Gizmodo – Here’s How Meta Became the Internet’s Biggest Hub of Covid-19 Misinformation: “…From the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, Facebook understood the outsized role its platform would plays in shaping public opinion about the virus and the safeguards that governments would inevitably institute in hopes of containing it. Ten months before the first reported… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Social Media
Investigative Report on the role of online platforms in the tragic mass shooting in Buffalo on May 14, 2022
Office of the New York State Attorney General Letitia James, October 18, 2022: “The mass shooting in and around the Tops grocery store in Buffalo, New York on May 14, 2022 that claimed the lives of ten individuals and injured three others was all the more horrific because of the white supremacist ideological motivation that… Continue Reading
Many believe misinformation is increasing extreme political views and behaviors
The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. (October, 2022). Many believe misinformation is increasing extreme political views and behaviors – “Ninety-one percent of adults say the spread of misinformation is a problem and most believe misinformation contributes to extreme political views and hate crimes, according to a new Pearson Institute/AP-NORC Poll. The poll is being… Continue Reading
Americans’ Trust In Media Remains Near Record Low
Gallup – “At 34%, Americans’ trust in the mass media to report the news “fully, accurately and fairly” is essentially unchanged from last year and just two points higher than the lowest that Gallup has recorded, in 2016 during the presidential campaign. Just 7% of Americans have “a great deal” of trust and confidence in… Continue Reading
Select Subcommittee Details Trump Administration’s Assault On CDC And Politicization Of Public Health During The Coronavirus Crisis
Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus – Oct 17, 2022 – Press Release – “Report is the third installment detailing findings from investigation into Trump Administration’s political interference with federal coronavirus response…the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, chaired by Rep. James E. Clyburn, released a staff report detailing efforts by the Trump Administration to compromise… Continue Reading
How to rescue your hacked account: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and more
The Verge: “Hackers commandeer online accounts at industrial scale. Here’s how to restore and protect your access to Apple, Facebook, Google, Instagram, Snapchat, Spotify, TikTok, and Twitter. Nearly 2 out of 5 Americans say that hackers have taken over their social media accounts. And those numbers are likely to rise as more and more account… Continue Reading
Data Protection and Privacy Law: An Introduction
CRS in Focus – Data Protection and PrivacyLaw: An Introduction, Updated October 12, 2022 – “Recent controversy surrounding how third parties protect the privacy of individuals in the digital age has raised national concerns over legal protections of Americans’ electronic data. The current legislative paradigms governing cybersecurity and data privacy are complex and technical and… Continue Reading
How TikTok ate the internet
Washington Post: “If you have not used TikTok, you are rapidly becoming the global exception. In five years, the app, once written off as a silly dance-video fad, has become one of the most prominent, discussed, distrusted, technically sophisticated and geopolitically complicated juggernauts on the internet — a phenomenon that has secured an unrivaled grasp… Continue Reading
The Supreme Court and social media platform liability
Brookings: “Over a quarter of a century after its 1996 enactment, the liability shield known as Section 230 is heading to the Supreme Court. Section 230(c)(1) provides, with some exceptions, that “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information… Continue Reading
Threats to the US Midterm Elections Have Been Building for Years
Freedom House – The festering problems that erupted after the last presidential election are still unresolved. “As the United States heads toward midterm elections on November 8, the political environment remains haunted by the coup attempt that culminated in a violent attack on the Capitol in January 2021. Social and mainstream media are overrun with… Continue Reading
A guide to giving your child their first phone
Washington Post: “The biggest milestone for teenagers used to be getting their driver’s license, opening them up to a new world of freedom and danger. For many, it’s now getting their first smartphone. Unlike with a car — which comes with driving lessons, a learner’s permit and a big test to ensure road readiness —… Continue Reading
Misinformation Swirls in Non-English Languages Ahead of Midterms
The New York Times: ” More multilingual fact-checking groups are pushing back against misleading translations, manipulated images and outright lies that jump platforms and cross borders… Unsubstantiated rumors and outright falsehoods spread widely in immigrant communities ahead of the presidential election in 2020. That is happening again in the run-up to this year’s midterm elections,… Continue Reading
