A masterclass in PR crisis management

Or self destruction?

Wild !👇

brave choice for an email subject title

h/r @cmcalgary.bsky.social

Let’s talk about the TikTok “weather event,” - @mattnavarra.com sent this today. And here’s what stands out to me: if they’re not lying about the data center, what would be the reason that only specific posts about Epstein or ICE are being routed to an Oracle data center?

Has Grok Been Tricked Into Revealing What It Really Thinks of Your X Account? A bunch of bored tech analysts and industrious autists on X claim to have found a way to get Grok to reveal users’ content moderation scores—numerical values, ranging from 1 to 100, that indicate how ...

Read more about the (alledged) X account hostility score:

How to get your X account hostility score🔥

And discover if Elon's X is restricting or boosting your posts

Step 1. Go to this X post x.com/i/grok?conve...

Step 2. Add a reply: "Now do the same for [@username]"

--

X has not confirmed if Grok is hullicanting or leaking internal moderation insights

Elon Musk’s latest feud is an idiotic mudslinging match with a budget airline! 🍿

I spoke to @washingtonpost.com about Ryanair's latest social media stunt that’s generating headlines…

archive.is/KYMQF

ICE becomes one of the most-blocked accounts on Bluesky after its verification | TechCrunch ICE has been verified on Bluesky, and quickly becomes one of the top most-blocked accounts.

The timing of the verification has raised speculation about Bluesky’s internal deliberations, policies, and handling of controversial institutions.

Fediverse tensions rise as bridging, blocking, and government visibility collide.

2/2

ICE becomes one of the most-blocked accounts on Bluesky after its verification | TechCrunch ICE has been verified on Bluesky, and quickly becomes one of the top most-blocked accounts.

ICE has become Bluesky’s 3rd most-blocked account after receiving official verification.

Users recommend direct blocks or curated blocklists targeting all U.S. government accounts.

The White House and VP JD Vance remain the most blocked accounts on Bluesky.

1/2

Elon Musk floats idea of buying Ryanair after calling CEO ‘an idiot’

Musk’s takeover poll saw nearly 900K votes, with 75% encouraging the purchase

www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/20/elon-musk-buying-ryanair-ceo-tesla-michael-oleary-starlink

Elon Musk floats idea of buying Ryanair after calling CEO ‘an idiot’

Musk’s takeover poll saw nearly 900K votes, with 75% encouraging the purchase

www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/20/elon-musk-buying-ryanair-ceo-tesla-michael-oleary-starlink

Elon Musk's response to RyanAir CEOs comment:

"Ryanair CEO is an utter idiot. Fire him."

Ryanair’s CEO Michael O'Leary talking about Elon Musk:

“I would pay no attention to Elon Musk, he’s an IDIOT!”

😆

Facebook tests £9.99 monthly subscription for sharing more than two links Meta is encouraging users to verify themselves to unlock more features or engagement with their posts.

🚨 Facebook Tests Charging Users for Sharing Links in Posts!

No Meta Verified subscription = limited link sharing

Some users now face a 2-link post limit unless they pay £9.99/mth, or more

Meta’s latest power move hits creators + small biz hardest

I gave my analysis of the change to BBC News... 👇

UPDATE 3

According to my sources...
- Links in comments are NOT included in this test

This means adding comments in links should still work.

But some are reporting links being converted to plain text (not hyperlinked) for some posts/profiles/pages. 🤷‍♂️

- Without a Meta Verified sub, links do not get hyperlinked (plain text)

This may frustrate people hoping to workaround the link blocking using the link in comments tactic.

2/2

UPDATE 2

Links in comments (unconfirmed info)

If you're in the test... And have a Meta Verified subscription...

- Links are clickable in comments when added by you on your own posts

- Links are NOT clickable when added to someone else’s post

1/2

UPDATE 1:

Sources tell me that the number of links available to Meta Verified subscribers will vary during the test and increases based on the Mata Verified subscription tier.

I believe only the MAX plan has unlimited links during the test.

Meta Considering Charging Business Pages to Post Links Meta could be set to make a big push to increase Meta Verified take-up.

Key point

This isn’t a platform-wide rule change — it’s a small, limited test

But it does reinforce a broader direction...

Meta Verified is increasingly being treated as a trust layer, not just a badge.

If this expands, it would mark a meaningful shift Link publishing becomes a paywalled feature

Meta's trying to understand whether:

• verified badge acts as a trust signal, esp. when users see links from accts they don’t already follow

• people feel more confident in quality + trustworthiness of links shared by verified accts

• higher link-posting capacity increases value of Meta Verified

From sources familiar with the test, it’s my understanding:

• The test limits how many organic Facebook posts with links some non-verified accounts can publish

• The # of allowed link posts varies by your Meta Verified Subscription tier, with only the MAX tier offering unlimited link posts

Meta confirmed the following to me:

“This is a limited test to understand whether the ability to publish an increased volume of posts with links add additional value for Meta Verified subscribers.”

WOW! Major change being tested on Facebook

Some will love this. Many will HATE it!

Facebook is testing limiting the number a links people can share without a Meta Verified subscription

Some users will be limited to sharing just TWO links per month in organic posts, without a Mera Verified account

Bluesky announces moderation changes focused on better tracking, improved transparency | TechCrunch Bluesky is making moderation changes, including the addition of new reporting categories, strikes, and more clarity when communicating with users about violations.

Users will now be notified what rule they broke, how severe it was, and how close they are to a ban.

An in-app moderation inbox is on the way, replacing email reviews.

But will it be enough to appease users and regulators?

[2/2]

Bluesky revamps its moderation and reporting tools

It now offers 9 granular reporting options, covering harassment, false info, and more.

A revamped strike system now tracks severity and past violations.

And that's not all... [1/2]

The Bluesky exodus, one year later The company has 40 million users and big plans for the future. So why don't its users seem happy? PLUS: The NEO Home Robot goes viral + Ilya Sutskever's surprising deposition

Bluesky Isn’t Twitter—But Critics Say its Still a Hellsite in Disguise

Bluesky now boasts 40M users but fewer active voices

Daily likes have fallen from 2.7M to 1.1M

Features like zen mode + private dislikes to improve vibes

But Bluesky still feels like Twitter’s emotionally exhausting twin

Bluesky Reaches 40M Users — So Should Your Brand Be on It? Bluesky has a growing community of dedicated, knowledgeable users.

Bluesky Reaches 40M Users – So Should Your Brand Be On It?

Bluesky has climbed to 40M users, a modest rise from Aug’s 38M

The platform's explosive growth in late 2024 has now tapered to 1.4M users added mthly

Posting has topped 2B total posts, avg 1.4M daily, though activity is on a slow decline

Bounce introduces a tool to move your Mastodon account to Bluesky | TechCrunch Moving accounts between Mastodon and Bluesky is about to get much easier, thanks to Bounce 2.

Bounce Lets You Ghost Mastodon and Take Your Fans to Bluesky (Or Vice Versa)

Bounce 2 is launching Oct 20, letting Mastodon users jump to Bluesky without ditching their follower list

Users can migrate or merge accounts—fans come with you, posts don’t

You will be able to move in either direction

Mastodon is taking cues from Bluesky with plans for its own starter 'Packs' | TechCrunch Mastodon is planning to make it easier for newcomers to discover curated collections of users to follow by launching a new starter packs feature.

Mastodon will soon launch “Packs” to help new users find people to follow

The feature mimics Bluesky’s Starter Packs but adds privacy and opt-out controls

Unlike Bluesky, Mastodon will let users opt out and alert them if they’re included

Waffles eat Bluesky | TechCrunch A waffle-centric controversy underlines ongoing tensions between Bluesky and some of its most vocal users.

Bluesky Caught in Community Backlash Following CEO “WAFFLES!” reply

CEO Jay Graber’s cryptic “WAFFLES!” response reignited tensions over moderation + Jesse Singal’s presence

Critics accuse Bluesky of ignoring marginalized users

Graber doubled down, posting waffles + defending decentralization

Want an invite code to Open AI's Sora app?

Here's how to get one 👇

I'm have 4 Sora Invite codes to giveaway in my Geekout Newsletter tomorrow.

Subscribe now if you want to grab one of them: geekout.mattnavarra.com/subscribe

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