^TagInstagram

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post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
August 26, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Ai avatar, ChatGPT, Influencers, Instagram, Kim Kardashian, National Review, social media}

National Review: Let AI Take Over Social Media Influencing

_{AI influencers are revealing how vapid social media really is} _{Peter Biles

August 26, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

We’ve recently commented on the AI influencer phenomenon, which seems to be taking social media by storm. With advanced AI imaging, more AI influencers are popping up, and they already look comparable to the likes of Kim Kardashian. The social media influencing world depends on primarily women selling their bodies for revenue. Instagram has tended heavily in this direction, and with the advent of OnlyFans, the temptation to flaunt oneself so provocatively is tangible for many. National Review writer Haley Strack thinks that the AI influencer horde will out-compete real-life influencers and eventually rule out the need for humans at all. She writes, Some criticize AI for giving young men another possibly perverse, sexual outlet online — but men who Read More ›

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post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
August 4, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, ChatGPT, Futurism, Influencers, Instagram, internet, social media, Victor Tangermann}

AI Influencers Are Starting to Explode

_{Seeing how artificial and impersonal the influencer lifestyle already is, maybe it was inevitable.} _{Peter Biles

August 4, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

AI avatars are starting to flood the social media “influencing” sphere. Seeing how artificial and impersonal the influencer lifestyle already is, maybe it was inevitable. The “Instagram influencer” is a relatively new phenom: an attractive, usually young, person flaunts certain brands on social media for revenue. The phrase “digital creator” is a common tag on bios, and countless young women have made a living off of selling their looks on Instagram. So how might AI play into all this? Well, there are now hundreds of AI internet personalities flooding social media. And they look pretty convincing. Victor Tangermann reports, Thanks to the advent of AI-powered image generators like Stable Diffusion and Midjourney, some are now fabricating entire feeds of internet Read More ›

Birds symbol carry on dialog with each other. Plasticine illustration.

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post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 6, 2023

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
Babylon Bee, Bloomberg, Copycat technologies, Elon Musk, Free speech, Instagram, Jordan Peterson, Meta, Snapchat, Threads (Meta app), Twitter, Zuckerberg}

Twitter’s Copycat Rival is Coming to You via Meta. Will It Survive?

_{Meta will again co-opt the ideas of its competitors and hope for the best} _{Peter Biles

July 6, 2023

3

Censorship, Social Media}

Meta is reportedly trying to compete with Twitter by introducing a similar app called Threads. The app will be connected to Instagram and will allow a cross-over of followers, etc. Since Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, some have complained about loosened constraints regarding speech and expression. A number of formerly suspended accounts, such as those belonging to psychologist Jordan Peterson, the Christian satire site The Babylon Bee, and a number of other (mostly conservative) voices, were reestablished following Musk’s “takeover.” Now Meta is trying to capitalize. If they’re going to launch Threads, now is probably the best time to do it. Apart from the overarching complaints against Twitter and Musk, the platform is now limiting how many tweets a user Read More ›

Abstract creative illustration from 3D rendering of female bust figure with flat anonymous face isolated on gradient background in vaporwave style colors.

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 2, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Black Mirror (TV Show), Facial Recognition, Instagram, metaverse, Nautilus, social media, TikTok, Virtual Reality}

Blurring the Lines Between Fantasy and Reality

_{A "Black Mirror" episode illustrates the danger of seeing the world through an AI filter} _{Peter Biles

July 2, 2023

3

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

The dystopian Netflix show Black Mirror featured an episode a few years ago about soldiers tasked with wiping out an apparently mutant adversary. In reality, the soldiers are seeing the world through an AI filter that is casting ordinary human beings as despicable monsters. The AI lessens their hesitations to kill the enemy. An article at Nautilus cited a research group that’s asking how much of that horrifying story could potentially unfold in real time, or is already happening to a certain extent in today’s culture. Social media apps like Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram already use face altering techniques in their apps, allowing users to curate idealized images of themselves. But what happens when, as in the Black Mirror episode, Read More ›

Social Network Online Sharing Connection Concept.

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
June 15, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Facebook, Instagram, Jacques Ellul, Mimetic Desire, Social comparison, social media, Twitter}

Social Media’s Mimetic Desire Complex

_{The reason it makes us so miserable} _{News

June 15, 2023

2

Social Media}

Frank is friends with Bob. Both Frank and Bob know Sue. Frank likes Sue. Therefore, Bob likes Sue. Conflict ensues. Frank and Bob are no longer friends. Take this situation and amplify it by a million (whatever that metric looks like) and you’ve got something like the social media world we inhabit today. This quick video, posted below, discusses “mimetic desire,” or what happens when certain ideals or images are pursued, not because they’re intrinsically good, but because it’s the current zeitgeist to want them. The problem with mimetic desire is that it eclipses legitimate desires and wants, or confuses us about what we really need in order to be happy. Watch the video for a better summary of this Read More ›

Mockup of social media app user interface in dark screen mode

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
June 8, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
AI, Big Tech, Child sex abuse, Child sexual abuse (online), Instagram, Meta, sex trafficking, social media, Stanford University, Twitter, Wall Street Journal}

The Dark Side of Instagram

_{An investigative report shows that Instagram algorithm promotes pedophilia networks} _{News

June 8, 2023

3

Social Media}

It’s an unfortunate fact that sex trafficking and pedophilia rings have benefitted from the invention of the internet. Even worse, Meta‘s Instagram is amplifying the problem – not because Meta wants to, of course, but because the algorithm promotes the activity. The Wall Street Journal did an investigative report in partnership with a team from Stanford University on Instagram’s promotion of pedophilia rings, with Jeff Horwitz and Katherine Blunt writing, Pedophiles have long used the internet, but unlike the forums and file-transfer services that cater to people who have interest in illicit content, Instagram doesn’t merely host these activities. Its algorithms promote them. Instagram connects pedophiles and guides them to content sellers via recommendation systems that excel at linking those Read More ›

Finger touching phone with social media concept and dark background

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 24, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Big Tech, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, Surgeon General, Technology, Teen mental health, Vivek Murthy, youth}

Social Media is Hurting Kids. Does Big Tech Care?

_{Body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all typical outcomes of excessive social media use among teens and children} _{News

May 24, 2023

2

Social Media}

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a warning in a briefing this week on the negative impact of social media on kids, particularly teenage girls. Murthy called tech companies to provide “safeguards” to protect children who are at a critical stage in brain development. Early exposure to social media, numerous studies show, are correlated with anxiety and depression in young people. Murthy said, “We are in the middle of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is an important driver of that crisis – one that we must urgently address.” Social media could harm youth mental health, U.S. Surgeon General warns | Reuters Problems like body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 23, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, China, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, TikTok, Wall Street Journal}

TikToxic: The Popular App is Feeding Teens a “Diet of Darkness”

_{Apart from the debate over espionage and data privacy, TikTok is a highly addictive app} _{News

May 23, 2023

2

Social Media}

TikTok has gained a fair bit of fierce criticism over the last few months; the China-owned social media app is the most popular on the market, with tens of millions of users and downloads. That includes, of course, teenagers. Apart from the debate over espionage and data privacy, TikTok is a highly addictive app. We covered more on that here, but recent studies show that it’s not just the amount of time spent on the app that is troubling, but the specific kinds of content young people are ingesting every day. Julie Jargon writes in the Wall Street Journal, Data privacy, though, might be less worrisome than the power of TikTok’s algorithm. Especially if you’re a parent. A recent study found that Read More ›

Social media icons fly over city downtown showing people reciprocity connection through social network application platform . Concept for online community and social media marketing strategy .

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
April 11, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, Aeon, Brain-Computer Interface (BCI), Britain, Cell phones, dopamine, Gen-Z, Instagram, Mind Matters News podcast, Neuroscience, Reward, Robert J. Marks, social media, Technology}

Social Media’s Distortion of the Real World

_{Constant exposure to idealized online images impacts our expectations and worldview} _{Peter Biles

April 11, 2023

6

Social Media}

How does excessive social media use affect our perceptions of the real world? Writers Mark Miller and Ben White wrote a piece at Aeon on social media through the perspective of “predictive processing,” a term used in neuroscience and cognition. Predictive processing involves the brain’s capacity to predict error, danger, or some future event, and urge us to act accordingly. (That’s my basic, layman’s understanding of it, full disclosure!) White and Miller use temperature as an example, noting how the body may respond to a change of the environment by closing a window or grabbing a blanket to keep warm. Being able to respond appropriately to our surroundings depends on the accuracy of our mental model of the real world. Read More ›

Composite collage image of delighted black white colors person hold telephone raise fist celebrate like notification facebook instagram tiktok

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
March 16, 2023

Categorized
Global Technology

Tagged
Artificial Intelligence, China, Data Security, Instagram, National Security, social media, Texas, TikTok}

The Clock’s Ticking for TikTok

_{Biden admin might ban TikTok in the U.S. if company doesn't sell} _{News

March 16, 2023

2

Global Technology}

The Biden administration is considering banning TikTok in the United States if the platform’s parent company, ByteDance, doesn’t sell it. The news arrives amidst growing concerns over national security and Chinese espionage tactics, particularly in light of the “spy balloon” that was shot down off the American east coast in February. ByteDance is a Chinese company, and as such, is subject to disclose its information to the Chinese Communist Party. Today, more than half of American states have placed bans on state-issued devices out of privacy and security concerns. Texas representative Paul Michael McCaul said, TikTok is a modern-day Trojan horse of the [Chinese Communist Party], used to surveil and exploit Americans’ personal information. It’s a spy baloon for your Read More ›

Cigarette with ashes isolated on black background

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
January 19, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, Big Tech, Big Tobacco, Deseret News, iGen, Instagram, Jean Twenge, Jonathan Haidt, Smartphones, social media, TikTok}

New Article Compares Big Tech to “Big Tobacco” of the ’70s

_{Like smoking in the 1970s — known to be dangerous yet poorly regulated — Big Tech is harming kids today yet is met with little intervention or pushback} _{Peter Biles

January 19, 2023

4

Social Media}

In a new article from Deseret News, Brad Wilcox and Riley Peterson equate Big Tech to “Big Tobacco.” They argue that the online world has the same dangers and negative effects as other drugs, and go on to cite alarming mental health data to back up their claims. Similar to how smoking was found to be dangerous in the 1970s and yet poorly regulated by the government, Big Tech is harming kids today yet is met with little intervention or pushback. They start with a powerful analogical anecdote, writing, Imagine if a man in a white panel van pulled up in your neighborhood and began enticing teens to look at pictures and videos featuring drug use, pornography and a range Read More ›

Sample social media app interface on mobile phone showing shared video content

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
January 17, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, Anthony Bradley, Apps, College, Gen-Z, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, Lawsuit, mental health, social media, TikTok, youth}

Girl Tragically Dies After Doing Horrific TikTok Challenge

_{The 12-year-old from Argentina isn't the only victim of the fatal TikTok "blackout challenge"} _{Peter Biles

January 17, 2023

2

Social Media}

A 12-year-old girl from Argentina died after trying the dangerous “choke challenge” on TikTok, per the New York Post. The girl, Milagros Soto, was found in a closet hanging from a makeshift noose on January 13th. Soto’s family members think she was bullied and challenged to perform the horrible online fad while at school. Soto isn’t the only casualty of the TikTok challenge, which involves asphyxiating oneself until passing out. It’s also only one of many “fatal fads” circulating the TikTok sphere. Also known as the “blackout challenge,” Tiktok users chase virality and clout by forcing themselves to pass out. In light of the tragic death, people are begging parents to prohibit TikTok from their children. Several Twitter users spoke Read More ›

A sheet of white paper is held by a protester in China.

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
December 23, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, China, Global Technology

Tagged
A4 Revolution, Amy Chang Chien, Apple Airdrop, Caiwei Chen, China, China protests 2022, Claire Fu, Featured, Instagram, Instagram and China protests, Paul Mozur, Twitter, Twitter and China protests, Urumqui apartment fire, White paper movement (China), Zero-Covid policy in China}

China: Protesters Evade Censors and Confront State Surveillance

_{Chinese citizens are known for their clever plays on words to evade social media censors.} _{Heather Zeiger

December 23, 2022

7

Censorship, China, Global Technology}

The graffiti on the bathroom wall at the university said there would be a gathering in honor of the people who had died in an apartment fire in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Bathrooms usually do not have surveillance cameras, so this announcement would probably go unnoticed by censors. It is better than risking punishment by posting on social media. In another city, Chinese citizens discretely shared information about the location of a vigil for the Urumqi victims on WeChat in the guise of dinner plans. A number of people died in the fire, whose toll was likely inflated because emergency vehicles were unable to access the building due to zero-Covid measures. Social media posts showed doors that were barred shut and barricades Read More ›

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post

Author
Caitlin Bassett
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 Bassett

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 ›

Pre-adolescent teen girl texting on a smartphone lying in bed at home. Candid indoor photo withFocus on the foreground and copy space

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
December 7, 2021

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Facebook, Facebook Files, Frances Haugen, Instagram, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Wall Street Journal (on Facebook/Meta)}

Facebook’s…Er, Meta’s Instagram Problem

_{Despite employee-recommended solutions, Facebook has largely turned a blind eye to the harms their own algorithms have caused in teenage girls using Instagram} _{Heather Zeiger

December 7, 2021

10

Social Media}

The Wall Street Journal’s series of articles based on leaked internal documents from Facebook, Inc. (now Meta Platforms, Inc.) gave us a peek inside the company’s business model, including what the company knew about Instagram’s harmful mental health effects on teen girls.* Facebook employee, Frances Haugen, provided thousands of pages of internal documents and Slack conversations to the Wall Street Journal’s Jeff Horwitz, and has since made the documents available to other media outlets. Gizmodo is working with a group of experts to make the documents public, which can be viewed here. On October 5th, Haugen testified before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on Facebook’s lack of transparency regarding the harms of its platforms. The full testimony can be seen in the video below. Haugen Read More ›

An internet email symbol and a group of people are separated by a red prohibitory symbol No. restrictions on access to the global Internet. Censorship. Information control, society isolation policy

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
August 6, 2021

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
Algorithms (monitoring content), Cameron English, COVID-19, Facebook, Instagram, Kevin Folta, Manny Marrotta (Hitler episode), Matt Taibbi, Misinformation concept}

Is “Misinformation” Another Way to Say “Unwelcome Information”?

_{Cameron English notes that, on social media, major media outlets can botch the science with impunity but the slightest offenses, real or imagined, get others silenced} _{News

August 6, 2021

6

Artificial Intelligence, Censorship, Social Media}

At American Council on Science and Health (“promoting science and debunking junk since 1978”), Cameron English reflects on the handwringing among social media companies about how to crack down on “misinformation” on COVID-19. Given the number of authoritative statements made and suddenly reversed, tt seems that any such crackdown would largely be driven by politics. For example: Facebook recently announced that it would “no longer take down posts claiming that Covid-19 was man-made or manufactured,” and the company’s new policy nicely underscores this point about credibility. What was the social media platform’s justification for allowing users to discuss the lab-spillover hypothesis? It didn’t hire a team of virologists and foreign policy experts to assess the viability of competing explanations for Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 3, 2021

Categorized
Business and Finance, Data Privacy

Tagged
Apple (company), Facebook, hacking, Instagram, Karl D. Stephan, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook}

Fallout From Facebook’s Huge Privacy Hack: A Serious Unfriending

_{The Big Hack in April, in which even Mark Zuckerberg’s data got scraped, was hardly the first one Facebook faced} _{News

May 3, 2021

6

Business and Finance, Data Privacy}

We’ll let engineering prof Karl Stephan start the story, comparing Facebook to God: For purposes of discussion, we will compare Facebook to the traditional Judeo-Christian God of the Old and New Testaments. And we will restrict the comparison primarily to two matters: communication and trust (or faith). Users of Facebook communicate with that entity by entering personal information into Facebook’s system. That act of communication is accompanied by a certain level of trust, or faith. Facebook promises to safeguard one’s information and not to reveal it to anyone else without your permission… Karl D. Stephan, “In Facebook we trust” at MercatorNet Safeguard the information? As recent news reports revealed, a month ago today, a hacker released roughly 533 million users’ Read More ›

Face recognition and personal identification technologies in street surveillance cameras, law enforcement control.

^{Type
post

Author
Caitlin Bassett
Date
April 28, 2021

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Law, Surveillance

Tagged
ACLU, Al Gidari, Canada, Canada's Office of the Privacy Commissioner, China, Clearview AI, Daniel Therrien, DHS, Doug Mitchell, Facebook, Facial Recognition, facial recognition technology, Fight for the Future, Google, Hoan Ton-That, Instagram, Kashmir Hill, Law enforcement, New York Times, OpenMedia, Richard Schwartz, Rudy Giuliani, Surveillance, Twitter, VEnmo, Woodrow Hartzog, YouTube}

Canada Orders Facial Recognition App to Cease and Desist

_{Your face is likely already stored in this app's database} _{Caitlin Bassett

April 28, 2021

9

Artificial Intelligence, Law, Surveillance}

In February, Canada released the findings of a year-long investigation into the US-based facial recognition app, Clearview AI. The investigation declared Clearview’s actions illegal within Canada and ordered the company to cease operations within the country and to remove all Canadian citizens from its database. “What Clearview does is mass surveillance, and it is illegal,” said Canadian Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien. So what is Clearview AI? And why has it raised the ire of our neighbors to the North? Clearview AI, Inc. Clearview AI is a facial recognition company marketed primarily to law enforcement agencies. It boasts a database of over 3 billion facial images “scraped” from public sources online such as news articles and social media sites. In other Read More ›

iron chain and castle on the silk national flag of Hong Kong with beautiful folds, the concept of a ban on tourism, political repression, crime, violation of the rights and freedoms of citizens

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
July 9, 2020

Categorized
Business and Finance, Data Privacy, Ethics, Global Technology, Surveillance, Technocracy

Tagged
___longform, Apple (company), China, Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Facebook, Featured, Google, Great Firewall, Hong Kong, Hong Kong National Security Law, Instagram, Microsoft, Telegram, Tik Tok, Twitter, WhatsApp, Zoom}

Hong Kong: Tech Companies Face Serious Ethical Decisions

_{As Hong Kong is transformed into a police state, Western companies, faced with demands for snitching on users, are rethinking cozy relationships with China} _{Heather Zeiger

July 9, 2020

7

Business and Finance, Data Privacy, Ethics, Global Technology, Surveillance, Technocracy}

The semi-autonomous region of Hong Kong is no longer semi-autonomous, at least in practice. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), circumventing Hong Kong’s parliament and courts, passed the Hong Kong National Security Law on June 30 that effectively abolishes the “one country, two systems” regime outlined in the Sino-British Joint Declaration. The law was passed one day before the anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong to China (July 1, 1997), in time to quash any pro-democracy candidates who would likely win in the September elections. Although the CCP justifies its moves from the Hong Kong Basic Law and claims that Hong Kong will maintain autonomy, in practice, it has already arrested dissidents and formed a secretive agency called the Office Read More ›