-
Tech NewsFacebook
A New Study From Facebook Reveals Just How Much It Filters What You See
A few years ago, I gave a talk about how algorithms and social media shape what we know. I focused on the dangers of the “filter bubble” — the personalized universe of information that makes it into our feed — and argued that news-filtering algorithms narrow what we know, surrounding us in information that tends … Continued
Eli Pariser -
Tech NewsFacebook
Please Don’t Call Me on Facebook Messenger
Facebook Messenger just introduced video calling. Since Messenger is supposed to be a full-fledged communication plaform, this feels a little overdue. But overdue doesn’t mean welcome: Now our Facebook friends have the ability to cold video-call us whenever chat is turned on. The built-in Facebook friend contact list makes Messenger video chats a potentially fraught … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
Tech NewsFacebook
Facebook Messenger Adds Video Calls
Facebook’s relentless push to make Messenger happen is still happening, and you can now make video calls over data and Wifi with with Facebook’s messaging app. Messenger’s new video feature debuted today in the US, UK, Canada, and a variety of other countries. If you see a little video icon in the top right corner … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
io9Movies
This Taut, Cruel Horror Flick Is Shot Through a Teen’s Laptop Screen
There are certain films that are so obviously meant to be projected on a big screen it feels wrong to watch them for the first time at home—grandiose, SFX-heavy space sagas like Gravity only feel right splayed across an IMAX canvass. Unfriended, in its scale, has the reverse affect. It’s best watched on a laptop, … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
Tech News
Teens Are Actually on Google+ for Some Reason
A new Pew research study on teenagers’ social media habits has a few surprising results. Teens are still on The Facebook en masse, with Instagram and Snapchat close behind. But 33% reported using Google+. Tied with Twitter! Come again? Google’s attempt at building a social network hasn’t gotten much popular traction beyond the tech-minded set … Continued
-
Tech NewsGoogle
Google Patented a Warning System to Make Social Media Spoiler-Free
It’s something we’ve all felt. The low, sinking kick in the metaphorical groin when you’ve read some asshole’s tweet or post, expounding on some previously unknown spoiler. But maybe, social media doesn’t need to be such a minefield of potential despair. Well, it seems Google is working on it. A new Google patent, spotted by … Continued
By Darren Orf -
Tech NewsFacebook
Facebook’s Messenger App Is Now a Full-Fledged Social Network
Facebook just checked off another step in its plan to turn Messenger into its own separate service— launching a distinct web version of its messaging app. If you go to Messenger.com today, you’ll see all your Facebook messages without dealing with Newsfeed. When Facebook spun Messenger off into its own mobile app, it felt like … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
Tech NewsFacebook
You Can Now Serve Divorce Papers on Facebook
What to do if you need to serve divorce papers to a spouse that’s nowhere to be found, or dodging your calls and visits? Send them a Facebook message, of course. This is now an accepted way to start the process of ending a marriage. A Manhattan Supreme Court Justice recently ruled that a 26-year-old … Continued
-
Tech News
Let’s Talk About Whatever You Want Right Now
What a week. I’m about to go spend my weekend with extended family and old friends. What a weekend. What’ve you got lined up? This week I asked you all about your favorite form of social media, and I’ve been pondering the question a lot myself. I’m going to start hanging around Google+ more, as … Continued
-
Tech NewsSploid
Clever ad makes fun on how we behave on social media
If you’ve spent some time on the Internet, you already know that the same characters and personality types keep popping up. There’s the smart ass, the politically incorrect, the skeptical, the list goes on and on. This clever ad for Mainpeople—an international charity social network—makes fun of those stereotypes. SPLOID is delicious brain candy. Follow … Continued
-
Tech News
Social Media Can Make Standardized Test Questions Go Viral
When standardized tests are shared nationwide—as they now are, under the Common Core system that’s been adopted in 46 states—cheating suddenly becomes a whole lot easier. Especially since teenagers now share just about everything on social media. As we’re all aware, platforms like Twitter and Instagram have a way of making illicit activities go viral. … Continued
By Maddie Stone -
Tech NewsFacebook
What Makes You Block Someone?
People have varying thresholds of tolerance for putting up with ignorance, dickishness, and other crap online. What does it take for you to head straight for the “Block” button on social media? Each major platform has a slightly different concoction of options to let you digitally delete someone from your life. Twitter and Facebook both … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
Tech NewsFacebook
Facebook Will Put 360-Degree Spherical Videos Right In Your News Feed
I think that 360-degree video is going to be a big deal. Apparently, Mark Zuckerberg agrees! He just announced that Facebook will be able to embed spherical videos right in your News Feed, much like YouTube 360. So what’s spherical video, anyhow? I could tell you, but why not just show you instead? Here’s a … Continued
-
Tech NewsGoogle
Facebook and Google Are Locking In African Customers With Freebie Deals
Facebook and Google have grand plans to bring the internet to developing nations, paying Lisa Rinna-sized lip service to altruistic visions of global connectivity. But let’s always remember that these US tech giants are also gunning for new customers and the lucrative data that comes with them. Both companies are rolling out programs in some … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
Tech News
The Dress and #Ferguson Are the Two Sides of Social Media Explosions
To understand the mass hysteria around The Dress last week, you can’t compare it to other memes. You have to compare it to political events like #Ferguson, which are its diametrical opposite. Except in one way. Photo by Jeffrey B. Banke via Shutterstock But first, let’s not fool ourselves into thinking that The Dress came … Continued
-
Tech NewsFacebook
Facebook Finally Stops Trying To Restrict What Gender You Can Choose
A little over a year ago, Facebook finally did away with its highly restrictive gender options. (It was male, female, or nothing.) But instead of being open-ended, the social network would still only let you choose from among a list of 56 options. Now, after catching some flak, Facebook is finally offering infinite options. You … Continued
-
io9
If you’ve noticed the amount of science news in your Facebook feed is on the uptick, here’s one reason why: in a survey of nearly 4,000 scientists, 87 percent agreed that “participation in policy debates and engagement with citizens and journalists is necessary to further their work and careers.” The study also found that “a … Continued
By Cheryl Eddy -
Tech News
Music Is Dead. VH1 Is Going Behind the Tweet
For many a 90s kid, VH1’s Behind the Music offered you your first glimpse into the rockstar lifestyle—highs, lows, laxatives, and all. But now that the internet has rendered us effectively dead inside, VH1’s new parody series is giving us the only thing that matters any more: Twitter. Yup, it’s time for Behind the Tweet. … Continued
-
Tech News
NYPD Uses Social Media To Bust Terrorists, Loud Parties
That the NYPD has a crack Social Media Squad stalking your every move is old news, but a recent Freedom of Information request sheds new light on exactly how the cops use their Facebooking powers. The answer? They’re on the lookout for terrorists, cop killers, and um, loud parties. Back in December, MuckRock requested the … Continued
By Chris Mills -
io9
A Horrifying Short Film About How Facebook Could Turn Even Creepier
From Argentina, this ghostly horror short from director Andrés Borghi examines the ways in which Facebook affects relationships … particularly those that Just. Won’t. Die. Though it has some familiar stylistic elements, it’s eerie, well-paced, and has a supremely creepy score. For maximum chills, watch it on your computer (duh) and with the lights off … Continued
By Cheryl Eddy