Social Media

Facebook, Google, Twitter urged by EU to do more against fake news

Two years after agreeing to a self-regulatory code of practice to tackle disinformation, Facebook, Alphabet's Google, Twitter and other tech rivals must try harder to be more effective, the European…

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Pakistan blocks five dating apps including Tinder and Grindr

Pakistan announced it has blocked Tinder, Grindr and three other dating apps for not adhering to local laws, its latest move to curb online platforms deemed to be disseminating “immoral…

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Trump steps up war against TikTok

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday sweeping bans on U.S. transactions with China's ByteDance, owner of video-sharing app TikTok, and Tencent, operator of the WeChat app, starting in 45 days,…

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Facebook, Twitter pull Trump posts over coronavirus misinformation

Facebook Inc on Wednesday took down a post by U.S. President Donald Trump, which the company said violated its rules against sharing misinformation about the coronavirus. The post contained a…

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U.S. to act on TikTok, other Chinese apps in coming days -White House

The United States will take action in coming days on the popular short-video app TikTok and other Chinese apps, White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany told reporters at a briefing on…

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Turkey approves social media law critics say will silence dissent

Turkey adopted a new social media law on Wednesday that critics say will create a "chilling effect" on dissenting voices who have resorted to Twitter and other online platforms as…

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Toymaker Lego joins social media ad boycott campaign

Toymaker Lego announced it would pause social media advertising for at least a month, joining a long list of companies that say Facebook is not doing enough to stop hate…

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Coca-Cola to stop running paid ads on all social media platforms

The Coca-Cola Company will stop running paid ads on all social media platforms amid an industrywide call for brands to reevaluate where they spend their budgets, according to Adweek. “There…

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Social media companies distrusted by most Americans on content decisions

Most Americans do not trust social media companies to make the right decisions about what should be allowed on their platforms, but trust the government even less to make…

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Malta’s entire cabinet of Ministers subject of Magisterial inquiry and police investigation into misuse of public funds on social media – Report

A magesterial inquiry and a police investigation has been launched into 'misuse' of public funds on social media, Lovin Malta reports. The investigation into Malta’s entire Cabinet of ministers' use is…

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Facebook removes nearly 200 accounts tied to hate groups

Facebook has removed nearly 200 social media accounts linked to white supremacy groups that planned to encourage members to attend protests over police killings of black people — in some…

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Facebook to apply state media labels on Russian, Chinese outlets

Facebook Inc will start labelling Russian, Chinese and other state-controlled media organizations, and later this summer will block any ads from such outlets that target U.S. users, it announced. The…

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EU to initiate controversial digital platform reforms

A significant, and politically-sensitive revolution in EU regulation is expected to be kicked off this afternoon by the European Commission. The EU's executive branch will be launching a public consultation…

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Confrontation between Trump and Twitter escalates

Twitter accused President Donald Trump on Friday of "glorifying violence", attaching a disclaimer to one of his tweets about unrest in Minneapolis that it said broke its rules. "...These THUGS…

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Trump signs executive order aimed at curtailing social media companies

Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at curbing protections for social media giants. The US president is engaged in a public feud with the companies, which he has…

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Trump to sign executive order on social media on Thursday

U.S. President Donald Trump will sign an executive order on social media companies on Thursday, White House officials said after Trump threatened to shut down websites he accused of stifling…

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Facebook, YouTube remove ‘Plandemic’ video with ‘unsubstantiated’ coronavirus claims

Facebook Inc and YouTube, the video service of Alphabet Inc’s Google, said that they were removing a video that made medically unsubstantiated claims relating to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The…

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Facebook’s Libra appoints HSBC legal chief as CEO, ‘supreme court’ members announced

Libra Association, the entity managing the Facebook Inc-led effort to build global digital currency Libra, named Stuart Levey as its first chief executive officer. Levey is currently serving…

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Facebook admits bug had blocked coronavirus stories

Social media giant Facebook has admitted that a bug in its anti-spam system has blocked a number of links to news stories about the coronavirus, at times marking them as…

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Encrypted social media messages might be unlocked if required by investigators

Encrypted social media messages could be accessed by police or families of deceased relatives if unlocked by five trusted authorities using a “virtual key.” The Telegraph reports that the key technology…

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Teens on Tik Tok social network could have screen time limited by their parents

TikTok will be implementing new safety features, which means a parent can link their account to their child's and control the content they see. The new family safety mode will…

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EU rejects Facebook’s proposals on Social Media regulation

The EU was reported of having immediately rejected Facebook’s “latest vision of how online content should be regulated, warning that the social media company will have to assume more responsibility…

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Coronavirus misinformation surges on social media

Misleading, unverified and clearly false information about the coronavirus has spread across social media platforms, with some accounts only a few days old reaching millions of views with a mix…

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Instagram posts about vaping banned for breaking advertising rules

British American Tobacco (BAT) is among four e-cigarette sellers banned from promoting their products on public Instagram pages after adverts appeared alongside pictures of well-known celebrities. BAT claimed its posts that…

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LinkedIn focuses on freelancers and SMEs as worldwide membership soars

LinkedIn has launched a new service aimed at freelancers and small businesses, seeking to capitalise on its burgeoning membership. The social media giant recently reached 660 million users worldwide. Co-founder…

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Twitter suspends account deletions after outcry

Twitter has said it will "pause" plans to disable inactive accounts following user backlash, a day after announcing plans for a huge cull of such accounts. The social network said…

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Twitter to remove inactive users

Twitter will begin deleting accounts that have been inactive for more than six months, unless they log in before an 11 December deadline. The cull will include users who stopped…

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Leaderless rebellion: how social media enables global protests – FT

“A single spark can start a prairie fire,” observed Mao Zedong in 1930, as he tried to convince his followers that revolution was possible in China. Almost a century later,…

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Social media linked to poor sleep among teens

Teens who use social media for three hours or more per day have problems falling asleep and then struggle to get up for school the next morning, experts say. Their…

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UN health agency welcomes Facebook pledge to stop vaccine misinformation from going viral

The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed Facebook’s pledge to ensure users can separate fact from fiction when it comes to vaccines, across its platforms from Facebook Search, to Groups, Pages and forums. Following…

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NewZealand – 35 charged for sharing footage of Christchurch attack

Police have charged 35 people around the country over possession of the video of the Christchurch mosque shooting. A video of the mosque attacks, during which 51 people were killed,…

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Half of UK adults now using social media for news

Half of all UK adults now use social media to get the latest news, according to a new survey by UK regulator Ofcom, with half also getting their news from…

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Role of new media in the development and rise of populism is complex but indisputable – Tanja Tatomirovic

Distinct growth of populism which expands on the global scene in the last ten years can primarily be explained by economic and political considerations, but special attention should be paid…

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Twitter down – Site not working

Twitter went down on Thursday across major parts of the world including the US, Northern Italy and the UK as users reported being unable to access the platform on web…

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Instagram to introduce new anti-bullying features

Instagram is introducing new features which will automatically challenge users before they post something which might be considered bullying, and allow victims to secretly block their tormentors. Instagram has been…

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Church of England issues first ‘commandments’ for social media use

The Church of England has issued its first set of guidelines for followers who use social media. The digital charter is based on five key principles of truth, kindness, welcome,…

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Twitter announces that politician’s tweets will be labelled as such

Preidents and other world leaders and political figures who use Twitter to threaten or abuse others could find their tweets slapped with warning labels. The new policy , announced by…

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Pope Francis decries modern ‘culture of insults’ on social media

The Pope warned that the more people use online platforms the less social they become, and criticized the trend "to hurl adjectives" at each other. Pope Francis noted that "the…

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YouTube bans videos glorifying Nazis and promoting extreme views

YouTube announced that it will begin banning videos promoting Nazi ideology, as well as denying "well-documented violent events" such as the Holocaust or the Sandy Hook massacre. YouTube said this…

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Following opposition social media could result in legal action in Bahrain

Bahrain has warned citizens and residents that following anti-government social media accounts could result in legal action. The interior ministry sent text messages to Bahraini phones late last week warning…

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Spain Election – The role of social media

Social media has become an essential tool for political parties in campaigning for Sunday's general election in Spain. Facebook - The winner is the left-wing Podemos. The official page of…

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Notre Dame Fire – How Social Media failed its test at fighting misinformation (The Guardian)

The Notre Dame Cathedral fire presented social media companies with one of the first major tests of their nascent programmes aimed at fighting misinformation in real time – and critics…

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EU countries back copyright reform

EU member states have given the final approval for copyright reforms in a bid to overhaul its two-decade old copyright rules. The clearing of this final hurdle ensures artists…

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British mother free to leave Dubai after Facebook insult

A British single mother arrested in Dubai for insulting her ex-husband’s new wife on Facebook, has been allowed to return to the UK. The campaign group Detained in Dubai reported…

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More countries exerting pressure on Facebook and Google to block terror and hate-driven propaganda

Social media giants like Facebook and Google came under increasing pressure in Europe on Monday when countries proposed stricter rules to force them to block extreme material such as terrorist…

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British mother in Dubai risking 2 years in jail and €58,000 fine because of old FB post

A British single mother faces up to two years in jail and a fine of €58,000 in Dubai after being detained over comments she made on social media in 2016…

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In wake of Christchurch terror attack, Australia passes law targeting social media companies hosting violent material online

The Australian government is seeking to rush through tough new laws targeting social media and tech companies that host violent material online despite objections from the industry. Yesterday, the Australian…

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Facebook considering the creation of a news product

Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday that Facebook is considering the creation of a news product on the social network. POLITICO reports that Zuckerberg said that the service will be integrated…

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Social media firms’ help sought to combat abuse on Duchesses Kate and Meghan

Kensington Palace has asked social media firms for help in combating a boom in abuse aimed at the British Duchesses Kate and Meghan. The royal household -- which oversees the…

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Not just Facebook – How Russian influence weaponised social media during 2016 US elections

On Monday, the Senate Intelligence Committee released a pair of sweeping reports illuminating how effectively Russian influence operations weaponized social media during the 2016 presidential election, targeting groups like African-Americans, evangelical Christians…

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Duke of Cambridge says that social media companies should own the responsibilities that come with the massive impact they have on our lives

The Duke of Cambridge thinks social media companies should be owning up to the responsibilities that come with the massive impact they have on our lives. Speaking at the BBC…

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How social media exposed the fractures in Brazilian democracy (FT)

As Brazil faces one of its most divisive elections in years, Douglas Garcia, like many of his countrymen, has come to see social media not so much as a way…

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UK: More than half of 18 to 34 year olds feel that reality TV and social media have a negative effect on how they see their bodies

BBC: More than half of 18 to 34-year-olds feel that reality TV and social media have a negative effect on how they see their bodies, a survey has found. The ComRes…

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US Secretary of State warns about Russia’s use of Social media to divide Americans

The U.S. homeland security secretary said on Saturday there are no signs that Russia is targeting this year’s midterm elections with the same “scale or scope” it targeted the 2016…

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Twitter clamps down on suspicious accounts

New York Times: Many celebrities, politicians and so-called social media influencers found their Twitter followings knocked down a few digits on Thursday as the company slashed tens of millions of suspicious accounts from…

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Google and Facebook should take more responsibility to protect children from mental ill health epidemic, abuse and addictive behaviour – NHS

The Telegraph: NHS is “picking up the pieces” of an epidemic of mental illness among children, fuelled by social media, the head of the service has warned. Simon Stevens urged companies…

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80% of Malta’s population access the internet. Of these 83% own a smartphone, 75% use a laptop, 48% use the tablet.

80% of Malta’s population access the internet. Of these 83% own a smartphone, 75% use a laptop, 48% use the tablet. “People are becoming increasingly mobile when it comes to…

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