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‘It’s really sad’: US TikTok users rethink app over concerns about privacy and censorship
Some users are stepping away from the app after it made a deal to create a US entity and updated terms and conditions Many TikTok users across the US say they’re rethinking their relationship with the platform since its ownership and terms and conditions have recently changed, with some citing censorship and lack of trust…
Why TikTok’s first week of American ownership was a disaster
App endured a major outage and user backlash over perceived censorship. Now it’s facing an inquiry by the California governor and an ascendant competitor A little more than one week ago, TikTok stepped on to US shores as a naturalized citizen. Ever since, the video app has been fighting for its life. TikTok’s calamitous emigration…
How the left can win back the internet – and rise again | Robert Topinka
In the final part of this series, we look at how infighting has ripped the left apart online while the right has flourished – and how some progressives are turning the tide Robert Topinka is a reader in digital media and rhetoric at Birkbeck, University of London Part one: How liberals lost the internet Part…
Can you guess our screen time? A priest, pensioner, tech CEO and teenager reveal all
From the person who scrolls on the toilet to the one without any social media, what do their digital habits tell us? • Will Storr: we have lost so much of ourselves to smartphones – can we get it back? Dayeon, 16: the teenager who spends less than an hour a day on screens Continue…
‘This can’t be left to individual families’: how social media ban could affect under-16s
Parents, teachers and young people share their views on whether social media restrictions would work in the UK Pressure is mounting on the UK government to introduce a ban on social media for under-16s, after a decisive vote in House of Lords in favour of Australian-style restrictions. Peers backed a Tory-led amendment to the children’s…
Millions creating deepfake nudes on Telegram as AI tools drive global wave of digital abuse
Analysis finds at least 150 channels on messaging app that are distributing AI-generated images and video Millions of people around the world are creating and sharing deepfake nudes on the secure messaging app Telegram, a Guardian analysis has shown, as the spread of advanced AI tools industrialises the online abuse of women. The Guardian has…
Meet ‘Amelia’: the AI-generated British schoolgirl who is a far-right social media star
The avatar, created to deter young people from extremism, has been subverted and is breaking out of niche online silos In certain corners of the internet, on niche news feeds and algorithms, an AI-generated British schoolgirl has emerged as something of a phenomenon. Her name is Amelia, a purple-haired “goth girl” who proudly carries a…
Experts warn of threat to democracy from ‘AI bot swarms’ infesting social media
Misinformation technology could be deployed at scale to disrupt 2028 US presidential election, AI researchers say Political leaders could soon launch swarms of human-imitating AI agents to reshape public opinion in a way that threatens to undermine democracy, a high profile group of experts in AI and online misinformation has warned. The Nobel peace prize-winning…
Lords put pressure on Starmer with vote to ban social media for under-16s
Commons will now have to consider Tory-led amendment, which is likely to be supported by Labour MPs As a parent – and a Conservative – I know that banning social media for under-16s is the right thing to do The House of Lords has voted decisively for a ban on social media for under-16s in…
UK study to examine effects of restricting social media for children
Trial involving 4,000 children will explore impact on mental health, sleep and time spent with friends and family A pioneering investigation into the impact of restricting social media access for children in the UK has been announced as politicians around the world consider action on the issue. In December, Australia became the first country to…