FAMILIES USING RE-CREATED VOICES OF GUN VIOLENCE VICTIMS TO CALL LAWMAKERS
AppleMagazine|February 16, 2024
Joaquin “Guac” Oliver died in the 2018 Parkland, Florida, high school massacre, but federal lawmakers who oppose tighter gun regulations began getting phone calls in his voice on Wednesday, lambasting them for their position.
FAMILIES USING RE-CREATED VOICES OF GUN VIOLENCE VICTIMS TO CALL LAWMAKERS

The families of Oliver and five others killed with guns are using artificial intelligence to create messages in their loved ones’ voices and robocalling them to senators and House members who support the National Rifle Association and oppose tougher gun laws. The protest is being run through The Shotline website, where visitors select which offices receive calls.

The campaign launched on Valentine’s Day because it’s the sixth anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, which left the 17-year-old Oliver, 13 other students and three staff members dead. Oliver was murdered as he lay wounded on the floor, the fatal bullet blasting through the hand he raised as the 19-year-old killer leveled his AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.

Manuel and Patricia Oliver, Joaquin’s parents, say the campaign is based on the oft-cited idea that if someone wants laws changed, the first step is calling elected representatives. Immigrants from Venezuela who became U.S. citizens, they want the sale of guns like the AR-15 banned.

“We come from a place where gun violence is a problem, but you will never see a 19-year-old with an AR-15 getting into a school and shooting people,” Manuel Oliver said. “There’s a reason for the gun violence in a Third World country. There’s no reason for the gun violence and the amount of victims in the United States.”

After Joaquin’s murder, the Olivers founded Change the Ref, which is sponsoring the website with March for Our Lives, a group created by Stoneman Douglas students. Both recruit young people through nontraditional demonstrations like the AI calls and “die-ins,” where students protested inside a supermarket chain that donated to a pro-NRA politician.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM APPLEMAGAZINEView all
BANNING CELLPHONES IN SCHOOLS GAINS POPULARITY IN RED AND BLUE STATES
AppleMagazine

BANNING CELLPHONES IN SCHOOLS GAINS POPULARITY IN RED AND BLUE STATES

Arkansas’ Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom have little in common ideologically, but the two have both been vocal supporters of an idea that’s been rapidly gaining bipartisan ground in the states: Students’ cellphones need to be banned during the school day.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 24, 2025
HOW TIKTOK GREW FROM A FUN APP FOR TEENS INTO A POTENTIAL NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT
AppleMagazine

HOW TIKTOK GREW FROM A FUN APP FOR TEENS INTO A POTENTIAL NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT

If it feels like TikTok has been around forever, that's probably because it has, at least if you're measuring via internet time. What's now in question is whether it will be around much longer and, if so, in what form?

time-read
6 mins  |
January 24, 2025
TRUMP, A POPULIST PRESIDENT, IS FLANKED BY TECH BILLIONAIRES AT HIS INAUGURATION
AppleMagazine

TRUMP, A POPULIST PRESIDENT, IS FLANKED BY TECH BILLIONAIRES AT HIS INAUGURATION

Some of the most exclusive seats at President Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday were reserved for powerful tech CEOs who also happen to be among the world's richest men.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 24, 2025
TRUMP RESCINDS BIDEN'S EXECUTIVE ORDER ON AI SAFETY IN ATTEMPT TO DIVERGE FROM HIS PREDECESSOR
AppleMagazine

TRUMP RESCINDS BIDEN'S EXECUTIVE ORDER ON AI SAFETY IN ATTEMPT TO DIVERGE FROM HIS PREDECESSOR

Hours after returning to the White House, President Donald Trump made a symbolic mark on the future of artificial intelligence by repealing former President Joe Biden's guardrails for the fast-developing technology.But what comes next from Trump and how it will diverge from how his predecessor sought to safeguard Al technology remains unclear. The new administration didn't respond to requests for comment about the repealed Biden policy and even some of Trump's most enthusiastic tech industry supporters aren't so sure.

time-read
4 mins  |
January 24, 2025
WHAT'S NEXT FOR EVS UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP?
AppleMagazine

WHAT'S NEXT FOR EVS UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP?

President Donald Trump signed an executive order promising to eliminate what he incorrectly labels “the electric vehicle mandate” imposed under former President Joe Biden. His order on Monday is consistent with pledges Trump made on the campaign trail to end what he calls a “preposterous” focus on EVs by Biden and other Democrats.

time-read
4 mins  |
January 24, 2025
'ONCE IN A LIFETIME' SNOW HITS PARTS OF THE U.S. SOUTH
AppleMagazine

'ONCE IN A LIFETIME' SNOW HITS PARTS OF THE U.S. SOUTH

A winter storm sweeping through the U.S. South on Tuesday was dumping snow at levels millions of residents haven't seen before.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 24, 2025
GOVERNOR PROPOSES BANNING CELLPHONES IN SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT NEW YORK STATE STARTING NEXT FALL
AppleMagazine

GOVERNOR PROPOSES BANNING CELLPHONES IN SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT NEW YORK STATE STARTING NEXT FALL

Students throughout New York state might have to give up their cellphones during school hours starting next fall under a proposal announced Tuesday by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

time-read
1 min  |
January 24, 2025
NETFLIX'S BET ON LIVE EVENTS HELPED REEL IN 19 MILLION MORE SUBSCRIBERS IN HOLIDAY-SEASON QUARTER US
AppleMagazine

NETFLIX'S BET ON LIVE EVENTS HELPED REEL IN 19 MILLION MORE SUBSCRIBERS IN HOLIDAY-SEASON QUARTER US

Netflix added nearly 19 million subscribers during the holiday-season quarter to help propel its earnings beyond analysts’ projections, capping the video streaming service’s best year yet in a sign that its expansion into live programming is paying off.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 24, 2025
AI EXPERIMENT IN HALFPIPE JUDGING AT X GAMES WILL GIVE SNOWBOARDERS A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE
AppleMagazine

AI EXPERIMENT IN HALFPIPE JUDGING AT X GAMES WILL GIVE SNOWBOARDERS A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE

The X Games will experiment judging halfpipe runs this week in Aspen using artificial intelligence, the cutting-edge technology that could someday play a role in the way subjectively judged sports are scored.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 24, 2025
YOUR MONEY: 5 IDEAS FOR AVOIDING AN OVEREMPHASIS ON SHORT-TERM RESULTS
AppleMagazine

YOUR MONEY: 5 IDEAS FOR AVOIDING AN OVEREMPHASIS ON SHORT-TERM RESULTS

Recency bias is the tendency to place too much weight on the latest performance trends while giving short shrift to other factors, such as fundamentals, valuation, or long-term market averages.Market news, by definition, focuses on recent events rather than long-term trends. As a result, recent events are top of mind, easier to remember, and often play an outsize role in investment decision-making.But there are steps investors can take to guard against these tendencies:

time-read
2 mins  |
January 24, 2025