Befriending crows, and Twitter underneath Musk

By Jillian C. York, Director of Worldwide Freedom of Expression on the Digital Frontier Basis.

I made it huge on Twitter. Now I don’t suppose I can keep.

For a very long time, it was value it for author Mikki Kendall to remain on Twitter as a result of Twitter had the facility to vary your life. She broke huge on Twitter greater than 10 years in the past with a hashtag, #solidarityisforwhitewomen. It was nice for her profession, giving her entry to a worldwide viewers and unprecedented entry to the editors who made her a broadcast writer.

However even earlier than Elon Musk purchased the platform, she’s discovered herself tweeting much less and fewer. Whereas she used to socialize usually on the platform, TikTok, Instagram and personal teams have gotten more and more extra engaging methods to spend time on-line. And whereas harassment and a scarcity of time are partly responsible, for individuals who used Twitter to construct a profession, to maintain their careers, or just to attach, the actual query is: The place can we go from right here? Learn the total story.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the web to search out you in the present day’s most enjoyable/vital/scary/fascinating tales about expertise.

1 Huge Tech is turning into boring
As shares drop, so does Wall Avenue’s urge for food for zanier, riskier ventures. (Vox)
+ The tech growth the pandemic triggered is properly and really over. (Bloomberg $)
+ The tech inventory decline is unhealthy information for US pensions. (The Guardian)
+ Advertisers are spending much less cash on social media, too. (FT $)
+ Tech’s richest have misplaced near half a trillion {dollars} this yr. (WSJ $)

2 A number of new covid variants vying for dominance
Their capacity to skirt our present immunity is an actual drawback. (The Atlantic $)
+ Variants are inclined to unfold throughout Europe earlier than the US. (Slate $)
+ Vaccines that lengthen the immune response may give higher safety. (New Scientist $)
+ Is a covid and flu “twindemic” on the horizon? (MIT Know-how Evaluate)

3 Twitter is planning to start out charging for verification
Elon Musk reckons individuals will cough up $20 a month for the privilege. (The Verge)
+ Musk is reportedly planning to put off 25% of Twitter’s employees. (WP $)

4 Cease the Steal’s organizer is whipping up dissent in Brazil
Ali Alexander is mobilizing Brazilians after Lula beat Bolsonaro to the presidency. (Insider $)
+ Social media chatter in El Salvador is resulting in mass arrests. (Remainder of World)
+ How claims of voter fraud in 2020 have been supercharged by unhealthy science. (MIT Know-how Evaluate)

6 How cryptography can assist sexual assault survivors to get justice
Methods that share knowledge securely are getting used to construct circumstances in opposition to repeat offenders. (The Guardian)

7 We’re nonetheless at the hours of darkness over how TikTok impacts our psychological well being
But it surely appears vital to search out out. (The Guardian)
+ For a lot of teenagers, the app is a gateway to self-diagnosis. (NYT $)
+ Dementia content material will get billions of views on TikTok. Whose story does it inform? (MIT Know-how Evaluate)

8 Eric Schmidt is anxious by China’s speedy AI advances
He desires the US authorities to spend so much more cash on AI analysis in response. (Protocol)
+ Do AI methods want to come back with security warnings? (MIT Know-how Evaluate)