Donald Trump will get his Facebook and Instagram accounts back ‘in the coming weeks’

More than two years after Meta extended former President Donald Trump’s “indefinite” suspension from Facebook, the company has opted to reinstate his account. In a statement, Meta said Trump would be able to access his Facebook and Instagram accounts in the “coming weeks,” but that there would be “new guardrails in place to deter repeat offenses.”

The decision comes after Trump’s campaign had reportedly pushed for the former president to be allowed back on Facebook ahead of the upcoming presidential primaries.

Trump was originally booted from Facebook in the aftermath of the attack on the US Capitol on January 6th, 2021, after publicly praising the rioters. Meta’s handling of the initial suspension, which it quickly extended from a 24-hour ban to an “indefinite” suspension, was heavily criticized, including by its own Oversight Board. In its decision weighing in on Trump’s suspension, the board slammed Meta for not following its own rules and trying to “avoid its responsibilities.”

Meta then revisited the suspension, and said it would last for at least two years. However, the company confirmed that Trump would eventually be allowed back on Facebook. Nick Clegg, Meta’s top policy official, said at the time the former president would be “subject to new enhanced penalties” for future policy violations.

Now, Clegg says that Trump and other public figures who have been reinstated following suspensions “related to civil unrest” will face new suspensions, lasting for at least a month, for future offenses. He added Meta would also take steps to limit the reach of Trump’s posts if they contribute “to the sort of risk that materialized on January 6th, such as content that delegitimizes an upcoming election or is related to QAnon.” While Meta may not remove those posts entirely, he said the company would consider removing the share button and blocking them from the company’s advertising and recommendations systems.

Clegg also confirmed that the company’s controversial “newsworthiness” policies could continue to apply to Trump. “In the event that Mr. Trump posts content that violates the letter of the Community Standards but, under our newsworthy content policy, we assess there is a public interest in knowing that Mr. Trump made the statement that outweighs any potential harm, we may similarly opt to restrict the distribution of such posts but leave them visible on Mr. Trump’s account,” Clegg wrote. 

Meta’s decision comes just months after Elon Musk also restored the former president’s Twitter account. Trump has so far declined to restart his Twitter habit — he decamped to Truth Social last year — but is reportedly planning to return, according to a recent report in Rolling Stone. While the former president was known to favor Twitter, his Facebook following was also an important asset to both of his previous campaigns. 

Trump’s suspension was also the first major test of Meta’s Oversight Board, which the company formed to help it weigh in on thorny content moderation and policy decisions. In a statement Wednesday, the board said that it had “no role” in the company’s decision to reinstate Trump, and that it plans to “publish a fuller analysis of this case in a future quarterly transparency report.”

‘Redfall’ brings open-world vampire hunting to Xbox and PC on May 2nd

It’s arriving several months later than expected, but Arkane’s next big game is (relatively) close at hand. The studio has confirmed that Redfall will be available on May 2nd for Xbox Series X/S and Windows PCs, with launch day access through Game Pass. As before, the vampire-slaying shooter is an expansion of the formulas behind Dishonored and Prey — it’s a stealth-friendly game built with multiplayer and unpredictability in mind.

Like other Arkane titles, Redfall hinges on player choice. You can directly fight the vampires taking over the game’s namesake town, but you’ll also be rewarded if you take the stealthy approach or make clever uses of your gear. The open world concept isn’t strictly new (Prey had it), but the choice of characters and online play are. You can choose a hero that reflects your play style, and up to four people can take down the villains in co-op mode. Certain tactics only work when you’re playing as a team.

The free-ranging gameplay adds some variety, but you can also expect weapons with randomized stats and customization. Some mechanics will be familiar. You’ll find activities beyond the main story missions (such as rescuing survivors), skill trees and other systems that encourage doing more than the essentials.

It’s too soon to say if Redfall will maintain Arkane’s reputation. However, it’s evident the developer is happy to build on its better-known gameplay mechanics rather than take some chances like it did with Deathloop. If you tried Prey and wished your friends could join in, though, you might be happy.

‘Forza Motorsport’ arrives later this year on Xbox Series X/S, PC and Game Pass

Forza Motorsport, the eighth mainline entry in Turn 10 Studios’ long-running simulation racing series, will arrive later this year, the developer announced during Microsoft and Bethesda’s Developer Direct showcase. The release date constitutes something of a delay, as Microsoft announced last June it would release the game in the spring of this year. Moreover, if you were hoping to play the game on an Xbox One console, you’ll need to turn to the company’s Xbox Game Pass service to do so; Microsoft plans to release Forza Motorsport on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox Game Pass and PC via the Microsoft Store and Steam. 

On Wednesday, Turn 10 promised Forza Motorsport would take full advantage of the latest Xbox and PC hardware to deliver the franchise’s most immersive racing experience yet. The game will feature more than 500 cars for players to collect, including 100 vehicles that are new to the series. To make those cars look their best, Turn 10 used a spectrophotometer to scan the paint jobs of the cars featured in the game. “With this new sourcing technique, our paint models have a more realistic light response across colors, metal flake and gloss levels,” the studio said in a blog post published after the showcase. Each car will now also feature context-aware damage and dirt buildup that Turn 10 says is “authentic and unique” to each vehicle.   

During the showcase, the studio showed off Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit in South Africa, one of the five new racing tracks featured in the game. With the help of photogrammetry and laser-scanned images, Team 10 says the environments in Forza Motorsport feature 10 times more realistic detail than past entries in the series. With the addition of dynamic time of day and weather simulation, Turn 10 says fans can expect no two laps around a track to look or play the same.    

Expect Microsoft to share more details about Forza Motorsport later this year.

‘Hi-Fi Rush’ is an action rhythm game you can play today

Here’s a pleasant surprise from Xbox and Bethesda’s Developer Direct showcase: a full game you can download (almost) right away. The Evil Within studio Tango Gameworks has unveiledHi-Fi Rush, a combo-driven brawler with rhythm game elements. You play Chai, a would-be rockstar who fights a robotics company with the help of the beat. Think Devil May Cry or Bayonetta crossed with a music game, or a very pretty spiritual sequel to Crypt of the NecroDancer. You aren’t forced to play to the beat, but you’re rewarded for staying in sync with high-powered combo moves and finishers.

Not surprisingly, style plays an important role. The game revolves around its anime-inspired cel-shaded look, its non-stop humor and a mix of both licensed and original music. Streamers don’t have to panic about copyright violations — there’s an “alternate audio mode” to keep the soundtrack legal during broadcasts.

The title will be available later today for Xbox Series X/S and Windows PCs (through the Epic Games Store, Microsoft Store and Steam). It’s also available through Game Pass on these platforms. This is a distinct change of pace for Tango, which is better known for dark, moody titles like Ghostwire: Tokyo. You might not mind, though, particularly if you’re looking for something more upbeat.

‘Minecraft Legends’ delivers blocky base-building action on April 18th

Minecraft Legends, the unique action-strategy spin on Microsoft’s block-building franchise, will hit the Xbox, PlayStation 5, Windows and Nintendo Switch on April 18th. Announced last June, the game resembles a modern spin on classic Warcraft strategy: Your goal is to protect your base and destroy your enemy’s. It’ll feature online campaign co-op and competitive multiplayer, as you’d expect. And judging from the most recent trailer, it looks compelling enough to tempt over gamers who could never figure out what to do in the original Minecraft.

CNET had to correct most of its AI-written articles

CNET has issued corrections for over half of the AI-written articles the outlet recently attributed to its CNET Money team. Following an internal audit after it was first notified of an AI-written article with substantial errors, CNET Editor-in-Chief Connie Guglielmo says the publication identified additional stories that required correction. She claims a “small number” needed “substantial correction,” while others had “minor issues” that saw CNET fix things like incomplete company names and language the outlet deemed was vague. In all, of the 77 articles the publication now says were written as part of a trial to test an “internally designed AI engine,” 41 feature corrections.

As The Verge points out, some articles feature corrections that note CNET “replaced phrases that were not entirely original.” In those instances, the outlet says its plagiarism checker tool either “wasn’t used properly” by the editor assigned to the story or it failed to identify writing the tool had lifted from another source. Earlier this week, Futurism, the publication that first broke the news that CNET was quietly using AI to write financial literacy articles, said it found extensive evidence the website’s AI-generated content that showed “deep structural and phrasing similarities to articles previously published elsewhere.” Pointing to one piece on overdraft fees, Futurism noted how CNET’s version featured nearly identically phrasing to an earlier article from Forbes Advisor. It’s worth noting that AI, as it exists today, can’t be guilty of plagiarism. The software doesn’t know it’s copying something in violation of an ethical rule that humans apply to themselves. If anything, the failure falls on the CNET editors who were supposed to verify the outlet’s AI tool was creating original content.

Despite the public setback, CNET appears set on continuing to use AI tools to write published content. “We’ve paused and will restart using the AI tool when we feel confident the tool and our editorial processes will prevent both human and AI errors,” Guglielmo said. “In the meantime, expect CNET to continue exploring and testing how AI can be used to help our teams as they go about their work testing, researching and crafting the unbiased advice and fact-based reporting we’re known for.”

Senator Manchin aims to close battery loophole around the $7,500 EV tax credit

Senator Joe Manchin, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has introduced a new bill that squashes a small loophole around the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) $7,500 EV tax credit. The new credits are restricted to cars with final assembly in the US, as well as those with a certain amount of North American battery content (an amount that increases every year). But, the U.S. Treasury has delayed its final rules on battery guidance until March, which means EVs with foreign batteries can still receive the full $7,500 in credits until then. Manchin’s legislation, dubbed the American Vehicle Security Act (AVSA), would push the battery requirement back to January 1st.

“It is unacceptable that the U.S. Treasury has failed to issue updated guidance for the 30D electric vehicle tax credits and continues to make the full $7,500 credits available without meeting all of the clear requirements included in the Inflation Reduction Act,” Manchin wrote a statement. “The Treasury Department failed to meet the statutory deadline of December 31, 2022, to release guidance for the 30D credit and have created an opportunity to circumvent stringent supply chain requirements included in the IRA. The IRA is first-and-foremost an energy security bill, and the EV tax credits were designed to grow domestic manufacturing and reduce our reliance on foreign supply chains for the critical minerals needed to produce EV batteries.”

If it’s passed, the bill would be disappointing news for anyone who rushed out to buy an EV before March (something plenty of car publications were suggesting). As Autoblog notes, the AVSA doesn’t touch on the other IRA loophole, which also allows for the full credit for leased cars built outside of the US. But given Manchin’s early obstruction to the IRA, as well as his push against lax battery rules, it wouldn’t be surprising to see another bill in the works.