Bans and blanket restrictions on social media, like the impending US TikTok ban or Australia’s recent age restrictions, are often presented as decisive solutions to complex problems. These measures promise to safeguard national security, protect user data, or shield vulnerable users from harm. Yet, they rarely achieve their intended goals. Instead, they create a paradox: rather than mitigating risks, such restrictions make platforms and user practices less governable. Users circumvent controls, oversight is fragmented, and transparency gives way to opacity—all while opportunities for meaningful governance are lost.
Tech Policy Press is a 501©3 nonprofit organization incorporated in Texas as Protego Press, its earlier iteration. Its initial funding came primarily through contributions from its founders- Justin Hendrix and Bryan Jones- and small donations from individuals.
In 2022, Tech Policy Press received a grant from the Omidyar Network for a research project evaluating vulnerabilities in the design, engineering, and use of encrypted messaging applications.
In 2022, Tech Policy Press received a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
In 2022, Justin Hendrix was a Democracy Fellow at the Emerson Collective, which supported his effort to advance Tech Policy Press.
In 2023, Tech Policy Press received grants from Reset.tech.
In 2024, Tech Policy Press received grants from Reset.tech, the MacArthur Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the Ford Foundation, and a charitable donation from DuckDuckGo.