Two people were arrested earlier this month over a plan to attack a Lady Gaga concert on Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, which was attended by more than two million people. The plot was coordinated on digital platforms such as Discord, and authorities say the organizers were attempting to radicalize and recruit teenagers. Professors David Nemer and Arthur Coelho Bezerra write for @TheConversationUS about the rise of the right wing and how it's facilitated by platforms such as Discord, TikTok and Reddit. "These networks end up functioning as recruitment hubs, where young people — especially boys — are lured in by edgy memes, promises of belonging and identity games based on excluding others."

https://flip.it/cB7p.j

Occasionally, I'll read a post calling TikTok a propaganda machine. And I have to admit that even I have totally fallen for the Chinese propaganda of introducing more baby donkeys into my life.

Today I've published an english translated version of my paper on the #ComputerArchaeology of (early) #SocialNetworks, describing the "Community Memory" project from Lee Felsenstein and others in the 1960s/70s SF Bay Area:

"All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace" – Public memories, democratic information, and restrictive technologies using the example of "Community Memory"

http://txt3.de/grace-e

Safer Scrolling: How algorithms popularise and gamify online hate and misogyny for young people. Study of University College London and University of Kent.

"After only 5 days of TikTok usage, our research shows a fourfold increase in the level of misogynistic content. (...) We found that the algorithm privileges more extreme material, and through increased usage, users are gradually exposed to more misogynistic ideologies."

https://www.ascl.org.uk/ASCL/media/ASCL/Help%20and%20advice/Inclusion/Safer-scrolling.pdf

[Le Monde] - Espagne : plus de 2 000 postes de modérateurs pour Facebook et Instagram supprimés après la rupture d’un contrat avec Meta

Le syndicat Commissions ouvrières a annoncé que la direction de Telus International, sous-traitant de #Meta, avait présenté lundi matin un plan social.

[Accès libre]

https://www.lemonde.fr/pixels/article/2025/05/05/espagne-plus-de-2-000-postes-de-moderateurs-pour-facebook-et-instagram-supprimes-apres-la-rupture-d-un-contrat-avec-meta_6603174_4408996.html

I continue to think about decentralized networks. And I'm wondering, among other things, if we need squares or courtyards, and why good metaphors play a role in wise decisions.

#mastodon #fediverse #activitypub #socialmedia #socialnetworks #selfhosted

https://anders.thoresson.se/post/2025/05/town-squares-backyards-better-metaphors-and-decentralised-networks/

#Government #censorship comes to #Bluesky

https://techcrunch.com/2025/04/23/government-censorship-comes-to-bluesky-but-not-its-third-party-apps-yet/

A post from the archive :
Validate your identity on Bluesky with your GitHub account

https://www.poppastring.com/blog/validate-your-identity-on-bluesky-with-your-github-account
#socialnetworks #musings

Watch @mike give a live demo of Surf at SXSW. Learn what Surf is for, how it brings together content and communities across platforms, and how to make your own custom feed. Audience questions at the end are also .
https://flipboard.video/w/rFyohvCiuPMm5ad7MyHy6h

Want to join the waitlist? Sign up here with the referral code DEMO: https://waitlist.surf.social/

Scale and monoculture are out. Cozy corners and vibes are in.

The full “Building Communities Across the Social Web” panel is out now, featuring @andypiper, @rose.bsky.team and Leila Brillson discussing what it takes to create and sustain healthy online communities in 2025. Recorded live at the Fediverse House at SXSW in March.

https://flipboard.video/w/fr6Ajy9YxgmW3ZGdAycBca

Bluesky Is Rolling Out Official Verification

“Starting today, Bluesky is rolling out a new verification system, complete with the familiar blue check marks popularized by Twitter. The highest-priority accounts right now are government officials, news organizations and journalists, and celebrit ...continues

See https://gadgeteer.co.za/bluesky-is-rolling-out-official-verification/

Bluesky Is Rolling Out Official Verification

https://squeet.me/display/962c3e10-cb1bfbd5-bfe18bb72cf8a184

What I miss the most is an #AddressBook for #SocialNetworks and the #Fediverse #Decentralized #Interoperable. A spreadsheet is just a decent solution for the moment. For Friends, Clients, Partners, Groups, Thematic interests, you name them... Nothing like this with Buffer, Publer, Metricool, SocialBee, etc

The next massive feature for software and platforms for #SocialMedia Management, is a Contact manager:

Morning read - I think we all knew this, but is nice to see it studied well. #neuroscience #development #socialNetworks

https://www.science.org/content/article/early-experiences-shape-brain-s-communication-superhighways-affect-cognition

Spotted on Mastodon: a spreadsheet of 900 media outlets with a Fediverse presence. “I did it! Although it’s still very rough & really not pretty, I got my spreadsheet with (> 900) verified accounts of media organizations in the #Fediverse away from #Google. The solution was #DataTables all along.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2025/04/09/spotted-on-mastodon-a-spreadsheet-of-over-900-media-outlets-with-a-fediverse-presence/

- person 1 posts an image with a link to a podcast, with the corresponding copy
- person 2 shares the post
- person 3 comments on the post of person 2 saying "such an interesting topic! I hope someone has recorded it"
- person 2 replies with link to the podcast on the original post

Are #SocialNetworks to blame for our societal problems or is there something deeper at work?

Russian bots hard at work spreading political unrest on Romania’s internet – Source: www.bitdefender.com https://ciso2ciso.com/russian-bots-hard-at-work-spreading-political-unrest-on-romanias-internet-source-www-bitdefender-com/ #rssfeedpostgeneratorecho #CyberSecurityNews #grahamcluleycom #Socialnetworks #VladimirPutin #Grahamcluley #SocialMedia #Guestblog #Lawℴ #Election #Romania #TikTok

Royal Holloway University of London: Disturbing findings in new study reveal unregulated internet platforms are a breeding ground for racism, misogyny and religious hate. “Platforms such as these remain breeding grounds for extreme ideologies, with the latest study delving into the troubling prevalence of hate speech on 4chan’s politically incorrect discussion board, known as /pol/, using […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2025/04/08/royal-holloway-university-of-london-disturbing-findings-in-new-study-reveal-unregulated-internet-platforms-are-a-breeding-ground-for-racism-misogyny-and-religious-hate/

Russian bots hard at work spreading political unrest on Romania’s internet https://www.bitdefender.com/en-us/blog/hotforsecurity/russian-bots-hard-at-work-spreading-political-unrest-on-romanias-internet #Socialnetworks #VladimirPutin #socialmedia #Guestblog #Lawℴ #election #Romania #TikTok