NYT columnist faces conflict of interest accusations after singing praise for Facebook 'Groups' feature in tech giant's blog post
rt.com | 2021-02-27
New York Times writer David Brooks has come under fire for a potential conflict of interest after penning a blog post for Facebook's corporate site while a project he helped to found accepted money from the social media giant. | A 900-word post by Brooks appeared on a company blogging platform on Tuesday, stressing the importance of "trust" in online communities in a thinly-veiled promotion of Facebook's "Groups" feature. The piece coincid…
rt.com/usa/516732-david-brooks-facebook-post/
Facebook's news blockade in Australia shows how tech giants are swallowing the web
The Conversation | juancole.com | 2021-02-26
By Jennifer Grygiel | — When Facebook disabled Australians' access to news articles on its platform, and blocked sharing of articles from Australian news organizations, the company moved a step closer to killing the World Wide Web — the hyperlink-based system of freely connecting online sites created in 1989 by Sir Tim Berners-Lee. Though the …
juancole.com/2021/02/facebooks-australia-swallowing.html
Real media diversity won't come when corporations dictate the terms
Pip Hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2021-02-26
Facebook's "Zucker" punch successfully forced the federal government's hand. It is another reason why we need to fight for real public interest journalism, argues Zebedee Parkes.
greenleft.org.au/content/real-media-diversity-wont-come-when-corporations-dictate-terms
Real media diversity won't come when corporations dictate the terms
Pip Hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2021-02-26
Facebook's "Zucker" punch on February 18, disabling large sections of Facebook in protest at the federal government's news media bargaining code (NMBC), which led to amendments and the bill becoming law on February 25, reveals the enormous power of the media corporations.
greenleft.org.au/content/real-media-diversity-wont-come-when-corporations-dictate-terms
One of the Anti-Maskers who Stormed Trader Joe's Said She Carries a Knife
Unmasking the Anti-Maskers | indybay.org | 2021-02-26
Staci Lares, who is one of the anti-mask protesters who stormed Trader Joe's in Santa Cruz on February 13, has stated that she carries a knife. "Mask nazis @ Tar J Know me & my knife now," Lares stated on social media in December, referring to a previous anti-mask protest she helped organize at a Trader Joe's in Santa Clara County. Lares' post about carrying a knife was made to David Rodriguez's Santa Cruz Voluntaryists Facebook group, where the protest at Trader Joe's in Santa Cruz was informally discussed and then organized among members. One of the Santa Cruz Voluntaryists asked on the group post for clarifica…
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/02/25/18840294.php
Facebook lifts ban on news pages in Australia
Online News Editor | laprensalatina.com | 2021-02-26
Sydney, Australia, Feb 26 (efe-epa).- Facebook on Friday lifted the ban it had imposed last week on the publication of news on its platform in Australia. Facebook's decision came a day after the approval by the Australian government of a law that requires technology companies to pay media for the content they publish on their …
laprensalatina.com/facebook-lifts-ban-on-news-pages-in-australia/
Mars trip 'can only be understood through Black Americans', NASA tweets, celebrating renaming of HQ building
rt.com | 2021-02-26
The US space agency has renamed its DC headquarters after NASA's first black female engineer Mary Jackson, celebrating with a poem about "going to Mars" even as the agency delayed the planned return to the moon. | Long merely called "NASA Headquarters," the Washington, DC building was officially renamed in honor of Jackson on Friday. She became the space agency's first black female engineer in 1958, seven years after joining its predecessor the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). | "The trip to Mars can only be understood through Black Americans." — Poet and educator Nikki Giovanni reads…
rt.com/usa/516729-nasa-black-engineer-building-woke/
'Stunning and brave?' Oreo Cookie called out for marketing ploy after tweeting 'Trans people EXIST'
rt.com | 2021-02-26
Oreo Cookie may have been trying to signal a boldly virtuous statement for social justice by proclaiming that "Trans people exist," but while the message struck a chord with some, it fell flat with many denouncing it as a PR move. | …
rt.com/usa/516612-oreo-cookies-trans-people/
Netizens Spotlight Psaki's Old 'Sovereign Country' Tweet After US Airstrikes in Syria
sputniknews.com | 2021-02-26
Earlier in the day, the Pentagon confirmed that the United States had carried out airstrikes targeting "Iranian-backed" militia assets on Syrian territory, on the order of President Joe Biden, asserting that the purpose of the strikes was to "de-escalate" the situation in Eastern Syria and Iraq.
sputniknews.com/viral/202102261082191545-netizens-spotlight-psakis-old-sovereign-country-tweet-after-us-airstrikes-in-syria/
Dem operative turned Facebook comms director apologizes for 'hate speech' label on congresswoman's video with transgender flag
rt.com | 2021-02-25
Rep. Marie Newman (D-Illinois) was outraged after Facebook briefly flagged a video of her putting a transgender flag outside the office of Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene (R-Georgia) as "hate speech." | "Facebook took down our video of me putting up the Transgender flag outside my office and labeled it as 'hate speech,'" Newman tweeted on Thursday. | She blasted the social media platform for censoring her content — typically a complaint from conservatives — but allowing Taylor-Greene's own "transphobic" fo…
rt.com/usa/516597-marie-newman-transgender-flag-facebook/
Facebook reaches deal with Australian government
wsws.org | 2021-02-25
The deal involved an amendment to government legislation, backed by the opposition Labor party, that requires Facebook to pay news outlets for content under a bargaining code…
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/02/25/aust-f25.html
Australia Forces Tech Giants To Pay News Publishers with Law
telesurenglish.net | 2021-02-25
On Thursday, the Australian parliament passed an unprecedented law that forces tech companies to pay publishers for news content on their platforms. | RELATED: | Australian Forests Will Not Recover From Fires Easily | The legislation "will ensure that news media businesses are fairly remunerated for the content they generate," Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said in a statement. These giants such as Facebook and Google have firmly rejected the initiative. | This is precisely what Facebook was…
telesurenglish.net/news/Australia-Forces-Tech-Giants-To-Pay-To-News-Publishers-by-Law-20210225-0030.html
50,000+ Petition Delivered to Facebook. "Not to Include 'Zionist' in Is Hate Speech Policy"
Jewish Voice for Peace | globalresearch.ca | 2021-02-25
All Global Research articles can be read in 27 languages by activating the "Translate Website" drop down menu on the top banner of our home page (Desktop version). | *** | From Menlo Park to Dublin, Johannesburg to Tel Aviv-Yaffo, activists in …
globalresearch.ca/50000-petition-delivered-facebook-17-cities-around-world/5738335
At least 8 killed in Myanmar violence as Facebook bans military accounts
Online News Editor | laprensalatina.com | 2021-02-25
Yangon, Myanmar, Feb 25 (efe-epa).- At least eight people have been killed in Myanmar, including three shot by police, due to violence after the coup on Feb. 1, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners While the official number of deaths stands at three, which includes those protesters that have been shot dead with …
laprensalatina.com/at-least-8-killed-in-myanmar-violence-as-facebook-bans-military-accounts/
Australia passes law for Google and Facebook to pay local media
Online News Editor | laprensalatina.com | 2021-02-25
Sydney, Australia, Feb 25 (efe-epa).- Australia approved Thursday a pioneering law for Google and Facebook to pay local media for the publication of their journalistic content, a week after the platform led by Mark Zuckerberg was banned from publishing news in the country. The law "will ensure media receive fair remuneration for the content they …
laprensalatina.com/australia-passes-law-for-google-and-facebook-to-pay-local-media/
Australia Passes Law Requiring Google, Facebook Pay For News
sputniknews.com | 2021-02-25
Google Australia Managing Director Melanie Silva told Aussie senators last month that the news media bill, as it stood at the time, would result in a revocation of the country's access to Google Search. In recent weeks, Facebook also responded to the legislation by blocking the sharing of news on Facebook and Instagram in Australia.
sputniknews.com/us/202102251082178604-australia-passes-law-requiring-google-facebook-pay-for-news/
US journalist Bilal Abdul Kareem banned from reporting by Syrian militants
Simon Hooper | middleeasteye.net | 2021-02-25
US journalist Bilal Abdul Kareem banned from reporting by Syrian militants | Idlib-based reporter cannot appear on social media for six months following release by HTS, according to his own news network | Simon Hooper | Thu, 02/25/2021 – 12: 02 | Bilal Abdul Kareem stands in front of a mural in Idlib showing George Floyd, an American man killed by police, in 2020 (Twitter) | An American journalist based in Syria's o…
www.middleeasteye.net/news/us-journalist-bilal-abdul-kareem-banned-reporting-syrian-militants
300,000+ Demand Biden Stop Line 3 and Dakota Access Pipelines to 'Secure the Livable Future We All Deserve'
Jessica Corbett, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2021-02-25
"If we're going to build back better, as Biden says, we'll need to end dangerous pipeline construction, prevent all new fossil fuel infrastructure, and Build Back Fossil Free." | twitter.com/indivisible_nmh/status/1362241112900071424/photo/1…
commondreams.org/news/2021/02/25/300000-demand-biden-stop-line-3-and-dakota-access-pipelines-secure-livable-future-we?cd-origin=rss
As leaks expose UK op to 'weaken' Russia, suppression of Grayzone reporting backfires
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2021-02-25
Twitter added an unprecedented "warning" to Max Blumenthal's Grayzone article about explosive leaks revealing a massive UK government anti-Russia propaganda operation involving Reuters, BBC, and Bellingcat. Instead of suppressing the article, it went viral. After The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal reported on newly leaked documents exposing a massive UK government propaganda campaign against Russia, Twitter added an unprecedented warning label that the material "may have been obtained through hacking." Although Twitter may have intended to restrict the article, the warning had …
thegrayzone.com/2021/02/25/as-leaks-expose-uk-op-to-weaken-russia-suppression-of-grayzone-reporting-backfires/
As leaks expose UK op to 'weaken' Russia, suppression of Grayzone reporting backfires
Max Blumenthal | thegrayzone.com | 2021-02-25
Twitter added an unprecedented "warning" to Max Blumenthal's Grayzone article about explosive leaks revealing a massive UK government anti-Russia propaganda operation involving Reuters, BBC, and Bellingcat. Instead of suppressing the article, it went viral. After The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal reported on newly leaked documents exposing a massive UK government propaganda campaign against Russia, Twitter added an unprecedented warning label that the material "may have been obtained through hacking." Although Twitter may have intended to restrict the article, the warning had …
thegrayzone.com/2021/02/25/as-leaks-expose-uk-op-to-weaken-russia-suppression-of-grayzone-reporting-backfires/
As Telegram and Parler gain traction, Twitter tries to keep users by introducing PAID Super Followers
rt.com | 2021-02-25
Twitter has announced upcoming massive changes to their platform, including allowing users to get paid by followers and the ability to create groups based on certain subjects. | Users will soon be able to get paid by what is referred to as Super Followers access to bonus content, such as a newsletter subscription or bonus tweets. Direct paid subscription features have been successful on other social media platforms, though Twitter has not revealed what sort of fee they will be taking once the feature is finally added to their service. | There will also be a new group feature added to the service called Communi…
rt.com/usa/516605-twitter-super-followers/
Israel suspends sending its Covid vaccine doses to other countries amid legal scrutiny & defense minister's objections
rt.com | 2021-02-25
The office of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has halted the sending of Covid-19 jabs to other countries after the move sparked questions from the state attorney general and angered Defense Minister Benny Gantz. | The suspension was announced on Thursday, shortly after Israel's attorney general, Avichai Mandelblit, asked National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat for clarification on the program. | Gantz has welcomed the freeze, writing on Twitter that Netanyahu's order to send the surplus of Israeli vaccines to foreig…
rt.com/news/516590-gantz-netanyahu-israel-vaccine/
Twitter Testing Paid 'Super Follows' Feature in Bid to Double Profits by 2024
sputniknews.com | 2021-02-25
Twitter users have often joked they "can't believe this website is free," but the tech giant's model of profiting by selling data licenses and targeted advertising services doesn't seem to be capable of delivering the robust cashflow desired by its high-powered investors.
sputniknews.com/science/202102251082190172-twitter-testing-paid-super-follows-feature-in-bid-to-double-profits-by-2024/
'Thanks Jack!': Twitter's 'Hacked' Documents Warning Backfires, Leading to Exposé Going Viral
sputniknews.com | 2021-02-25
A few days after a major exposé of a UK government funded influence campaign targeting Russia, which also implicated Reuters, Bellingcat and the BBC, Twitter applied a warning label to any post sharing the article via the social media giant's platform.
sputniknews.com/news/202102251082184874-thanks-jack-twitters-hacked-documents-warning-backfires-leading-to-expos-going-viral/
Republican Hypocrisy is No Reason to Support Neera Tanden
Norman Solomon | counterpunch.org | 2021-02-25
Most corporate media outlets have depicted President Biden's effort to win Senate confirmation of Neera Tanden as a battle to overcome Republican hypocrisy about her "mean tweets," name-calling and nasty partisanship. But there are very important reasons to prevent Tanden from becoming the Office of Management and Budget director. They have nothing to do with…
counterpunch.org/2021/02/25/republican-hypocrisy-is-no-reason-to-support-neera-tanden/
US must NOT ask Iran to stop remedies under Article 36: Zarif
Mehr News Agency | en.mehrnews.com | 2021-02-25
TEHRAN, Feb. 25 (MNA) — In a tweet on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif underscored that the US must NOT ask Iran to stop remedies defined under Article 36 of the JCPOA.
en.mehrnews.com/news/170388/US-must-NOT-ask-Iran-to-stop-remedies-under-Article-36-Zarif
Guardian Columnist's Firing Over Israel Joke Highlights Paper's Rightward Drift
Ari Paul | zcomm.org | 2021-02-25
The Guardian has fired one of its columnists for its US edition, Nathan Robinson, because Robinson jokingly tweeted about US military aid to Israel…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/guardian-columnists-firing-over-israel-joke-highlights-papers-rightward-drift/
Iranian press review: MP's tweet supporting Princess Latifa sparks online backlash
MEE correspondent | middleeasteye.net | 2021-02-25
Iranian press review: MP's tweet supporting Princess Latifa sparks online backlash | Meanwhile, conservatives squeeze Rouhani to prevent breakthrough in talks with UN nuclear watchdog and timber traffickers use cars to avoid police detection | MEE correspondent | Thu, 02/25/2021 – 09: 56 | Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum (L) having a meal with Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland,…
www.middleeasteye.net/news/iran-uae-princess-latifa-support-online-backlash-press-review
Twitter's Attempt to Suppress Grayzone Reporting Backfires as Warning Label Becomes Meme
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2021-02-24
"The new Twitter scare label illustrates the threat our kind of factual reporting presents to a national security state that must employ social media censorship to conceal its agenda from the public." — The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal…
mintpressnews.com/twitter-attempt-suppress-grayzone-reporting-backfires-warning-label-becomes-meme/275616/
The Real Threat To Free Speech? Florida's Courts
_____ | popularresistance.org | 2021-02-24
Gov. Ron DeSantis and some other Florida Republicans are worked up over a perceived threat to the freedom of speech of politicians, but they're ignoring a more significant threat to the public's right to speak. | They're upset that Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms have begun to suppress posts they deem flagrantly false or socially offensive, particularly those from their favorite ex-president. | But that isn't a First Amendment issue. Those are private corporations, not government entities. | The legitimate First Amendment threat they are ignoring is the misuse of Florida's courts to suppress a…
popularresistance.org/the-real-threat-to-free-speech-floridas-courts/
50,000+ Petition Delivered to Corporate Offices in 17 Cities Around the World Calling on Facebook to Allow Users to Hold Israeli Government Accountable
commondreams.org | 2021-02-24
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2021/02/24/50000-petition-delivered-corporate-offices-17-cities-around-world-calling?cd-origin=rss
Sweden, Denmark Preparing 'Australian-Style' Laws That Will Press Facebook to Pay for News Content
sputniknews.com | 2021-02-24
The new legislation is meant to strengthen the position of publishers and ensure fair competition. In the words of the Danish culture minister, failure to comply and losing quality news content will result in Facebook devolving into a gathering of "tinfoil hats and conspiracy theorists".
sputniknews.com/europe/202102241082167136-sweden-denmark-preparing-australian-style-laws-that-will-press-facebook-to-pay-for-news-content/
Twitter Deletes Dozens of Russian Accounts for "Undermining Faith in NATO"
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2021-02-24
A propaganda system is far more effective — and dangerous — when those inside are unaware of it and believe themselves to be free from influence.
mintpressnews.com/twitter-deletes-accounts-for-undermining-faith-in-nato/275641/
Cuban President Honors Start of the 1895 Independence War
telesurenglish.net | 2021-02-24
As part of the celebration of the Cuban independence uprising of February 24, 1895, President Miguel Díaz-Canel honored this date by evoking the words of Cuban National Hero José Martí. "It is February 24, a day to tell and sing history," expressed the Cuban president via Twitter. | RELATED: | Cuba Calls for Cooperation and Denounces the US Blockade at UN | The historic date motivated the Cuban leader to evoke the resumption of the independence efforts of the largest of the Ant…
telesurenglish.net/news/Cuban-President-Honors-Start-of-the-1895-Independence-War-20210224-0024.html
President Biden Says the Experimental Coronavirus Vaccines Are Safe. The Vaccines' Fact Sheets Say Something Very Different
Adam Dick | globalresearch.ca | 2021-02-24
All Global Research articles can be read in 27 languages by activating the "Translate Website" drop down menu on the top banner of our home page (Desktop version). | *** | Via a Monday Twitter post, President Joe Biden made an …
globalresearch.ca/president-biden-says-experimental-coronavirus-vaccines-safe-vaccines-fact-sheets-say-very-different/5738221
What about student loans, water or the homeless? Outrage follows report $1.7 trillion F-35 program is now considered a failure
rt.com | 2021-02-24
A tacit admission by the US Air Force that the F-35 has failed its main mission has triggered an outpouring of outrage from Americans who think the stealth fighter's gargantuan budget could have been better spent on other things. | Frustration with Lockheed Martin's fifth-generation stealth jet flooded Twitter on Wednesday, after Forbes magazine published a story about how USAF commissioning a study into a new, cheaper and lighter fighter amounts to "a tacit admission that the F-35 has failed." | | The U.S. Air Force admitted that the F-35 s…
rt.com/usa/516507-f35-failed-airforce-reactions/
'Cancel them before they cancel us': Gab CEO says banks have banned platform due to media smears
rt.com | 2021-02-24
Three banks have refused to do business with Gab, a Twitter competitor outspoken about free speech, in recent weeks, the company's chief executive revealed. Andrew Torba blamed the development on mainstream media hit pieces. | The third bank to sever its relationship with the company in three weeks told Torba on Monday that they were doing so because of "all the bad things the press has written about Gab," he said in an interview published by the conservative outlet National File. | Speaking to @NationalFile, Gab CEO Andrew Torba revealed that…
rt.com/usa/516412-gab-banks-refusal-media/
Conservative host posts about his investigation into voter fraud claims, gets blocked, challenges Twitter to disprove his findings
rt.com | 2021-02-24
BlazeTV host Steven Crowder had his Twitter account restricted after posting about a video investigative piece claiming numerous voter addresses in the 2020 presidential election were faked. | "DOZENS of voter names, addresses, and pictures proving they don't exist. Period. Today I'm tired of this s**t. Mass voter fraud is real and I can prove it," Crowder tweeted on Tuesday. | Twitter quickly restricted the tweet and did not allow anyone to like, retweet, or respond to it "due to a risk of violence." Twitter also temporarily locked Crowder'…
rt.com/usa/516504-steven-crowder-twitter-fraud/
How do you do, fellow kids? Biden White House leaves followers baffled after tweeting out-of-touch meme with Canadian PM
rt.com | 2021-02-24
The Biden administration has taken a popular meme and mutilated it, leaving what appears to be praise for Canada's Justin Trudeau but which was hard to understand either way. | Biden's White House Twitter account posted two images in a row captioned "How it started. How it's going" on Wednesday. The first showed Biden and Trudeau walking side by side down a hallway lined with flags, apparently from Biden's term as Vice President under Barack Obama. The second featured a large screen on which Trudeau was projected, with Biden turned towards it, seemingly in mid-speech, clearly taken during the pandemic. | How i…
rt.com/usa/516502-biden-trudeau-meme-fail-reax/
'We Can't Act Like This Isn't Happening': Marjorie Taylor Greene—and House GOP Caucus—Rebuked for Bigoted, Anti-Trans Speech on House Floor
Brett Wilkins, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2021-02-24
"We're gonna pass the #EqualityAct today, protect our LGBTQ+ family, and make the world a little bit better," tweeted Rep. Ocasio-Cortez following the remarks. "Nothing is going to stop that." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/mtg_3.jpg …
commondreams.org/news/2021/02/24/we-cant-act-isnt-happening-marjorie-taylor-greene-and-house-gop-caucus-rebuked?cd-origin=rss
Hillary Clinton piles on Ted Cruz for his Cancun trip with thinly veiled jab about family dog
Meaghan Ellis | salon.com | 2021-02-24
"Don't vote for anyone you wouldn't trust with your dog," Clinton tweeted…
salon.com/2021/02/24/hillary-clinton-piles-on-ted-cruz-for-his-cancun-trip-with-thinly-veiled-jab-about-family-dog-_partner/
The UC Berkeley Chancellor is Lying About People's Park
In Defense of People's Park | indybay.org | 2021-02-24
UC Chancellor Carol Christ is lying to you about People's Park. | Share this article on social media with the hashtag: #SavePeoplesPark | Support People's Park by sending a message. | Email the UC Chancellor: chancellor@berkeley.edu | Call the Chancellor: (510) 642-7464…
indybay.org/newsitems/2021/02/22/18840220.php