Unequal preparation for 2020 census

Before the next nationwide head count, some states are spending millions of dollars in an effort to maximize population totals and, by extension, their share of federal resources and representation in Congress. Other states are spending nothing.

Spending state funds on census outreach is a fairly new idea, but there’s a clear political divide: Seventeen of the 24 states that aren’t devoting money are Republican-controlled, while Democrats lead 22 of the 26 states that are.

Why it matters: An accurate census would include more people from harder-to-count groups like Hispanics and the poor, who tend to vote Democratic. If they don’t participate, the census would skew Republican, as would political maps based on the results.

The details: California, with nearly 40 million residents, is set to introduce a $187 million campaign to encourage participation. Texas, the second-most-populous state, with 29 million residents, has elected not to spend any money, although volunteers are trying to fill the gap.

The decade when tech lost its way

In 2010, technology offered the promise of new connections, cars that could drive themselves and social networks that could take down dictators.

Since then, its flaws have become abundantly clear. To find out what happened, The Times spoke to Mark Zuckerberg, Edward Snowden, Ellen Pao and other leading figures in the tech world. Here, in their own words, are their explanations.