The Twitter Files Playbook Comes For The US Government Remember the Twitter Files? That carefully orchestrated “exposé” where incredibly gullible hand-picked journalists were given selective access to internal documents to manufacture misle…

Wrote a thing warning people to expect a "Twitter Files" redux, of "The Government Files" in which Elon's dumbest fans will make a bunch of blatantly false conspiracy theory claims, he'll find some credulous "reporter" to repeat them, and people will believe it: www.techdirt.com/2025/02/03/t...

Hi. Are you doomscrolling? A lot of news happened today, and the wildfire in Los Angeles is significant in scope and damage. It's understandable if you're worried. But staring at your phone for hours won't make you feel better. You still deserve time to rest and recover. Try not to stay up too late.

Thought bubble with patriotic decorations and text: "Future of Speech Online (FOSO): AI, Elections, & Speech. September 16-17, 2024."

Join @rebekahtromble.bsky.social, @brandonsilverman.bsky.social @rosejackson.bsky.social, & Agustina Del Campo at #FOSO2024 as they discuss the barriers to election research & the oversight mechanisms needed to study platforms and protect free expression. #elections sttrust.swoogo.com/f...

LAST STOP: “Post-Mortems: Researcher Access to Data” with @rebekahtromble.bsky.social (GW IDDP), @brandonsilverman.bsky.social (GW IDDP), @rosejackson.bsky.social (Atlantic Council), & Agustina Del Campo (Center for Studies on Freedom of Expression). Join us live: youtube.com/live/-EXOaqi...

Heard of the GDC? Trying to make sense of it? Or even just confused as to why I threw a random acronym into your feed? Join us next Tuesday to learn why it REALLY matters and what’s been going on at the UN and the interwebs.

Thanks for listening!

Also that I got to name a serious think tank piece on technology and national security “Hate the Game, not the Player” brings me a level of joy my little nerd heart didn’t know it needed.

Given today’s messaging bill on #TikTok a good time to reup this piece w/ my @dfrlab.bsky.social colleagues assessing #natsec risks, examining the broader digital ecosystem, & highlighting the gaps in tools available to address what most people are actually concerned about dfrlab.org/2024/02/14/t...

dfrlab.org/2024/02/14/t...

TikTok: Hate the Game, Not the Player How strategic and regulatory confusion around TikTok prevent an effective national security response

Around the world, debates over TikTok have taken center stage with politicians and parents alike raising alarms over the app’s influence and Chinese government access. @kentonthibaut.bsky.social, Seth Stodder and @rosejackson.bsky.social right-size the conversation:

Really enjoyed my conversation with @euractiv.com during my trip to Brussels. We discussed the promise and global importance of the #DSA, role of the research community, what to make of the online context with the war between #Israel and #Gaza and more. Thanks Luca for the invitation!

How not? It’s easy to click an Amazon purchase button and have something show up in hours. There is more friction to buy from a local shop (whether because you have to go in person or pay shipping fees) but you do it for other reasons.

Sure, but we weren’t talking biz model so much as how people approach social media. My point was more that platform incentives can be determinative in training user experience and habits.

Internet Access Shouldn't Be a Bargaining Chip In Geopolitical Battles We at EFF are horrified by the events transpiring in the Middle East: Hamas’ deadly attack on southern Israel last weekend and Israel’s ongoing retributive military attack and siege on Gaza. While...

www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...

I think this is the pt @anildash.com is making. Social media is currently set up to prioritize speed & scale which are not the only 2 things we might care about. If u accept some friction off X to provide network effects you might have a space with room for other incentives. Social media can be diff

It’s becoming impossible to report from Gaza In Gaza, electrical and internet outages are making it hard for journalists to do their job — while many are also struggling to evacuate their own families.

“Journalists in Gaza are contending with a massive bombing campaign, electrical and internet outages, food and water shortages, and the psychological burden of reporting on the unfolding crisis while living it themselves." www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/...

I especially enjoyed the part of this game where the CEO threatened to fire me because I banned someone and then I had to testify in front of congress. 10/10, fun experience, would recommend.

So excited to see this out in the world. Check it out. A great intro to the dynamics and incentives at play for those making decisions at companies that impact your experience online.

The Telegram-to-Twitter Pipeline Is Fueling Israel-Hamas Misinformation The messaging app Telegram is a central hub for raw media from the Israel-Hamas war. Under X’s lax moderation, it’s feeding a misinformation mess.

@dfrlab.bsky.social Middle East Research Fellow @dinamsadek.bsky.social spoke with Rolling Stone about how much of the viral Israel-Palestine content seen on Twitter, much of which is mis- and disinformation, gets its start on Telegram.

Trust & Safety Tycoon Manage your team, set policies, make investments, and tackle the challenging world of Trust & Safety

Good morning folks... today we're launching our new (free, browser-based) game Trust & Safety Tycoon. Please go check it out. Everyone thinks they know how trust & safety should work, but very few have actually done the job. Now's your chance! trustandsafety.fun

Scaling trust on the web The Task Force for a Trustworthy Future Web's report captures analysis of the systems gaps and critical opportunities that will define how the next generation of online spaces will be constructed.

This feels like a good time to repost this well researched, collective expert report on innovation, the internet, and societies we want to live in. We’ll call it my manifesto

www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...

@rightsduff.bsky.social @dfrlab.bsky.social

I mean you DO have a podcast

I mean at least he says it all out loud?

I find things usually go great when folks use the word “birthright” in a “manifesto” 😳

a16z.com/the-techno-o...

Mounting concerns over misinformation about Israel-Hamas war on social media | CNN CNN’s Rosemary Church talks to Layla Mashkoor, associate editor at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, about concerns that misinformation about the Israel-Hamas war is rapidly sp...

@dfrlab.bsky.social's @laylam.bsky.social joined CNN International to discuss disinformation and graphic content flooding social media from the war in Israel.

Layla noted that Telegram's lack of content moderation allows Hamas a pipeline to upload these troubling images that then migrate elsewhere.

In Israel-Hamas conflict, social media become tools of propaganda and disinformation Endless flood of false, misleading, and unverified information risks inflaming the conflict

Since Hamas' October 7 attack, there has been an unending torrent of false and unverified information and graphic material online. @dinamsadek.bsky.social and @laylam.bsky.social analyzed popular social platforms finding many Israel and Hamas'-affiliated accounts saw massive jumps in followers:

Search results for life360 – The Markup Data-driven investigations of tech and how it influences society

Just outed myself as That Guy in the group chat for parents at my kid's school by letting folks know that the surveillance apps that they use to stalk their kids also sell children's precise location data to pretty much anyone who wants it. themarkup.org/search?s=lif...

I got to have a wonderful conversation with the incredible Audrey Tang, Taiwan's Digital Minister, about the free and open internet. Here it is! www.taiwanplus.com/shows/origin...

The "multipolar world" tale has been told hundreds of times in Latin America. Now, the scenery of the story is the BRICS

* READ my complete analysis on the @dfrlab.bsky.social website.
dfrlab.org/2023/09/06/p...

Sudan's precarious information environment and the fight for democracy An examination of the time from December 2018, when protests against then-president Omar al-Bashir first broke out, and December 2022, when a framework agreement between civilian and military leaders ...

🆕Report: Democracy Derailed

Take a look through @codeforafrica.bsky.social’s @lujainion.bsky.social + @dfrlab.bsky.social's @awildknight.bsky.social research into 🇸🇩's media ecosystem and the political upheaval affecting the country since 2019.

📰 Read it here: bit.ly/3OCE4t4