Internet Media

Social Media “Free Expression” or Outright lies?

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Article in The Washington Post by Heather Kelley 1/8/25

Headline:  “Meta ends fact-checking. Here’s how to find the truth on social media.”

“Facebook, Instagram and Threads will no longer have fact-checking in the United States. Here’s what that means for your feeds and how you can avoid falling for misinformation.”

“A massive reversal on fact-checking could soon change what you see on social media. Meta on Tuesday announced that it is discontinuing its fact-checking program in the United States to allow for more “free expression.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/01/08/meta-fact-checking-facebook-instagram-users/

Ministry of Truth vs. Internet

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Article in The Guardian by Sam Levin, 1/5/25

Headline: “US newspapers are deleting old crime stories, offering subjects a ‘clean slate’

Subhead:  “A wave of local publications are considering requests to wipe or edit old articles to give their subjects a fresh start”

“Civil rights advocates across the US have long fought to free people from their criminal records, with campaigns to expunge old cases and keep people’s past arrests private when they apply for jobs and housing.

“The efforts are critical, as more than 70 million Americans have prior convictions or arrests – roughly one in three adults. But the policies haven’t addressed one of the most damaging ways past run-ins with police can derail people’s lives: old media coverage.

“Some newsrooms are working to fill that gap.

“A handful of local newspapers across the US have in recent years launched programs to review their archives and consider requests to remove names or delete old stories to protect the privacy of subjects involved in minor crimes.. .”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/04/newspaper-crime-stories

 

Journalist Mass Shooting Anniversary

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Article in AP by Staff, 01/3/24

Headline:  “Algerian social media influencer detained in France accused of calling for attacks”

“PARIS (AP) — French police on Friday detained a social media influencer from Algeria who is accused of calling on his followers to carry out attacks in France, Interior Minster Bruno Retailleau said.

“The arrest in the Brittany port city of Brest on France’s western coast comes as the country is preparing to mark the 10th anniversary next week of deadly January 2015 attacks in Paris against the satirical Charlie Hebdo newspaper and a kosher supermarket.

“On Jan. 7, 2015, two French-born al-Qaida extremists stormed Charlie Hebdo’s newsroom and killed 12 people, including the chief editor, cartoonists and a policeman in a nearby street.”

https://apnews.com/article/france-algeria-tiktok-terror-arrest-8401d12ec0bd79140acbcb8cac543637

Telecom Giants Stop Net Neutrality

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Article in New York Times by Cecelia Kang, 1/2/25

Headline:  “Net Neutrality Rules Struck Down by Appeals Court”

Subhead:  “After nearly two decades of fighting, the battle over regulations that treat broadband providers as utilities came to an end on Thursday.”

“A federal appeals court struck down the Federal Communications Commission’s landmark net neutrality rules on Thursday, ending a nearly two-decade effort to regulate broadband internet providers as utilities.

“The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in Cincinnati, said the F.C.C. lacked the authority to reinstate rules that prevented broadband providers from slowing or blocking access to internet content. In its opinion, a three-judge panel pointed to a Supreme Court decision in June, known as Loper Bright, that overturned a 1984 legal precedent that gave deference to government agencies on regulations.

“Applying Loper Bright means we can end the F.C.C.’s vacillations,” the court ruled.

“The court’s decision put an end to the Biden administration’s hallmark tech policy, which had drawn impassioned support from consumer groups and tech giants like Google and fierce protests from telecommunications giants like Comcast and AT&T.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/02/technology/net-neutrality-rules-fcc.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Robot Media Accounts

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Article in Slashdot, 12/27/24

Headline:  “Meta Envisages Social Media Filled with AI-generated Users”

“Meta is betting that characters generated by AI will fill its social media platforms in the next few years as it looks to the fast-developing technology to drive engagement with its 3 billion users.”

“. . .” ‘We expect these AIs to actually, over time, exist on our platforms, kind of in the same way that accounts do,’ said Connor Hayes, vice-president of product for generative AI at Meta. ‘They’ll have bios and profile pictures and be able to generate and share content powered by AI on the platform … that’s where we see all of this going,’ ”

http://”https://tech.slashdot.org/story/24/12/27/1810222/meta-envisages-social-media-filled-with-ai-generated-users

Future of Journalism is Here

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Article in TechXplore by Megan Schumann, 12/19/24

Headline:  “Survey highlights public concerns over AI’s political and media impact”

“As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more prevalent, a new Rutgers University-New Brunswick survey sheds light on public attitudes, revealing widespread concerns about its impact on politics and the media, alongside an increasing adoption of AI tools in daily life.

“More than half of the respondents expressed worry about AI’s impact on politics (58%) and news media (53%), with researchers suggesting these concerns may stem from fears of misinformation and manipulation, particularly during the 2024 election cycle when the survey was conducted.”

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-survey-highlights-ai-political-media.html

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Sarah Grevy, Gotfredsen, 12/19./24

Headline:  “An AI Chatbot Joins Time”

Subhead:  “The magazine calls it ‘a pivotal step toward charting the future of journalism.’ “

“Last week, Time continued its nearly century-old annual tradition of choosing a Person of the Year, or an individual who, “for better or for worse,” has had the biggest impact on the world over the previous twelve months. Donald Trump, who the magazine said has perhaps played the largest role of any individual in changing the course of politics and history, was Time’s pick for 2024. Alongside its big reveal, the magazine launched TIME AI: a platform that consists of generative AI tools meant to assist people as they read the story. It’s a move that Time optimistically describes as setting a new standard for immersive storytelling. “It’s more than an experiment,” a Time announcement proclaimed. “It’s a pivotal step toward charting the future of journalism.”

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/time-magazine-ai-chatbot-openai-perplexity.php

Media Fringe Now

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Article in Mediaite by Zachary Leeman, 12/12/24

Headline:  “CNN’s Van Jones Frets ‘Fringe’ Has Replaced ‘Mainstream’ Media: ‘We’re on Cable News Getting 1-2 Million’ While They’re ‘Getting 14 Million Streams’ ”

“CNN’s Van Jones warned on Wednesday that the entire ‘political class’ in the country is ‘way off’ when it comes to connecting to voters, as ‘fringe’ platforms and voices have replaced ‘mainstream’ outlets like his own network.

“. . .Jones fretted that streamers and podcasters are bringing in views that cable news cannot come close to touching.

“ The mainstream has become fringe and the fringe has become mainstream,’ he said. ‘There are platforms, there are people out there that are getting 14 million streams and we’re on cable news getting one to two million.’ ”

https://www.mediaite.com/media/cnns-van-jones-frets-fringe-has-replaced-mainstream-media-were-on-cable-news-getting-1-2-million-while-theyre-getting-14-million-streams/

No News Without Tax?

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Article in Al Jezeera by Staff, 12/12/24

Headline:  “Australia plans to tax tech giants if they fail to pay news outlets”

Subhead: “Firms like Meta face tax if they don’t pay for news driving traffic to their sites, depriving media firms of revenue.”

“The Australian government has announced plans to tax Big Tech firms if they fail to share revenue with local news media organisations.

“The measure, applicable from January 1, will force firms like Meta and Google with an Australian-based revenue in excess of 250 million Australian dollars ($160m) to pay for content or face a hefty tax bill that could amount to millions.”

“. . . Announcing the move, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said on Thursday that the rapid growth of digital platforms had ‘disrupted’ the media landscape and was ‘threatening the viability of public interest journalism’ ”.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/12/australia-to-force-tech-giants-to-pay-for-news

Will the Regulators be Truthful?

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Article in ProPublica by Justin Elliot, Robert Faturechi, and Alex Mierjeski, 12/10/24

Headline:  “Donald Trump Controls a Publicly Traded Company. Now He Will Pick Its Regulator.”

Subhead:  ” There have been internal concerns that Trump Media could be misleading investors, a source said. But with its largest shareholder about to be president, experts doubt the SEC is up to the job of investigating Truth Social’s parent company.”

“. . .When Trump takes office in January, a president will for the first time be the majority owner of a publicly traded company, Trump Media, which runs Truth Social. Former SEC officials are concerned about how Trump could try to use the agency to go after the foes of his company, which accounts for more than half his fortune. They also worry that the agency isn’t up for the job of taking on Trump Media should it run afoul of securities laws. . .”

https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-media-truth-social-sec-securities-exchange-commission

TikTok – Medium of Free Speech or Espionage?

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Update:

Article in Washington Post by Madalin Necsutu and Anthony Faiola, 11/6/24

Headline:  “Romanian court annuls presidential vote after Russian interference claims”

Subhead:  “Calin Georgescu won the first round of the election after being propelled by TikTok. Romania’s security services pointed to ‘Russian hybrid actions.’ “

“The Constitutional Court took the extraordinary step of annulling Romania’s presidential election Friday after the country’s security services assessed that the nation had been the target of ‘Russian hybrid actions’ that used TikTok to promote a candidate who has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/12/06/romania-court-annuls-presidential-election/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

Headline:  “Appeals court upholds nationwide TikTok ban-or-sale law”

Subhead:  “The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit made the expedited decision ahead of the TikTok ban’s looming Jan. 19 deadline, in a high-profile case pitting national security concerns against free speech.”

“A federal appeals court has turned away a challenge to a fast-approaching nationwide ban of short-video app TikTok unless it divests from Chinese ownership, placing national security before free speech concerns and bringing the app’s 170 million U.S. users closer to losing access to the wildly popular platform.

“he U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Friday sided with the Justice Department, which argued that the U.S. government has the authority to ban TikTok based on the national security risk that TikTok could be pressured by the Chinese government to expose Americans’ data or influence what they see. TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, is based in China.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/12/06/tiktok-ban-court-ruling-justice-department-bytedance/