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Rebuilding trust? Stop spreading distrust first
Trust in Dutch society has declined in recent years, a trend also seen in other countries. Citizens trust both the government and each other less and less. That is why this week’s World Economic Forum in Davos was dedicated to ‘Rebuilding Trust’, which was also attended by Queen Máxima and Prime Minister Mark Rutte. Why…
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Give kids more digital skills? Teach them reading, writing and maths
It is an epidemic silently raging through our classrooms. While Dutch youngsters swipe faster than their shadows and with a flair that makes their parents dizzy, they are getting worse at reading and writing every year. They have the best digital skills in Europe but are now among the worst readers and writers in developed…
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To boost profits even further, supermarkets now want to ‘steal’ our privacy with AI surveillance
The rise of self-scanning checkouts in supermarkets has a side effect: one in three loyal customers turns into petty thieves. According to scientists at the University of Leicester, this is because shops with self-scanning checkouts give customers ready-made excuses to take away merchandise without paying, and provoke behaviour that allows the self-scanning customers to ‘neutralise’…
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Undermining Democracy: The European Commission’s Controversial Push for Digital Surveillance
The European Commission wants to turn digital communication apps, such as WhatsApp, iMessage, Instagram, TikTok and X, into mass surveillance tools so that digital communications of all EU citizens, including their live conversations, photos and videos, can be automatically scanned for criminal offences.[1] Even of citizens who are not suspected of any crime. This proposal…
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Digital magazines: A new form of consumption?
Quality and distinctiveness are crucial for online magazines Being an internet expert, a consultant to the CEOs of major organisations and a successful entrepreneur, Danny Mekić has strong opinions on various strategic issues at play in the Dutch business world. In this article, he looks ahead at developments within online marketing and explains his views…