CHICAGO - In the age of mobile phones, laptops and tablets, privacy experts have warned that government and commercial entities are able to monitor and collect data on almost anyone. International experts will gather at a conference today at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law to teach students and journalists how to keep their communications confidential and their personal information free from threat.

Distinguished Professor of Law Lori Andrews said we live in a spy state where Americans often are perceived by their digital doppelganger.

"I think people don't realize how really important things - life insurance, credit, whether they get a kidney or not in a transplant - may depend on some misimpression that has come from information collected by marketing entities based on where people go on the web," Andrews said.

The Edward Snowden revelations regarding National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance activities brought to light the ways U.S. government agencies may have violated Americans' right to privacy. Some have defended the activities as critical to fighting terrorism, while others argue it is an enormous violation of constitutional rights.

Beatrice Edwards is a legal representative of Snowden in the U.S. and executive director of the Government Accountability Project. She will speak at the conference and says intrusions on First Amendment rights are particularly concerning for journalists.

"A lot of Americans say, 'Well, I'm not a terrorist, so I don't care.' If you think it doesn't matter to you that you are under surveillance all the time, then you really haven't thought about it long enough, because what it means is there's no more free press," Edwards said.

The U.S. fell 13 places - to 46 out of 180 countries - in the World Press Freedom Index for 2014.

Andrews said threats to freedom of the press are troubling, because journalists are taking risks to tell the public things about government that government does not want people to know. And she said whistleblowers need to be protected for the greater good of society.

"The First Amendment - the right to publish, the right to free speech - is critical in a democracy because you've got to have this marketplace of ideas to decide important issues as a citizen. We are all at risk because of the surreptitious surveying of us over the web," Andrews added.

Andrews proposed that there be a social network constitution, to ensure that the rights Americans have offline, such as freedom of speech and the right to privacy, are also the same rights they have online.

More information on the conference is available at www.themediaconsortium.org.




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Ahead of Tax Day, a national receipt shows where some Ohio tax dollars were spent in 2024.

War and weaponry remain top federal expenses, with the average tax filer paying more than $3,700 to maintain America's military arsenal.

Lindsay Koshgarian, program director of the Institute for Policy Studies, said that cost could increase for 2025, since President Donald Trump has said he wants a $1 trillion military budget.

"We've been expecting to see it hit a trillion dollars some time in the near future," said Koshgarian, "but I don't think we were expecting it quite so soon as this."

She said the military budget decreased slightly after the 2008 recession, but has been noticeably increasing the past few years. A $1 trillion military budget would be the largest on record.

The average tax filer paid under $18,000 in federal taxes last year, with the greatest share supporting Americans' health through Medicaid, Medicare, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Trump and billionaire Elon Musk have vowed to cut at least $1 trillion in spending.

But Koshgarian warned that eliminating smaller agencies - which work to alleviate homelessness, for example - won't reap much reward.

"And so, I think what we're likely to see next year is a lot less money for things like that," said Koshgarian, "without necessarily any appreciable savings for most of us."

Americans on average pay just one penny to help keep people off the streets. The average cost for deportations and border enforcement is just under $100.

Koshgarian said that cost could jump next year as well, as Trump continues to call for the deportation of millions of undocumented immigrants.

This story was produced in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the George Gund Foundation.





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Groups that fight for greater access to health care are criticizing the Republican budget blueprint currently before the
U.S. House of Representatives, claiming it could lead to huge cuts to Medicaid -- known as Medi-Cal in the Golden State. Republicans can only afford to lose a couple of votes in order to use reconciliation to pass the bill on a simple majority vote.

Kiran Savage-Sangwan, executive director of the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network, is asking voters to get in touch with their local members of Congress.

"Devastating health-care cuts can still be stopped," she said. "With the slimmest of a majority in the House of Representatives, it would take less than a handful of House Republicans to vote 'no' on this plan to save health care for 15 million Californians who count on Medi-Cal."

The House version of the budget blueprint calls for $880 billion in cuts to the part of the government that funds health care for low-income families, seniors and people with disabilities. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said the savings are necessary to fund President Donald Trump's other budget priorities.

Adriana Ramos-Yamamoto, a senior policy analyst with the California Budget & Policy Center, said the administration's priorities stand to hurt average Californians.

"Republicans want to cut funding for basic health care and nutrition programs that millions of people rely on, all in order to help pay for tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthy and corporations," said Ramos-Yamamoto. "These cuts would be a major hit to California, where federal dollars make up about a third of the state budget."

Amanda McAllister-Wallner, interim executive director of the nonprofit Health Access, notes that Congress will soon adjourn for a two-week break, sending lawmakers back to their districts.

"When these members are home in their district, we want to make sure that they're hearing from constituents -- and that they are accountable when they go back to D.C. and they start talking about the details of this plan," she explained.

Details of the campaign to protect Medi-Cal are online at fightforourhealth.org

Plans to slash funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services have drawn swift opposition from library and union leaders, as cuts threaten Michigan's nearly 400 libraries, as well as libraries across the nation, with rural areas expected to be hit hardest.

A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the American Library Association and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees by Democracy Forward and co-counsel Gair Gallo.

The suit asks the court to block the dismantling of the Institute, as directed by presidential executive order.

Cindy Hohl, president of the American Library Association, said the institutions are critical.

"Libraries are a trusted anchor institution, providing Americans with access to the internet and technology - and especially in small and rural areas where people may not be able to afford those services or access in their homes," she said.

Around 125,000 libraries across the nation may be affected. Supporters of the cuts maintain that reducing federal spending is essential for budget efficiency. They believe local governments should take on more responsibility and that cuts will push libraries to find alternative funding and improve efficiency.

In Michigan, libraries provide vital community programs, including job training, literacy initiatives, and senior support services. Cuts to library funding could disrupt these services, which mainly assist underserved populations, such as those in rural communities. Hohl highlighted the consequences these communities could face from cuts.

"When we're looking at our small and rural communities, if we see a decrease in federal funding to the point of where it's a third or even a half of their budget, those libraries will have to make difficult decisions and they may have to close," she added.

The American Library Association recently sent a letter urging the acting director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services not to cut federally mandated library programs.


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