^CategorySocial Media

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
June 6, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
Bill Gates and Musk's Twitter bid, Chinese Communist Party and Musk's Twitter bid, Elon Musk (and Twitter), Elon Musk and Twitter bid opponents, Elon Musk on media and Jeffrey Epstein, Twitter (and Elon Musk), Twitterbots and Twitter's influence}

Will Musk’s Twitter Bid — Win or Lose — Damage Twitter’s Power?

_{Stirring the pot, Musk recently slammed current media’s marked disinterest in who teen sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s prominent clients were …} _{Denyse O'Leary

June 6, 2022

7

Censorship, Social Media}

Just in: “Musk threatens to walk away from Twitter deal:” DETROIT (AP) — Elon Musk is threatening to walk away from his $44 billion bid to buy Twitter, accusing the company of refusing to give him information about its spam bot and fake accounts. Lawyers for the Tesla and SpaceX CEO made the threat in a letter to Twitter dated Monday, and Twitter disclosed it in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The letter says Musk has repeatedly asked for the information since May 9, about a month after his offer to buy the company, so he could evaluate how many of the company’s 229 million accounts are fake. Tom Krisher and Matt O’Brien , “Musk threatens Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 26, 2022

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Botometer, Elon Musk vs. the Twitterbots, Filippo Menczer, Kai-Cheng Yang, Norton (on Twitterbots), Twitter (and Twitterbots), Twitterbots}

Could Elon Musk Really Banish the Twitterbots?

_{Assuming he buys Twitter, industry opinion is divided as to whether his ambitious plan can succeed} _{News

May 26, 2022

5

Social Media}

Norton, the antivirus giant, offers some timely thoughts on Twitterbots. First, not all bots are malicious: Twitter bots, also known as zombies, are automated Twitter accounts controlled by bot software. While they are programmed to perform tasks that resemble those of everyday Twitter users — such as liking tweets and following other users — their purpose is to tweet and retweet content for specific goals on a large scale. Twitter bots can be used for helpful purposes, such as broadcasting important content like weather emergencies in real time, sharing informative content en masse, and generating automatic replies via direct messaging. Emerging Threats, “What’s a Twitter bot and how to spot one” at Norton (June 16, 2020) But some are malicious: Read More ›

Social media censorship, political war between US president banning social networks. Tiny person on the laptop keyboard looking at the forbidden sign on the screen. Internet communication risk concept

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
May 18, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Media, Social Media

Tagged
Bill Maher, Disinformation Governance Board, Elon Musk, Mark Steyn, Nina Jankowicz, Taylor Lorenz}

New U.S. Disinformation Board on Hold Amid Flak From Both Sides

_{Most current controversies are not clear divisions between True and Untrue or Right and Wrong. Government would merely reinforce the Establishment} _{Denyse O'Leary

May 18, 2022

5

Censorship, Media, Social Media}

If you’d blinked, you’d have missed it: The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday paused a new and controversial board’s work on disinformation and accepted the resignation of its leader, capping weeks of concerns about impinging on free speech rights and at times frenzied conspiracy theories about the board itself… The Disinformation Governance Board’s director, Nina Jankowicz, wrote Wednesday that the board’s future was “uncertain,” according to a resignation letter obtained by The Associated Press. Nomaan Merchant and Amanda Seitz, “New ‘disinformation’ board paused amid free speech questions” at Associated Press (May 18, 2022) A recommendation as to whether the Board should continue will be offered, we are told, within 75 days. The Washington Post knows who to blame: “How Read More ›

Business crisis manager stopping falling dominos from collapsing

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
May 17, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Media, Social Media

Tagged
Brendan O'Neill, Elon Musk, Elon Musk (Twitter buy opposition), European Union (on Musk Twitter buy), Media (support for censorship), Project Veritas (Twitter buy leak), Siru Murugesan, Twitter}

Who Opposes Musk’s Proposed Twitter Takeover Deal?

_{Four groups to watch are Twitter employees, left-wing action coalitions, legacy media, and the European Union} _{Denyse O'Leary

May 17, 2022

7

Censorship, Media, Social Media}

First, the state of play: Elon Musk’s foray into buying Twitter remains on hold amid disputes about how much of Twitter is dominated by bot accounts. Musk believes that 20% of the accounts are spam. Spam bots on Twitter are automated accounts that can take actions like real humans, such as sending out tweets, following other users, as well as liking and retweeting other users’ posts. Such accounts can be programmed to try and drive traffic to a product or service as part of a commercial endeavor or spread content as part of a social or political influence operation. Tom Ozimek, “Musk Says Twitter Deal on Hold Over Spam Bots” at Epoch Times (May 13, 2022) That’s something Musk says Read More ›

Roboter auf Tastatur, Methapher für Chatbot / Socialbot, Algorithmen und künstliche Intelligenz

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
May 13, 2022

Categorized
Business and Finance, Social Media

Tagged
Elon Musk (and Twitter), Elon Musk (Canadian connections), Elon Musk (media hostility), Jacob Carpenter, Media (advocating censorship), Twitter (and Elon Musk), Twitterbots}

Musk’s Twitter Deal Is at Risk Amid Fierce Attacks on Him

_{Tarred as a privileged white South African, Musk moved to Canada at 17 to avoid serving in South Africa’s apartheid army} _{Denyse O'Leary

May 13, 2022

4

Business and Finance, Social Media}

Traditional media and many tech mavens are elated that Elon Musk’s Twitter deal is now shaky. It’s no secret that they were unhappy with it and with him. The New York Times launched an extraordinary attack on Musk on May 5, tweeting “Elon Musk grew up in elite white communities in South Africa, detached from apartheid’s atrocities and surrounded by anti-Black propaganda. He sees his takeover of Twitter as a free speech win but in his youth did not suffer the effects of misinformation.” In reality, Musk left for Canada at the age of 17, to avoid serving in the South African military, whose principal purpose was to oppress black South Africans. He had Canadian citizenship by way of his Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
April 12, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Environment, Social Media

Tagged
Climate change, Climate Disinformation Coalition, Conscious Advertising Network, Dr. William Happer, environmental science, Free speech, Global Center for Climate Justice, Pinterest}

Pinterest Bans Climate Change “Misinformation”

_{Pinterest might be the first company to implement such a strict ban, but what if it's not the last?} _{Caitlin Cory

April 12, 2022

6

Censorship, Environment, Social Media}

Last week, Pinterest banned climate change misinformation from its platform, becoming the first major social media company to do so outright. The policy raises free speech concerns. Since not all scientists agree on the nature of climate change, what causes it, and what the solutions are, how is the issue to be discussed if alternate points of view are banned from public platforms? Pinterest is an image-sharing social media site, where users share ideas that they can “pin” to their own boards on everything from recipes to interior design to fashion. On April 6, Pinterest announced their new climate misinformation policy, aimed at “remov[ing] content that may harm the public’s well-being, safety or trust.” As of the policy announcement, any Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
April 5, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
decentralization, Elon Musk, Free speech, Jack Dorsey, Larry Sanger, Twitter, Web3}

Dorsey Talks Decentralization and Musk Buys Twitter Share

_{Will this be the upset many free speech advocates hope it could be?} _{Caitlin Cory

April 5, 2022

6

Censorship, Social Media}

Last week, I wrote about the buzz around internet decentralization, especially as there appears to be talk at Twitter of moving in such a direction. The buzz continues, this time with vocal support from former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, coinciding with a bold financial move from Elon Musk. On April 2, Dorsey reminisced on Twitter about the early, decentralized days of the Internet, and said that centralization “really damaged the internet. I realize I’m partially to blame, and regret it.” The problems of social media platforms have been made clear in the past few years, specifically when it comes to data privacy and how to handle (or even define) harmful content while also respecting free speech. But there isn’t as much Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
March 30, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
Bluesky, decentralization, Encyclosphere, Free speech, Jack Dorsey, Larry Sanger, Minifeed, Open vs. closed platform, Parag Agrawal, Twitter, Web 3.0, Wikipedia}

Could Decentralization Fix Twitter’s Censorship Problems?

_{Decentralization is not an automatic guarantee of internet freedom, but it may be a good first step} _{Caitlin Cory

March 30, 2022

6

Censorship, Social Media}

Twitter is considering decentralization according to a recent report from The New York Times. But what does decentralization mean, and how would it impact our experience with social media? Is this a solution to all the problems around censorship standards that Big Tech companies have faced in recent years? According to The New York Times, Twitter is following the early vision of a former employee named Blaine Cook by “funding an independent effort to build a so-called open protocol for social media. It is also weaving cryptocurrency into its app, and opening up to developers who want to build custom features for Twitter.” Kate Conger reports: Some skeptics believe Twitter is jumping on the web3 bandwagon, joining a trendy movement in tech to shift many Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
March 11, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Global Technology, Social Media

Tagged
Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus, Facebook, Hate speech, Instagram, Meta, Russia, Twitter, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin, WhatsApp}

Meta Suspends Hate Speech Policy in Countries Near Russia

_{Hate speech and death threats against Russian and Belarusian political leaders and their militaries are temporarily allowed in twelve Eastern European countries} _{Caitlin Cory

March 11, 2022

4

Censorship, Global Technology, Social Media}

In a dramatic change of policy, Meta (formerly known as Facebook) will temporarily allow users of Facebook and Instagram in twelve countries to post hate speech and death threats directed toward Russian and Belarusian military personnel and political leaders within the context of the conflict in Ukraine. The change was first reported by Reuters on Thursday morning. A Meta spokesperson told Reuters, “As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine we have temporarily made allowances for forms of political expression that would normally violate our rules like violent speech such as ‘death to the Russian invaders.’ We still won’t allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians.” Calls for violence against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko are Read More ›

Futuristic portable device and many pictures.

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
March 10, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
censorship, Donald Trump (election fraud claims), Election fraud, misinformation, Rising (daily news show), Robby Soave, Ryan Grim, YouTube}

YouTube Suspends News Show for Reporting on Misinformation

_{The show's host has accused YouTube of failing to "distinguish between misinformation and reporting"} _{Caitlin Cory

March 10, 2022

4

Censorship, Social Media}

Last week, YouTube suspended a popular daily news show from The Hill for including in its reporting footage of former President Donald Trump repeating the claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him, a claim that violates YouTube’s policies on misinformation. The co-hosts of the show have criticized the suspension, arguing that the policy, as enforced, is a threat to journalism on YouTube. One of the co-hosts posted about it on Twitter: Robby Soave and Ryan Grim co-host Rising, a daily morning news show for The Hill, one of the country’s leading political newspapers. Last week, they discovered that their channel had been temporarily suspended based on two videos that the show posted that had violated YouTube’s policies. The Read More ›

Concept of accusation guilty person girl.

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
March 8, 2022

Categorized
Psychology, Social Media

Tagged
Andrew Mahon, Cancel Culture (and science), Cancel Culture (its roots), Contagion (and Cancel Culture), COVID-19 (and Cancel Culture), Emma Camp, Frank Herbert, Groupthink (and Cancel Culture), Julie Overbaugh, Justin Trudeau (and Cancel Culture), Michael Egnor (on René Girard), mob psychology, Obscurity (and Cancel Culture), René Girard, Scapegoat (in Cancel Culture)}

Why Is Cancel Culture Such a Big Part of Our Lives Today?

_{To understand the Twitter mob’s destruction of lives and careers, it’s essential to address the immense power of groupthink} _{Denyse O'Leary

March 8, 2022

7

Psychology, Social Media}

Just in time for International Women’s Day, Emma Camp, a female student at the University of Virginia, reports experiencing a wave of hostility when she suggested that non-Indian women could legitimately criticize the practice of suttee, by which a woman burns to death on her husband’s funeral pyre, voluntarily or otherwise. The reaction on Twitter suggests that Cancel Culture is its lifeblood. Meanwhile, virologist Julie Overbaugh, a National Academy of Sciences member who has made many contributions to the study of viruses, has been forced out of her teaching and research leadership positions because she had worn a Michael Jackson costume to a Halloween “King of Pop” party in 2009. Curiously, although one of her cited offences in connection with Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Cory
Date
March 4, 2022

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Big Tech, Facebook, Facebook Files, Joe Biden, mental health, social media, social media harms (children), State of the Union, Twitter}

In State of the Union, Biden Vows to Curb Social Media Harms

_{Biden addressed the mental health harms of social media use on children and teens} _{Caitlin Cory

March 4, 2022

5

Social Media}

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden referred to the harms of social media in his State of the Union address, announcing policy proposals to curb those harms. In response, however, some have been critical of the president’s remarks, accusing him of ignoring social media’s deeper dangers. Over an hour into his speech, President Biden turned to mental health and the emotional toll the pandemic has had, especially on children. Then he turned to the emotional health toll exacted by social media, long before the first COVID-19 lockdowns. “Children were also struggling before the pandemic – bullying, violence, trauma, and the harms of social media,” he said. “It’s time to strengthen privacy protections, ban targeted advertising to children, demand tech companies stop Read More ›