kill switch

Direct File promised a free and easy way for Americans to file their taxes, but after two successful tax seasons, it was shut down. Dexter talks with Merici Vinton, who helped build Direct File, about the project's development, why it was an example of a good government program, and how lobbying from private tax companies and DOGE’s involvement ultimately led to its downfall. Could Direct File make a comeback, or has the opportunity for free tax filing already passed?
Hit us up: [email protected], or @killswitchpod and @dexdigi on IG or Bluesky.
Links:
Merici’s Direct File story: https://fas.org/publication/end-of-irs-direct-file/
kill switch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@killswitch_pod
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Wartime propaganda isn’t new – but the use of AI slop in churning out propaganda videos is. And in this proxy war, Iran is winning. Dexter talks to Matthew Gault, who recently wrote about the Iran-US slopaganda war for 404 Media, about the strategy behind Iran’s videos, why the US is losing online, and how AI has amplified an age-old war tactic.
Read Matthew’s piece for 404: https://www.404media.co/iran-is-winning-the-ai-slop-propaganda-war/
Hit us up: [email protected], or @killswitchpod and @dexdigi on IG or Bluesky.
This episode was livestreamed on YouTube. Catch the next one live by subscribing to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@killswitch_pod
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Mostly Human is a weekly podcast that explores technology through the most important lens: the human one. Hosted by award-winning tech journalist Laurie Segall, the immersive interview and investigative show tackles some of the defining questions of our time with headline-making tech titans and the people you don't know yet, but should. Mostly Human will leave you with a sense of agency over fear, and a clearer view of how tech can actually work for you.
Listen here and subscribe to Mostly Human with Laurie Segall on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts!
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Ethan Zuckerman helped design the amateur web as we know it. In the 90s, he worked at Tripod, providing free web space for anyone to build their own site. His invention, pop-up ads, helped make that possible. The industry ran with it, and the Internet was never the same.

Since then, Ethan’s been on a mission to fix the Internet and bring it back to what he hoped it would be – he even sued Facebook over it. Dexter talks to Ethan about how to make advertising less surveillant, a “free-trade coffee” model of the web, and why ad blockers might hint at a way to make Facebook a better place.
Hit us up: [email protected], or @killswitchpod and @dexdigi on IG or Bluesky.
Links:
Ethan Zuckerman and Chand Rajendra-Nicolucci’s proposal on Forgetful Adveritising: https://law.yale.edu/sites/default/files/area/center/isp/documents/zuckerman.pdf
Ethan’s op-ed in the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/05/opinion/facebook-court-internet-meta.html
Ethan and Isaac Brickman’s proposal for middleware: https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/JMYZ3GJKPE7UTCN8ZR3K/full
kill switch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@killswitch_pod
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India’s tech industry was supposed to be a ticket to the middle class, a way out of poverty. Instead, for many workers, it’s become something else: long hours, intense competition, and a growing mental health crisis. Dexter talks to journalist Parth MN about the mounting pressure inside India’s tech workforce, the rise in suicides among engineers, and how a system built for relentless growth leaves little room for failure.
Got something you’re curious about? Hit us up [email protected], or @killswitchpod, or @dexdigi on IG or Bluesky.
Read + Watch:
Parth’s article, “Death of an Indian tech worker” - https://restofworld.org/2026/india-tech-workers-crisis-suicide/
VICE’s video, “ The Women Behind the Indian Farmers Protest” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knMUaiBiw4U
kill switch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@killswitch_pod
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.