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TikTok internal docs reveal just how simple it is to keep you addicted
An algorithm explainer leaked to The New York Times shows the broad strokes of social media success.
TikTok people-watching videos straddle the line between funny and creepy
The genre, popularized on college campuses this fall, pairs videos of oblivious strangers with fake descriptions of their innermost thoughts
The internet is obsessed with saying, ‘Bing bong!’
After catching on among basketball fans this fall, the viral phrase even got some write-in votes in the NYC mayoral election.
Meet Crackhead Barney, TikTok’s outrageous ambush interviewer
New York’s brash social media star — best known for her public shouting match with Andrew Giuliani — is just getting started.
How TikTok influencers are rebranding the pitbull
Humans are using the social media platform to show the softer side of the much-maligned dog breed.
Lush shuts down its Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat accounts
Oh, and its TikTok, too.
Instagram's doling out the big bucks for creators choosing Reels over TikTok
Maybe this would be more successful with a lot more transparency. And, you know, if Instagram wasn't generally bad for one's mental health.
The Tourette’s community is livid over the ‘TikTok tics’ media frenzy
A viral Wall Street Journal article about teen girls “catching” Tourette syndrome from social media is doing major damage, online advocates say.
Bumble BFF has an MLM problem
Multi-level marketers are all over Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. But when someone tries to recruit you through a friendship app, it feels like even more of a violation.
Witches Anonymous: Wiccan Reddit is a haven for recovering addicts
“The 12 steps lend themselves very well to witchcraft,” says one sober practitioner.
TikTok is testing a way for you to tip creators directly
Only a select few creators are able to try out the Tips feature right now.
Black cosplayers are tired of being told who they can and can’t portray
They’re subjected to endless abuse online, but they’re undeterred. “I’m about to change the face of cosplay,” says one Black creator.
The Beatles’ music is now available on TikTok, God help us
Teens can now choreograph dances to 36 of the mop-top brigade’s number one bops.
Meet the TikTok terminator taking down anti-vaxxers
Online sleuth @ThatDaneshGuy reports anti-vax TikTokers to their employers and the authorities. Now he has a target on his back.
How to dress as trendy as Addison Rae for under $100
She’s everywhere, giving us fashion inspo across multiple platforms. We’ve narrowed down her favorite styles to these eight pieces, all at a reasonable price.
Buy now, pay later shopping apps may be getting young people into debt
A recent survey reports that nearly half of Gen Z shoppers use buy now, pay later services to spend outside of their budget, and are slowly falling behind on their payments.
Meet Crackhead Barney, TikTok’s outrageous ambush interviewer
New York’s brash social media star — best known for her public shouting match with Andrew Giuliani — is just getting started.
Lush shuts down its Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat accounts
Oh, and its TikTok, too.
Instagram's new 'rage shake' feature enables error reporting
It’s just one of a number of new features the photo-sharing service has added recently.
Instagram's doling out the big bucks for creators choosing Reels over TikTok
Maybe this would be more successful with a lot more transparency. And, you know, if Instagram wasn't generally bad for one's mental health.
Bumble BFF has an MLM problem
Multi-level marketers are all over Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. But when someone tries to recruit you through a friendship app, it feels like even more of a violation.
Facebook has begun carefully constructing its paper trail
A new "legal hold" covers all Facebook documents from 2016 onward. WhatsApp, Spark AR, and New Product Experimentation documents are exempt.
Instagram has finally stopped gatekeeping the Stories link feature
Now if only it could figure out how to choose harm reduction over profits...
Leaked Facebook documents reveal alarms sounding from every angle
The Facebook Papers illustrate the company's failure to act on warnings from employees and the public at a staggering scale.
Black cosplayers are tired of being told who they can and can’t portray
They’re subjected to endless abuse online, but they’re undeterred. “I’m about to change the face of cosplay,” says one Black creator.
Facebook Oversight Board gives Zuck a stern talking-to over transparency
The Board says Facebook has been uncooperative in answering questions and being clear in its policies.
Instagram introduces desktop uploads because nothing is sacred anymore
For years, the photo sharing app only allowed users to upload photos and video from a smartphone.
Instagram Collabs let you co-author posts with your more popular friends
People already credit their friends for helping capture a moment. Now Instagram is turning that into a feature.
Facebook's latest PR fail is a bizarre attack on journalists
In which John Pinette, Facebook's VP of Communications, calls whistleblower press “an orchestrated gotcha campaign.”
It’s terrible being a fat, Black femme on Instagram
Between photo takedowns and fatphobic trolls, the app is a hostile place for creators who don’t fit Western beauty standards.
Instagram is introducing an in-app notification for system outages
And a new tool for viewing and appealing reports on your account.
Facebook says it will nudge teens away from harm... eventually
Let's try adding another algorithm to the mix and see how it goes.
Facebook routinely allows ads comparing vaccines to the Holocaust
That's not very Meta of them.
Facebook just reinstated protest killer Kyle Rittenhouse’s platform
Following his not guilty verdict, Facebook has unblocked Rittenhouse from all of its platforms.
Watch Mark Zuckerburg torment you with BBQ sauce in this Meta parody
The video is intended as comedy, but we’re not sure whether to laugh or cry.
The U.K. might actually stop Meta from acquiring Giphy
Meta, as you might expect, isn't backing down without a fight.
'Resident Evil 4 VR' gets ‘The Mercenaries’ next year
No HUNK, no buy.
Lush shuts down its Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat accounts
Oh, and its TikTok, too.
This webcomic made it okay to be sad online. Then its artist vanished.
The author of ‘Pictures for Sad Children’ went AWOL after a 2014 Kickstarter drama. In an exclusive interview, she explains why she had to unplug from the internet.
Instagram's new 'rage shake' feature enables error reporting
It’s just one of a number of new features the photo-sharing service has added recently.
Meta's Haptic Glove will let you throttle your foes in VR
A new demo reel from the company shows off the new technology.
Amazon, Facebook, and Peloton top Mozilla's list of privacy poor gifts
You might want to rethink that Ring camera you were going to give your mom.
Iceland tourism ad expertly roasts Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse
A much-needed reminder that the real world is still very much worth living in.
Meta might open physical stores to push its metaverse propaganda
Anything requiring a "judgment free" environment to convince consumers it’s not evil doesn't exactly inspire confidence.
Meta will continue to use facial recognition technology, actually
Oh, did we say we're shutting down our invasive tech? We didn't mean it like that!
Bumble BFF has an MLM problem
Multi-level marketers are all over Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. But when someone tries to recruit you through a friendship app, it feels like even more of a violation.
The Quest 2 feels like dial-up for the metaverse
Meta's VR headset is the backbone of the metaverse. There's just one problem: the underpowered hardware is best for games, not work, or the rest of reality.
Facebook is ending its auto-tagging facial recognition feature — for now
A significant move, but not one that really constitutes a promise for the future.
Twitter’s new ban on sharing ‘private’ media is frustratingly vague
In keeping its space inclusive, Twitter often falls back on abstractions.
Jack Dorsey's legacy at Twitter is a world of chaos and misinformation
In finally stepping down as CEO, @jack walks away from a hellhole he helped engineer.
Conservatives think Twitter's new CEO quoting 'The Daily Show' is anti-white
The tweet in question is from 11 years ago.
Jack Dorsey is stepping down as Twitter CEO
Dorsey confirmed the move this morning via... well, you know.
This webcomic made it okay to be sad online. Then its artist vanished.
The author of ‘Pictures for Sad Children’ went AWOL after a 2014 Kickstarter drama. In an exclusive interview, she explains why she had to unplug from the internet.
#FreeBritney was a success. ‘Now what?’ ask #NotJustBritney campaigners.
Disability activists fear that people will forget about conservatorships now that Britney Spears is free.
The Bored Apes take Manhattan
Members of Bored Ape Yacht Club, the internet’s hottest NFT project, monkeyed around IRL at Ape Fest 2021. How long can the party last?
Spongebob rapping is the YouTube rabbit hole you need to dive into
A producer from Maine is using AI to make SpongeBob content that you just can’t look away from.
Therapy app responds to backlash over Travis Scott partnership
“It’s disheartening to see the way misinformation is spreading about us” in the wake of their Astroworld offer, says a rep for the controversial service BetterHelp.
Playground Games has been working on 'Fable' reboot for four years
Tom Gaulton, an engineer at the studio, took to Twitter to announce the news.
Hackers just got tantalizingly close to jailbreaking the PS5
Persistence is key, especially when it comes to hack the heck out of your next-gen game console.
You’ll soon have another shot at copping the coveted Xbox mini-fridge
The meme turned physical product sold out in minutes and is now getting a boost in production.
Hackers reportedly laundered $10M using Twitch’s ‘cheering’ currency
The digital heist was exposed by a group of Turkish streamers.
Elijah Wood touted a newly acquired NFT. A racism scandal ensued.
Offensive cartoons by Jungle Freaks creator George Trosley have come to light. The decades-old works, “drawn in satire, do not reflect our character,” his son tells Input.
Bizarre Facebook ad featuring real journalists should have everyone worried
Two journalists filmed an interview with Facebook execs. Facebook used the footage as sponcon without telling the reporters.
Twitter has no clue why its algorithms amplify right-leaning content
But, yeah, the algorithms are definitely boosting conservative politicians and media outlets.
YouTube
Did a former ‘New York Times’ reporter exploit musicians for his personal gain?
A YouTube video accuses Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Ian Urbina of fleecing artists. Urbina says his project is “being woefully distorted.”
Meet Crackhead Barney, TikTok’s outrageous ambush interviewer
New York’s brash social media star — best known for her public shouting match with Andrew Giuliani — is just getting started.
Spongebob rapping is the YouTube rabbit hole you need to dive into
A producer from Maine is using AI to make SpongeBob content that you just can’t look away from.
Therapy app responds to backlash over Travis Scott partnership
“It’s disheartening to see the way misinformation is spreading about us” in the wake of their Astroworld offer, says a rep for the controversial service BetterHelp.
In a plea for peace, YouTube says it’s getting rid of the dislike counter
Don't worry, though, the dislike button itself isn't going anywhere.
YouTube warns creators of kids’ content to shape up or face demonetization
“Low-quality” content, especially that which blindly pushes products or bad behavior, is in YouTube’s crosshairs.
Black cosplayers are tired of being told who they can and can’t portray
They’re subjected to endless abuse online, but they’re undeterred. “I’m about to change the face of cosplay,” says one Black creator.
‘Stardew Valley’ developer’s next game involves chocolate and ghosts
Watch a preview of the awesomely named “ConcernedApe’s Haunted Chocolatier.”
The eating disorder community is using Nikocado Avocado as ‘thinspiration’
Fans say the infamous mukbanger is eating himself to death. Many use his videos as motivation to go in the opposite — but still very dangerous — direction.
Google is finally kicking climate deniers out of Search and YouTube ads
A long-overdue reconciliation of the company's stance on climate change.
YouTube won't do Rewind this year — or ever again for that matter
The company's annual year-end round-up of popular videos was always controversial for the creators who were, or weren't, featured.
YouTube has only now, today, banned anti-vaccine misinformation
The classic YouTube moderation playbook move: Wait until a problem is out of control to step in.
YouTube briefly removed the ‘I Can't Believe You've Done This’ meme video
On the grounds of *checks notes* violating its violent and graphic content policy?
Watch this YouTuber turn the Shire into an epic wargaming board
One incredibly detailed Lord of the Rings tabletop gaming board to rule them all.
Meet the TikTokers fixated on the Gabby Petito case
Social media abounds with facts and wild theories. “You are not a detective,” says one disinfo expert. “Log off.”
This golden Cup Noodles model is the only thing I want in this world
I would give all my earthly possessions to own this plastic piece of noodle history.
