social media

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Facebook Could Kill the Web
 Facebook Could Kill the Web 
Michael Wolff

Facebook Could Kill the Web

Michael Wolff points out that, in the end, Facebook is just an ad-driven site

(Newser) - "Facebook is not only on course to go bust, but will take the rest of the ad-supported Web with it." That's the bold statement Michael Wolff makes in the MIT Technology Review today, and he insists he's not exaggerating. In the end, Facebook is just another...

Apple Turning iCloud Into Instagram Wannabe
Apple Turning iCloud Into Instagram Wannabe
Rumor Mill

Apple Turning iCloud Into Instagram Wannabe

New version will allow you to share, comment on photos

(Newser) - Apple is planning a complete overhaul for its iCloud service, transforming it from a basic cloud storage service into a photo-sharing service à la Instagram, sources tell the Wall Street Journal . At the moment, iCloud just lets you store a single "photo stream" online and access it from any...

New End-of-Life Planning: Social Media Wills

Feds want you to plan what happens to your online profile

(Newser) - Social networking has already changed our lives; now, officials want us to consider its implications after our death. On its blog, the US government is calling on Americans to create "social media wills," which detail our wishes for the future of the huge range of online accounts we...

Washington Post Buys Digg Techies ... but Not Digg
Washington Post Buys Digg Techies ... but Not Digg
sources say

Washington Post Buys Digg Techies ... but Not Digg

Former Web 2.0 darling left for dead

(Newser) - The Washington Post may have just dug Digg's grave. Yesterday The Next Web shocked much of the tech world with a report that the Post was buying the once-hot social media site, but it now looks like that's only partially true. TechCrunch later reported that the Post was...

Obama: Use Tech to Abuse Rebels, We'll Sanction You

Executive order fingers entities backing Iran, Syria, but could be enlarged

(Newser) - If you use technology to help a repressive regime commit human rights abuses, you'll find yourself slapped with US sanctions. That's the message from President Obama, who this morning announced a new executive order specifically targeting those backing Iran and Syria via technology, though it could be expanded...

London Warns Olympics Fans: Don&#39;t Post Pics
 London Warns 
 Olympics Fans: 
 Don't Post Pics 
olympics 2012

London Warns Olympics Fans: Don't Post Pics

Olympics protected by stringent branding laws

(Newser) - The Olympics are headed to London this summer, but visitors and athletes alike better beware of what they post online, reports Mashable . London has passed legislation ahead of the games to penalize people who violate the games' official branding. Legally speaking, this would include:
  • Athletes posting media of themselves with
...

64% of Tweets Are Totally Boring

 64% of Tweets 
 Are Totally Boring 
study says

64% of Tweets Are Totally Boring

We only actually like 36% of what shows up in our stream: study

(Newser) - A new study in the Harvard Business Review confirms what you probably already know if you've spent any time on Twitter: Just 36% of tweets are actually worth reading. Another 39% are "just OK," and a full quarter aren't worth your time. That's according to...

Ex-CIA Trainee Goes Public on Twitter

Lynnae Williams thinks the agency is corrupt because of how it fired her

(Newser) - It's not every day that you see a former CIA employee reaming out the agency on social media, but that's exactly what Lynnae Williams does. Williams, 35, had a four-month stint as a CIA trainee in 2009 before she was sent to the agency's mental hospital—or,...

Some Employers, Schools Demand Facebook Logins

Maryland may ban practice

(Newser) - Some employers and colleges have found an ingenious way around Facebook's pesky privacy settings: Simply demand that applicants or students friend you, give you a tour of their account, or even divulge their usernames and passwords. MSNBC reports on a number of places instituting the troubling practices:
  • At Maryland'
...

Google+ Basically a Ghost Town
 Google+ Basically a Ghost Town 

Google+ Basically a Ghost Town

Visitors to the social network spend three minutes there a month

(Newser) - Google+ launched with ambitions of competing with Facebook, and if you listen to CEO Larry Page, it's on pace to do just that, with 90 million users registering since June. But there's one big problem, the Wall Street Journal observes: Those 90 million users aren't actually doing...

Ann Romney Joins Pinterest
 Ann Romney Joins Pinterest 

Ann Romney Joins Pinterest

Wanna-be first lady early adopter of rising social network

(Newser) - Mitt Romney's wife has signed up for up-and-coming social network Pinterest, dubbed "digital crack for women" by the Washington Post. Users of the site add photos to "virtual pinboards," and Ann Romney's page currently has seven, including recipes, campaign photos, and patriotic pics, the Post...

Facebook Defriending Triggers Double Murder

Marvin Potter charged with 'senseless' Tennessee slayings

(Newser) - Two Tennessee men have been charged with killing a couple over what police describe as a "senseless and stupid" motive: A defriending on Facebook. Marvin Potter, 60, was enraged by the couple's decision to scratch his 30-year-old daughter from their list of friends, according to police. The two...

Careful, Facebook, or You&#39;ll Become AOL
Careful, Facebook, or
You'll Become AOL
OPINION

Careful, Facebook, or You'll Become AOL

Former editor Jesse Kornbluth explains how web giant fell from grace

(Newser) - Jesse Kornbluth has a cautionary tale for Facebook, which he says he worked for a decade ago. "Back then, it was called America Online," he writes in the Wall Street Journal . Kornbluth was AOL's editorial director from 1997 to 2003. In those days, AOL had lots of...

Facebook Launching IPO Today
 Facebook Launching IPO Today 

Facebook Launching IPO Today

Filing 'an American milestone'

(Newser) - The company Mark Zuckerberg founded in his dorm room eight years ago is expected to file for Silicon Valley's biggest-ever initial public offering today. The Facebook IPO will aim to raise $5 billion, and will value the company at between $75 billion and $100 billion, insiders tell Reuters . The...

China, Thailand Applaud Twitter Censorship

Dissidents fear losing free-speech tool

(Newser) - Twitter's controversial decision to allow censorship of tweets on a country-by-country basis has won praise from two of the countries with the busiest censors. In Thailand—ranked 153rd in the world for press freedom because of its strict laws against offending the monarchy—the country's information minister called...

Google Just Killed Its Search Engine
 Google Just Killed 
 Its Search Engine 
OPINION

Google Just Killed Its Search Engine

Why Mat Honan is switching to Bing

(Newser) - Don't look now, but Bing just became the best search engine—purely because Google shot itself in the foot. Google this week launched its " Search, Plus Your World " overhaul, which deeply integrates Google+ into your results. "Long story short: It's a huge step backwards,"...

Facebook Coming to ... Your Car?

Mercedes installs new system, swears it's safe

(Newser) - Facebook has found its way inside what could be its most unlikely device yet: a car. Mercedes-Benz will soon be installing Facebook in its new cars, with a specially-designed, bare-bones version that, it hopes, minimizes the chance of someone crashing off the road while using it. The app, which was...

Need a Kidney? Ask on Facebook

More kidney requests popping up on social media sites

(Newser) - People who once sought kidneys through word of mouth or church bulletins are finding a new forum: Facebook. The website has fulfilled at least three kidney requests as many more are popping up across social media sites, the AP reports. One plea came from Seattle father Damon Brown, who was...

Israeli Group to Twitter: Ban Hezbollah or We'll Sue

Letting terror groups tweet is illegal, law center says

(Newser) - Terrorist organizations banned in the US should also be banned from Twitter, says an Israeli legal group threatening to sue the San Francisco-based company. Shurat HaDin—which says its mission is "bankrupting terrorism, one lawsuit at a time"—warns that allowing groups like Hezbollah and al-Shabab to use...

Saudi Prince Buys $300M Stake in Twitter

Billionaire calls microblogging buy a strategic investment

(Newser) - The richest man in the Arab world has bought a big stake in the social media service that has helped protesters in the region organize. Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has paid $300 million for a stake of around 3% in Twitter, the Wall Street Journal reports. "Social...

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