social media

WhatsApp now lets users plan and schedule events in Communities

WhatsApp is introducing a new way for people to organize events in Communities, the company announced on Wednesday. The feature makes it easier to plan get-togethers and events directly in WhatsApp, whether it’s setting up a PTA meeting or a birthday dinner. Anyone can create an event that others can respond to, so everyone else […]

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LinkedIn is the Twitter/X rival no one is talking about

Since Elon Musk acquired Twitter in the fall of 2022, the market for Twitter alternatives has been saturated with would-be competitors ranging from smaller startups to open source apps to well-funded efforts like Threads from Instagram. But there’s one overlooked Twitter/X alternative that’s been growing right under our collective noses: LinkedIn. As of March, LinkedIn’s

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Bill to strengthen national tipline for missing and exploited children heads to Biden’s desk

A bipartisan bill designed to protect children from online sexual exploitation is headed to President Biden’s desk. Proposed by Senators Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Marsha Blackburn (R-SC), the bill aims to strengthen the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s (NCMEC) CyberTipline. When an online service provider detects child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the platform

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Instagram is updating its algorithm to surface more content from smaller, original creators

Instagram is introducing a few new changes to its ranking systems to better highlight content from smaller, original creators across the social network. The Meta-owned platform says that historically, creators with large followings and accounts that share reposted content have gotten the most reach on the platform. So now it’s seeking to give all creators

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Social media companies have too much political power, 78% of Americans say in Pew survey

Finally, something that both sides of the aisle can agree on: social media companies are too powerful. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, 78% of American adults say social media companies have too much influence on politics — to break it down by party, that’s 84% of surveyed Republicans and 74% of

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Twitter co-founder Biz Stone joins board of Mastodon’s new US nonprofit

Biz Stone, a Twitter co-founder, is among those who have joined the board of directors of Mastodon’s new U.S. nonprofit, Mastodon CEO Eugen Rochko announced over the weekend. Mastodon’s service, an open source, decentralized social network and rival to Elon Musk’s X, has gained increased attention following the Twitter acquisition as users sought alternatives to

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Why Meta is looking to the fediverse as the future for social media

Meta’s move into the open social web, also known as the fediverse, is puzzling. Does the Facebook owner see open protocols as the future? Will it embrace the fediverse only to shut it down, shifting people back to its proprietary platforms and decimating startups building in the space? Will it bring its advertising empire to

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