping the Future of Social Media With Middleware,” from the right-leaning tech think tank the Foundation for American Innovation and the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University, evaluates the current state of the technology and potential policy tripwires around it.