5 ms·
I disagree. "Terrorist's Phone" is simply the most efficient way to identify the case. "User's Privacy" would mean absolutely nothing to someone who hasn't hear
by 0942v8653 11y ago
I disagree. "Terrorist's Phone" is simply the most efficient way to identify the case. "User's Privacy" would mean absolutely nothing to someone who hasn't heard of the case as much as we have, especially considering most of Apple's marketing nowadays is through that lens…
> The government couldn't have chosen a better case to publicize in search of a precedent in their favor.
If you'll allow me to be pedantic, they could have; we can be pretty sure this phone has none of the evidence they want it to, and it's not like anyone at Apple will lose sleep feeling responsible for aiding terrorism.
But my point is, this is simply the headline that will get the most clicks. Any political bias in it is coincidental. (And of course, it seems reasonable for most people to agree that, in a vacuum, it would be OK for Apple to unlock the phone, as long as it never affected other users.)
- oldmanjay 11y agoI'm not sure that it's easy to dismiss political bias as coincidental given that the people publishing the article are professional wordsmiths who understand the impact of every word they choose.
- SapphireSun 11y agoThere's an easier explanation. "...around user privacy." Boring. No one will click that. "...against federal conscription." Sounds like a conspiracy rag. "...terrorist phone." Interesting! Let's click.
- delazeur 11y agoReminds me of the rule "don't ascribe to malice what incompetence can explain." Don't assume nefarious intent when there is a profit motive involved.
- cwyers 11y agoAs someone that used to work as a "professional wordsmith," I think you vastly overestimate how much they care. Does it work? Do I hit my SEO metrics? Can I go to lunch now? And remember, headline writers often aren't the people who write the articles, and may not be people who have READ the articles.
- duaneb 11y agoWhy not just "phone"? Terrorism shouldn't have anything to do with the case. I don't believe the fourth amendment makes a special provision for terrorists or other "scary" people. For a good reason—terrorism is a polemic term.
- studentrob 11y agoLike he said, for the clicks. It makes it seem like a more important case. It's also more descriptive for people who may be hearing about the story for the first time. Personally, I call it the San Bernardino iPhone case.
- bunderbunder 11y ago"The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." - Lenin Can't say I agree with him on much, but he had a point with that quote.
- EGreg 11y agoHow so?
- duaneb 11y agoPerhaps the very tactics currently sustaining the reporting industry will lead to its downfall.
- icebraining 11y agoActually, he probably never did say that.
- MikeNomad 11y agoIf efficiency and pedantic(s) are going to be invoked, wouldn't it be easier to have the headline read, "unlock phones," since it turns out that Apple is currently dealing with multiple requests from GOV?