The Verge: A Google DeepMind AI language model is now making descriptions for YouTube Shorts. “Google just combined DeepMind and Google Brain into one big AI team, and on Wednesday, the new Google DeepMind shared details on how one of its visual language models (VLM) is being used to generate descriptions for YouTube Shorts, which can help with discoverability.”
Variety: Elon Musk Drops Twitter’s ‘State-Affiliated’ and ‘Government-Funded’ Media Labels After Backlash. “Twitter is no longer labeling any accounts as ‘state-affiliated media’ or ‘government-funded media,’ a change that comes after organizations including NPR and PBS objected to the descriptions from the Elon Musk-owned social network and have suspended their activity on Twitter in protest.”
Associated Press: Canada’s public broadcaster pauses Twitter after ‘government-funded media’ label. “The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation paused its use of Twitter on Monday after the social media platform owned by Elon Musk stamped CBC’s account with a label the public broadcaster says is intended to undermine its credibility.”
Engadget: Twitter will label tweets limited due to hate policy violations. “Twitter may have a looser stance on bans under Elon Musk, but it’s still willing to flag content that runs afoul of its rules. The social network will label tweets it believes are violating its Hateful Conduct policy. You’ll see a notice that Twitter is limiting the ‘visibility’ of the problematic post with an opportunity to learn more.” I don’t think this will answer the requirements of the Digital Services Act.
Crikey (Australia): ABC to continue using Twitter despite ‘government-funded media’ label. “The [Australian Broadcasting Corporation] will continue posting to its official ABC News account on Twitter despite carrying a ‘government-funded media’ label, as broadcasters in the United States plot exits from the social media platform in protest.”
Al Jazeera: New Zealand radio threatens to quit Twitter over ‘government’ tag. “New Zealand’s public radio broadcaster has threatened to leave Twitter following Elon Musk’s decision to label certain media accounts as ‘government-funded’. Radio New Zealand’s head of content Megan Whelan said on Monday that the label, which Twitter uses to describe outlets that “may have varying degrees of government involvement over editorial content”, does not reflect the broadcaster’s editorial independence.”
Axios: PBS stops tweeting after Musk adds “government-funded” label. “PBS has not tweeted from its main Twitter handle since April 8, following Elon Musk’s decision to label the outlet ‘government-funded news.’ Why it matters: PBS joins NPR, another major editorially independent outlet that receives some government funding, in halting its Twitter activity in light of the new label.”
NPR: NPR quits Twitter after being falsely labeled as ‘state-affiliated media’. “NPR will no longer post fresh content to its 52 official Twitter feeds, becoming the first major news organization to go silent on the social media platform. In explaining its decision, NPR cited Twitter’s decision to first label the network ‘state-affiliated media,’ the same term it uses for propaganda outlets in Russia, China and other autocratic countries.”
Deadline: Elon Musk’s Twitter Wrongly Labels The BBC As Being “Government Funded”. “The BBC is not funded by the UK government. It is funded by the British public, through a system known as the license fee. The government plays a role in setting the level of the license fee, but the fee is collected by the companies contracted by the BBC through the TV Licensing authority. The BBC’s operations and editorial decision-making are entirely independent of the government.”
Poynter: Everything about Twitter is meaningless. “Elon Musk’s attempt this week to delegitimize NPR by labeling the public media’s primary Twitter account ‘US state-affiliated media’ is an outright troll move that will further degrade Twitter’s value to its users and its advertisers.”
CBS News: Twitter labels NPR as “state-affiliated media” . “National Public Radio has been labeled as ‘U.S. state-affiliated media’ on Twitter, marking the public radio outlet’s account with the same icon placed on outlets like Russia’s state-owned news agency TASS or China’s New China News Agency, the official state news agency of the People’s Republic of China.”
The Guardian: Kinks-shamed: Dave Davies asks Elon Musk to stop flagging band-related tweets. “The Kinks’ Dave Davies has appealed to Elon Musk to stop putting content warnings on posts related to the band. The lead guitarist and co-founder of the band pleaded with the Twitter owner after one of Davies’s tweets promoting a video carried a sensitive content warning, thought to be because of the band’s name.”
The Guardian: ‘There is no standard’: investigation finds AI algorithms objectify women’s bodies. “AI tools rate photos of women as more sexually suggestive than those of men, especially if nipples, pregnant bellies or exercise is involved.”
The Verge: TikTok is expanding its state-controlled media label to more countries. “The company first announced the labels in response to the war in Ukraine, saying it was ‘expediting’ the rollout of the program with the pilot in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. Several government-controlled Russian outlets like RT, RIA Novosti, and TASS have been labeled under the policy so far. Now, TikTok will expand the labels to 40 markets beginning immediately, with more to come in the future.”
Gizmodo: How to Understand Twitter’s New Checkmarks and Labels. “It’s fair to say it’s been a busy few months for Twitter, with a lot of changes coming in a short amount of time. Those changes have included a revamp of how checkmarks and account labels are used, and if your head is spinning while scrolling through your Twitter timeline, then we’re here to carefully and calmly explain what each badge and icon means… at least until the next revamp.”
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