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Month: October 2017

Teen anxiety problems driven by social media?

Teen anxiety problems driven by social media?

Teens are said to be suffering from anxiety, more so than in the past. No one cause is identified but social media is called out: “When I asked Eken about other common sources of worry among highly anxious kids, she didn’t hesitate: social media. Anxious teenagers from all backgrounds are relentlessly comparing themselves with their peers, she said, and the results are almost uniformly distressing. Anxious kids certainly existed before Instagram, but many of the parents I spoke to worried…

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“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you” – Joseph Heller

“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you” – Joseph Heller

Here are the set of advertising trackers used by a local newspaper that is part of the USA Today Network, owned by Gannett Communications, the largest newspaper publisher in the U.S. 65 of them on a single page! Separately, I paged down through my Twitter feed and after a few pages, a total of 119 trackers were blocked – so far. If I continued paging through the feed, even more trackers were blocked. Trackers could be used merely to determine…

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Google AdWords put fake news ads on fact-checking web sites

Google AdWords put fake news ads on fact-checking web sites

Funny – Google’s Adwords system has been placing “fake news” ads on web sites like Snopes.com that do fact checking about, often enough, fake news. Source: Google reportedly put fake news ads on fact-checking sites – CNET Most professional media sites run fake news advertising right alongside the legitimate stories and advertising. Obviously, they do it to generate revenue but lumping fake news with real news seems a bad choice. Especially if you miss the small, greyed out  “Sponsored content”…

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“Violence towards cops skyrocketed in 2016”? Or How to create an inflammatory headline?

“Violence towards cops skyrocketed in 2016”? Or How to create an inflammatory headline?

Newsweek “Violence towards cops skyrocketed in 2016 and whites are mostly responsible” “More cops were killed in the line of duty last year than in any year since 2011, leading many, including some in the FBI, to falsely connect the increase in violence with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. “ Chart of officer deaths from 2017 to 2016: Data in the chart is from the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund The Newsweek report correctly cites the “felonious assault” number,…

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Using fake likes, shares and comments to boost a social media presence

Using fake likes, shares and comments to boost a social media presence

I received the following email message regarding one of my Youtube accounts Hi There! Your channel is too good. We strongly feel that your channel should be at the top in the search ranking. With little more push it can become still more popular. We can make it happen for you. We provide a completely anonymous and discreet service that helps you gain real exposure and encourages viewers to like, comment and subscribe. For more information, please get in touch…

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