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The Case Against Social Media Is Stronger Than You Think

news.ycombinator.com Nathan Witkin 2025-10-31 11:39:17

The Mob, 1935, by Carl Hoeckner 1. Introduction The philosopher Dan Williams recently published two pieces on social media— “Scapegoating the Algorithm” at Asterisk Magazine, and “The Case Against Social Media is Weaker Than You Think” at his Substack. As their titles attest to, both argue that the case against social media, on epistemic and political grounds, has been considerably overstated. I recently published a lengthy essay arguing the opposite: that the case against social media has, i

Topics: evidence media polarization political social

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Social media promised connection, but it has delivered exhaustion

news.ycombinator.com James O'Sullivan 2025-10-31 09:27:19

Credits James O’Sullivan lectures in the School of English and Digital Humanities at University College Cork, where his work explores the intersection of technology and culture. At first glance, the feed looks familiar, a seamless carousel of “For You” updates gliding beneath your thumb. But déjà‑vu sets in as 10 posts from 10 different accounts carry the same stock portrait and the same breathless promise — “click here for free pics” or “here is the one productivity hack you need in 2025.” Swi

Topics: content digital like platforms social

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Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Killer Wrote Meme Messages on Bullet Casings. Here’s Where They Came From

gizmodo.com Matt Novak 2025-10-31 22:25:45

Police in Utah have arrested 22-year-old Tyler Robinson in connection with Wednesday’s shooting death of MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, according to a press conference held Friday by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and FBI Director Kash Patel. Robinson allegedly confessed to a family member that he had been the shooter, and a family friend called the police before he was arrested in the early morning hours of Friday. “Tyler Robinson reached out to a family friend w

Topics: ciao don friday right robinson

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After Kirk shooting, Utah governor calls social media a “cancer.” Will we treat it like one?

arstechnica.com Unknown 2025-11-01 09:55:49

The conservative broadcaster/provocateur Charlie Kirk—murdered this week during a visit to a Utah college—had tweeted some life advice this summer: "When things are moving very fast and people are losing their minds, it’s important to stay grounded. Turn off your phone, read scripture, spend time with friends, and remember internet fury is not real life. It’s going to be ok." Kirk was not himself always a great role model for staying grounded, thoughtful, or caring to others. He was better know

Topics: arrow bella ciao internet kirk

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Senators demand ICE cease use of facial recognition app

engadget.com Unknown 2025-11-04 10:21:47

Senators Edward J. Markey, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley sent a letter Thursday to Acting US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Todd Lyons urging the agency to stop using “Mobile Fortify,” a smartphone app that uses biometric identification, including facial recognition. The lawmakers said facial recognition remains unreliable and warned that real-time surveillance could have a chilling effect on constitutionally protected activities. "As studies have shown, when individuals believ

Topics: agency facial ice recognition use

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Ban social media for under-15s, says French report warning of TikTok risks

feeds.bbci.co.uk Unknown 2025-11-04 20:38:43

Ban social media for under-15s, says French report warning of TikTok risks 23 minutes ago Share Save Paul Kirby Europe digital editor Share Save Bertrand GUAY/AFP Lead author Laure Miller (R) and Arthure Delaporte chaired the six-month commission French children under 15 should be banned from social media and there should be an overnight "digital curfew" for 15-18 year olds, a parliamentary commission has recommended. The six-month inquiry into the psychological effects of TikTok on minors ha

Topics: children french inquiry social tiktok

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AI's $344B 'Language Model' Bet Looks Fragile

news.ycombinator.com Parmy Olson 2025-11-05 09:49:24

Every investor knows not to put all your eggs in one basket. So why is Silicon Valley betting on just one way to build artificial intelligence? This year the world’s four largest tech firms will spend $344 billion on AI, mostly on data centers used to train and run so-called large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT that can process text, audio and visual content. The technology is largely underpinned by the same technique of predicting tokens that appear next in a sequence.

Topics: 344 ai appear artificial audio

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Top Democrat Calls for Congressional Probe Into Ties Between Jeffrey Epstein and Peter Thiel

gizmodo.com Lucas Ropek 2025-11-06 15:40:17

The Jeffrey Epstein scandal continues to plague the Trump administration, and on Wednesday, a prominent Democratic senator called for Congress to investigate the financial ties between the dead sex criminal and a host of financial organizations and people, including tech billionaire Peter Thiel. Much of the debate about the “Epstein files” has centered around what records the Justice Department may have on his illicit sex crimes but, according to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), the more important fi

Topics: department epstein financial thiel wyden

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Robinhood Is Building a Social Network for Following Market Movers’ Trades

gizmodo.com Ece Yildirim 2025-11-07 00:24:45

Social media has an unprecedented sway over stock prices. Financial influencers give stock advice on YouTube and TikTok. Trading communities on X and Reddit resurrect financially undesirable stocks from their ashes just for the sake of memes. It’s undeniable that a growing subset of investors are adamant on using platforms like X, Reddit, YouTube, and TikTok to make their financial decisions. The X-based finance community even has a name for themselves: FinTwit. Popular online brokerage Robinh

Topics: media robinhood social stock trades

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AI gaming startup Born raises $15M to build ‘social’ AI companions that combat loneliness

techcrunch.com Rebecca Bellan 2025-11-08 00:00:00

Fabian Kamberi, CEO and co-founder of the Berlin-based AI gaming startup Born, thinks the current AI companions on the market are designed to be exploitative and geared towards isolating users through one-to-one relationships with AI chatbots. “It feels like it fuels the loneliness epidemic, instead of making it more fun and giving users the opportunity to make their lives better,” Kamberi told TechCrunch. The future of AI companions, he says, is about shared experiences that strengthen real-w

Topics: ai born kamberi social users

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Nepal lifts social media ban after 19 people were killed during protests

engadget.com Unknown 2025-11-11 00:00:07

Nepal's government has lifted its ban on social media apps including Facebook and X after at least 19 people were killed yesterday during protests, The Guardian reported. "We have withdrawn the shutdown of the social media. They are working now," said communications minister Prithvi Subba Gurung. In a new development, Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli has resigned due to the unrest, his aide told Reuters. Last week, the government announced it was blocking 26 social media platforms due to no

Topics: advertisement media nepal people social

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A New Platform Offers Privacy Tools to Millions of Public Servants

wired.com Dell Cameron 2025-11-11 10:00:00

A first-of-its-kind marketplace rolled out on Tuesday offering free and discounted privacy and security services to America’s 23 million current and former public servants. The initiative is supported by the Public Service Alliance (PSA), a nonprofit group that says it formed last summer following an unprecedented rise in threats against government workers across the United States. Open to anyone who is serving or has served in government—federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial—the platfo

Topics: members officials psa public says

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Nepal lifts social media ban after 19 killed in protests

feeds.bbci.co.uk Unknown 2025-11-11 11:51:11

Nepal lifts social media ban after 19 killed in protests 2 hours ago Share Save Kelly Ng BBC News Share Save Watch: Fire and tear gas as protesters clash with police in Nepal Nepal has lifted a social media ban after it led to clashes between protesters and police that have left at least 19 people dead. Thousands of young people had forced their way into the parliament building in the capital Kathmandu on Monday, asking the government to lift its ban on 26 social media platforms, including Fa

Topics: ban corruption media people social

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Nepal reverses social media ban as protests turn deadly

techcrunch.com Jagmeet Singh 2025-11-11 12:46:32

Nepal has made a dramatic U-turn, reversing a social media ban imposed last week after the decision sparked nationwide “Gen Z” protests that reportedly left at least 19 people dead. The ban, which blocked access to 26 platforms including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X, was imposed following an August 25 directive requiring foreign social media companies to register their operations in Nepal and appoint a local contact within seven days. When most platforms failed to comply by the deadline,

Topics: ban government media nepal social

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World Nuclear Association Welcomes Microsoft Corporation as Newest Member

news.ycombinator.com Unknown 2025-11-11 18:01:18

LONDON, UK –World Nuclear Association is proud to announce that Microsoft Corporation, one of the world's leading technology companies, has officially joined as our newest member. This landmark membership underscores the growing recognition of nuclear energy as an essential foundation for powering the digital economy and achieving ambitious climate goals. A Transformative Partnership for Clean Energy Leadership In order to meet growing electricity demand globally, the world not only needs to c

Topics: association energy microsoft nuclear world

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Sam Altman says that bots are making social media feel ‘fake’

techcrunch.com Julie Bort 2025-11-11 20:24:42

X enthusiast and Reddit shareholder Sam Altman had an epiphany on Monday: Bots have made it impossible to determine whether social media posts are really written by humans, he posted. The realization came while reading (and sharing) some posts from the r/Claudecode subreddit, which were praising OpenAI Codex. OpenAI launched the software programming service that takes on Anthropic’s Claude Code in May. Lately, that subreddit has been so filled with posts from self-proclaimed Code users announc

Topics: altman bots openai posts social

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Microsoft doubles down on small modular reactors and fusion energy

news.ycombinator.com Efosa Udinmwen 2025-11-12 04:16:39

Microsoft is chasing carbon-free energy while data demand keeps rising The World Nuclear Association gains unprecedented visibility through Microsoft’s membership Small modular reactors are being framed as digital infrastructure’s next foundation Microsoft has officially joined the World Nuclear Association (WNA), making it the first global technology company of its scale to do so. The announcement comes at a time when the nuclear industry is attempting to position itself as a necessary part

Topics: association energy microsoft nuclear world

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Vodafone is testing an AI 'actor' to sell its products instead of paying a human to do it

engadget.com Unknown 2025-11-12 15:53:01

Vodafone made a commercial starring an AI avatar posing as a real lady. This is interesting because Vodafone is a major global brand and not a fly-by-night TikTok company using a ridiculous deepfake of Jackson Galaxy to sell cat toys. The tells in the commercial are obvious and what one would expect. The AI avatar's hair is a bit off, which ruins the charade that this is a real person. The physical mannerisms and speaking tone are also wonky. A facial mole moves around at one point. It's AI. Yo

Topics: ai commercial company real vodafone

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Nepal Bans 26 Social Media Platforms, Including Facebook and YouTube

news.ycombinator.com Bhadra Sharma 2025-11-14 00:10:46

Nepal’s government has banned dozens of social media platforms after they failed to comply with new registration requirements, disrupting essential communication and raising concerns over free speech. The 26 blocked platforms include messaging apps like WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and WeChat, as well as websites like YouTube and LinkedIn. The ban, which went into effect on Thursday after a one-week ultimatum to the social media companies expired, has caused confusion across the country. It h

Topics: like media nepal platforms social

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5 Things We Loved, 3 Things We Didn’t About ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 Part 2

gizmodo.com Sabina Graves 2025-11-14 00:15:54

Season 2 of Wednesday is finally available to watch in its entirety on Netflix. And while the first half introduced a solid return, the second half almost holds up before a messy to-be-continued conclusion. Tim Burton puts his whole Burtonesque business on full display with a third-act antagonist reveal that both works and doesn’t. The Addams family being at the mechanical heart of another mystery creates a lot of fun lore for Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) to discover about her parents. This time Mo

Topics: family loved morticia season wednesday

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I kissed comment culture goodbye

news.ycombinator.com Sustainable Views 2025-11-14 09:11:39

It started out harmlessly, a comment on hacker news roughly 16 years ago. From there it expanded to reddit, substack, twitter. And it increased in frequency, from every few months to every week, peaking at several times a day. It became an addictive, productive habit—I would scan the headlines for a catchy title, quickly skim the piece, and then race to the comment section and type one out. Sometimes the comments were insightful or funny. At other times, curt or nitpicky. It was an exercise of

Topics: comment culture friends internet social

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The Day I Kissed Comment Culture Goodbye

news.ycombinator.com Sustainable Views 2025-11-14 15:11:39

It started out harmlessly, a comment on hacker news roughly 16 years ago. From there it expanded to reddit, substack, twitter. And it increased in frequency, from every few months to every week, peaking at several times a day. It became an addictive, productive habit—I would scan the headlines for a catchy title, quickly skim the piece, and then race to the comment section and type one out. Sometimes the comments were insightful or funny. At other times, curt or nitpicky. It was an exercise of

Topics: comment culture friends internet social

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Nepal blocks most social media sites for failing to register with the government

engadget.com Unknown 2025-11-16 00:15:12

The government of Nepal is blocking commonly used social platforms including Facebook, X, Instagram, WeChat, Reddit and YouTube due to noncompliance with a new law requiring them to register with the government, The Associated Press reported. Five platforms including TikTok and Viber that did register in the country were exempted from the ban. Social media companies were asked to provide a local contact, grievance handler and person responsible for self-regulation to avoid a shutdown and many a

Topics: government media nepal platforms social

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The New ‘Street Fighter’ Movie Finally Has a Release Date

gizmodo.com Gordon Jackson 2025-11-16 00:00:45

James Gunn provides an update on Man of Tomorrow, Fall literally flips on its side for Fall 2, and Bigfoot ruins a dating contest. It’s morning spoilers! The Earthling Deadline reports Final Destination: Bloodlines’ Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein are attached to direct The Earthling, an adaptation of Jonathan Marty’s unpublished short story at Columbia Pictures. The plot is firmly under wraps, but the “survival sci-fi story” is said to contain “shades of The Martian and Edge of Tomorrow.” Patri

Topics: blood fall patricia tomorrow trailer

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Nepal moves to block Facebook, X, YouTube and others

news.ycombinator.com Unknown 2025-11-16 16:31:58

The restrictions come after the social media giants failed to meet state registration requirements, says government. Nepal’s government has said it will shut off access to major social media platforms, including Facebook and X, after they failed to comply with authorities’ registration requirements. The move, announced on Thursday, is part of what the government says is an effort to curb online hate, rumours and cybercrime. Companies were given a deadline of Wednesday to register with the Min

Topics: government media nepal platforms social

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Nepal blocks Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X over rule breach, amid censorship concerns

techcrunch.com Jagmeet Singh 2025-11-17 15:06:54

Nepal has ordered internet service providers to block access to major social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X, after the companies failed to comply with local registration rules — drawing criticism from media rights groups and raising concerns over censorship and free expression. On Thursday, Nepal’s Ministry of Communication and Information Technology directed the Nepal Telecommunications Authority to instruct internet service providers to restrict access to 26 so

Topics: government media nepal platforms social

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Commercials Are Coming to NFL RedZone This Season... Sigh

cnet.com See Full Bio 2025-11-18 00:31:55

The game of football is perfectly suited for television. Like most sports, football provides a natural break at the end of each quarter or half of play, as well as after a team scores, where the TV broadcast can cut to a commercial. Unlike other sports, a change in possession in football requires a full replacement of every player on the field, giving broadcasters additional opportunities for ad breaks as players run off and on the field. Football fans know this much before sitting down to watc

Topics: commercial espn football nfl redzone

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Madrid’s Orbital Paradigm aims to prove a cheaper path to orbital reentry

techcrunch.com Aria Alamalhodaei 2025-11-19 10:00:00

Francesco Cacciatore is a self-proclaimed skeptic. Yet after spending two decades in the European aerospace industry and hitting, as he put it, a “crisis,” he made an undeniably optimistic bet: he started a space company. “You ask yourself, ‘What am I doing?’” he said in a recent interview. “I got offered some interesting opportunities, but then I kind of collapsed and realized I wanted to try and build something myself.” That something turned out to be one of the most challenging problems in

Topics: cacciatore capsule company orbital space

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New knot theory discovery overturns long-held mathematical assumption

news.ycombinator.com Max Springer 2025-11-17 08:35:22

Scanning the crowd at a fancy soiree may reveal a wide array of neckties, each fastened with a highly complex mathematical object masquerading as fashion. An entire field of mathematics is devoted to understanding mathematical knots, which one can obtain from any traditional knot by gluing the loose ends together. Mathematicians long believed that if you attach cut ends of two different knots to each other, the new knot will be just as complex as the sum of the individual knots’ complexity. But

Topics: knot knots mathematicians number unknotting

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New Knot Theory Discovery Overturns Long-Held Mathematical Assumption

news.ycombinator.com Max Springer 2025-11-18 02:35:22

Scanning the crowd at a fancy soiree may reveal a wide array of neckties, each fastened with a highly complex mathematical object masquerading as fashion. An entire field of mathematics is devoted to understanding mathematical knots, which one can obtain from any traditional knot by gluing the loose ends together. Mathematicians long believed that if you attach cut ends of two different knots to each other, the new knot will be just as complex as the sum of the individual knots’ complexity. But

Topics: knot knots mathematicians number unknotting

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Latest Tech News

The Case Against Social Media Is Stronger Than You Think

Social media promised connection, but it has delivered exhaustion

Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Killer Wrote Meme Messages on Bullet Casings. Here’s Where They Came From

After Kirk shooting, Utah governor calls social media a “cancer.” Will we treat it like one?

Senators demand ICE cease use of facial recognition app

Ban social media for under-15s, says French report warning of TikTok risks

AI's $344B 'Language Model' Bet Looks Fragile

Top Democrat Calls for Congressional Probe Into Ties Between Jeffrey Epstein and Peter Thiel

Robinhood Is Building a Social Network for Following Market Movers’ Trades

AI gaming startup Born raises $15M to build ‘social’ AI companions that combat loneliness

Nepal lifts social media ban after 19 people were killed during protests

A New Platform Offers Privacy Tools to Millions of Public Servants

Nepal lifts social media ban after 19 killed in protests

Nepal reverses social media ban as protests turn deadly

World Nuclear Association Welcomes Microsoft Corporation as Newest Member

Sam Altman says that bots are making social media feel ‘fake’

Microsoft doubles down on small modular reactors and fusion energy

Vodafone is testing an AI 'actor' to sell its products instead of paying a human to do it

Nepal Bans 26 Social Media Platforms, Including Facebook and YouTube

5 Things We Loved, 3 Things We Didn’t About ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 Part 2

I kissed comment culture goodbye

The Day I Kissed Comment Culture Goodbye

Nepal blocks most social media sites for failing to register with the government

The New ‘Street Fighter’ Movie Finally Has a Release Date

Nepal moves to block Facebook, X, YouTube and others

Nepal blocks Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X over rule breach, amid censorship concerns

Commercials Are Coming to NFL RedZone This Season... Sigh

Madrid’s Orbital Paradigm aims to prove a cheaper path to orbital reentry

New knot theory discovery overturns long-held mathematical assumption

New Knot Theory Discovery Overturns Long-Held Mathematical Assumption

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