[View Article at Source]State of the Union: The White House blamed the Federal Reserve for not lowering interest rates. The post August Jobs Report Weaker Than Expected appeared first on The American…

If you live in Mississippi, you may have noticed that you are no longer able to log into your Bluesky or Dreamwidth accounts from within the state. That’s because, in a chilling early warning sign for the U.S., both social platforms decided to block all users in Mississippi from their services rather than risk hefty fines under the state’s oppressive age verification mandate.  If this sounds like censorship to you, you’re right—it is. But it’s not these small platforms’ fault. This is the unfortunate result of Mississippi’s wide-sweeping age verification law, H.B. 1126. Though the law had previously been blocked by a federal district court, the Supreme Court lifted that injunction last month, even as one justice (Kavanaugh) concluded that the law is “likely unconstitutional.” This allows H.B. 1126 to go into effect while the broader constitutional challenge works its way through the courts. EFF has opposed H.B. 1126 from the start, arguing consistently and constantly that it violates all internet users’ First Amendment rights, seriously risks our privacy, and forces platforms to implement invasive surveillance systems that ruin our anonymity.  Lawmakers often sell age-verification mandates as a silver bullet for Big Tech’s harms, but in practice, these laws do nothing to rein in the tech giants. Instead, they end up crushing smaller platforms that can’t absorb the exorbitant costs. Now that Mississippi’s mandate has gone into effect, the reality is clear: age verification laws entrench Big Tech’s dominance, while pushing smaller communities like Bluesky and Dreamwidth offline altogether.  Sorry Mississippians, We Can’t Afford You Bluesky was the first platform to make the announcement. In a public blogpost, Bluesky condemned H.B. 1126’s broad scope, barriers to innovation, and privacy implications, explaining that the law forces platforms to “make every Mississippi Bluesky user hand over sensitive personal information and undergo age checks to access the site—or risk massive fines.” As Bluesky noted, “This dynamic entrenches existing big tech platforms while stifling the innovation and competition that benefits users.” Instead, Bluesky made the decision to cut off Mississippians entirely until the courts consider whether to overturn the law.  About a week later, we saw a similar announcement from Dreamwidth, an open-source online community similar to LiveJournal where users share creative writing, fanfiction, journals, and other works. In its post, Dreamwidth shared that it too would have to resort to blocking the IP addresses of all users in Mississippi because it could not afford the hefty fines.  Dreamwidth wrote: “Even a single $10,000 fine would be rough for us, but the per-user, per-incident nature of the actual fine structure is an existential threat.” The service also expressed fear that being involved in the lawsuit against Mississippi left it particularly vulnerable to retaliation—a clear illustration of the chilling effect of these laws. For Dreamwidth, blocking Mississippi users entirely was the only way to survive.  Age Verification Mandates Don’t Rein In Big Tech—They Entrench It Proponents of age verification claim that these mandates will hold Big Tech companies accountable for their outsized influence, but really the opposite is true. As we can see from Mississippi, age verification mandates concentrate and consolidate power in the hands of the largest companies—the only entities with the resources to build costly compliance systems and absorb potentially massive fines. While megacorporations like Google (with YouTube) and Meta (with Instagram) are already experimenting with creepy new age-estimation tech on their social platforms, smaller sites like Bluesky and Dreamwidth simply cannot afford the risks.  We’ve already seen how this plays out in the UK. When the Online Safety Act came into force recently, platforms like Reddit, YouTube, and Spotify implemented broad (and extremely clunky) age verification measures while smaller sites, including forums on parenting, green living, and gaming on Linux, were forced to shutter. Take, for example, the Hamster Forum, “home of all things hamstery,” which announced in March 2025 that the OSA would force it to shut down its community message boards. Instead, users were directed to migrate over to Instagram with this wistful disclaimer: “It will not be the same by any means, but . . . We can follow each other and message on there and see each others [sic] individual posts and share our hammy photos and updates still.”  When smaller platforms inevitably cave under the financial pressure of these mandates, users will be pushed back to the social media giants. This perfectly illustrates the market impact of online age verification laws. When smaller platforms inevitably cave under the financial pressure of these mandates, users will be pushed back to the social media giants. These huge companies—those that can afford expensive age verification systems and aren’t afraid of a few $10,000 fines while they figure out compliance—will end up getting more business, more traffic, and more power to censor users and violate their privacy.  This consolidation of power is a dream come true for the Big Tech platforms, but it’s a nightmare for users. While the megacorporations get more traffic and a whole lot more user data (read: profit), users are left with far fewer community options and a bland, corporate surveillance machine instead of a vibrant public sphere. The internet we all fell in love with is a diverse and colorful place, full of innovation, connection, and unique opportunities for self-expression. That internet—our internet—is worth defending. TAKE ACTION Don't let congress censor the internet

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At one point in time, when you got your music video on MTV, you had made it. Sadly, in 2o25, music videos have become somewhat of a lost art. Back in the day, the music video was a quintessential part of releasing a song out into the world. Now, they’ve become more of an afterthought, or artists decide to skip out on doing them altogether. Thus, the days of turning on MTV and watching music video after music video are long gone. But at one point, it was the place to go if you wanted to take in the newest music video. There was no YouTube where every music video that’s ever existed was at your fingertips. Instead, there was one channel that you’d be able to tune into to watch music videos around the clock… literally. Before MTV became a hotbed of garbage reality television, it served one sole purpose: Show the most popular music videos. The channel launched on August 1, 1981 and continuously cycled through the best of the best. Artists and bands even made it a point to create music videos that could be deemed worthy of being aired on MTV, and many fans of music discovered their new favorites sitting in front of the TV and taking in music videos from a variety of genres. That being said, the country music genre was a little underrepresented on MTV, at least in it’s early years. CMT launched in 1983, and Vh1 in 1985, so there were other options, but it wasn’t until 1986 (five years after MTV launched) that a country music song was selected to be played on the network dedicated to music videos. Now, before we get to it, there is a bit of debate surrounding the first country song… some might argue that Juice Newton’s (sounds like the name of an NFL running back) 1981 hit “Angel of the Morning” was the first. Her version of the song was crossover megahit that topped a number of charts, landing at #22 on the country charts, but it was the 40th EVER music video played on MTV. So while some, including Newton’s own Wikipedia page, would argue that it was the first country music video, I’m gonna call it a pop song. It was nominated for a Grammy in the pop category, and while Newton has a ton of crossover success, she didn’t really go full country until 1985. So, that being said… which artist in the ’80s was finally able to break through and represent the country genre on MTV? If you guessed Dwight Yoakam, you’d be correct. Simply put, the man has been at it for a long time. He’s still been putting out new songs in recent years, and even became close friends with Post Malone, well before Posty’s F1-Trillion album. But everyone’s gotta start somewhere, and Yoakam got started in 1986 with his debut album Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.. It also featured the single “Honky Tonk Man” – a cover of a song Johnny Horton released in 1956 (which is interestingly enough the year that Yoakam was born). The corresponding music video, which cycled back and forth between black-and-white and full-color scenes, helped put Dwight Yoakam on the map. That’s because it had what it took to be recognized by MTV and included in their marathon of music videos. “Honky Tonk Man” peaked at number three on the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart, and had some crossover appeal. The success of the track was undoubtedly helped by the music video, which was directed by Sherman Halsey (who worked with a lot of country music artists). So next time you are at trivia night and the question is, “Which country star had the first country music video on MTV?” you know the answer. Well… I suppose if they claim “Angel Of The Morning,” make sure you plead your case, because they’re wrong. If the question is, “What was the first ever music video shown on MTV?” that’d be “Video Killed The Radio Star” by The Buggles. That’s pretty fitting if you ask me… though it seems like that song could use an update now that the video star isn’t as prevalent as they used to be. But in the heyday of MTV, there were certainly a handful of video stars, and the country music artist that became one of the first country video stars on the network was Dwight Yoakam. “Honky Tonk Man” The post This Country Music Legend Had The First Country Music Video Ever Played On MTV first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

We have the greatest generation to thank for the emergence of country music star Riley Green. You always hear the phrase “respect your elders,” right? The least we can all do is treat the older demographic with appreciation, knowing that they paved the way for the rest of us. And if you call yourself a fan of Riley Green, you best believe you should hold the elders in high regard… because they very well have the support the country music singer needed to get his career started. The “I Wish Grandpas Never Died” singer was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon when he got to talking about his earliest musical memories. Many of those revolved around his grandfather Buford, who he shared played a tremendous role in his interest and love for music: “My grandaddy Buford just loved country music. My grandaddy Lendon was like the fisherman, hunter, came to every ball game (type). He just loved country music, and I wrote a song about him that I played at his funeral. It had a line in it that said, ‘He never could himself, but he taught me how to play.’ And that’s kind of how it was. He didn’t play, and I couldn’t. But he had this old Epiphone guitar and we’d sit around and mess around on it.” So one could obviously gather that his grandparents were instrumental (music pun) in peaking his curiosity about music. But his great-grandparents – or at least their house – was where Riley Green’s career really started to blossom. That’s because their old house was transformed into what the country star calls the “Golden Saw Music Hall,” and a very young Riley cut his teeth there, surrounded by a large population of older people that helped him grow into the man he is today: “My great-grandparent’s house, we turned into a miniature Grand Ole Opry. We called it the Golden Saw Music Hall. It was me and a bunch of older people, and we’d meet up every Friday. I think (I was an old soul). My grandaddy loved Roy Acuff and George Jones and Merle Haggard and that was how I grew up. My first song I ever sang was ‘Mama Tried.’ I learned how to play by watching those old guys make chords. And the old ladies brought snacks, and I would get up and sing and I was really nervous because I never liked my voice. But they would cheer because I was a little kid. So I got this false confidence that I brought here today.” If there was a moral to this story, it’d be to always look towards and listen to the older generation. They’re wise in years, and in the case of Riley Green, helped pave the way for him to become the popular country music artist that he is today. Green talks more about that supportive, elder-adjacent upbringing in the interview below… and he also embarrasses the Tonight Show host a bit by having a not-even-close duck call contest. So at the very least, that’s worth checking out: Oh, and while he was in the historic Studio 6B, Green also took some time to play a song off of the deluxe edition of Don’t Mind If I Do. Safe to say he won some people over with his interview and subsequent performance. A few years back, during the height of the COVID lockdowns, Riley hosted a few episodes of a music series at that very same music space in Jacksonville, Alabama… The Golden Saw Music Hall. Featuring co-writers and collaborators like Erik Dylan, Channing Wilson, and Trent Tomlinson, as well as some fellow Alabama artists like Drake White and Muscadine Bloodline. Check it out: The post Riley Green Got His Career Started By Playing With “A Bunch Of Older People” At A Makeshift Grand Ole Opry first appeared on Whiskey Riff.