James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Facebook whistleblower says company prioritizes growth over safety
A former Facebook Inc. executive turned whistleblower just revealed her identity after sharing several controversial documents with the Wall Street Journal over the last few weeks. Frances Haugen (pictured), 37, was a product manager on the civic integrity team at the company before she decided to become a whistleblower. Prior to revealing her identity, she ...
Zero tolerance: YouTube blocks all anti-vaccine accounts
Google LLC-owned YouTube today announced that it is no longer messing around and will ban all anti-vaccination accounts, including some very popular ones. The company said that while accounts will be taken down, so will any posts which express unfounded concerns about vaccines or falsely state that some vaccines cause autism or cancer or something ...
Facebook responds to leaked documents about exploring the kids’ market
Leaked documents published by The Wall Street Journal today show how Facebook Inc. spent a lot of time exploring how children use social media, forcing it to respond to more criticism once again. Just yesterday, Facebook announced that it was putting its plan on hold to develop Instagram Kids, a version of the app for ...
Instagram Kids put on hold after mental health backlash
Facebook Inc.-owned Instagram announced today that it’s pausing the development of a version of the app aimed at children. For months now, Facebook has been drowned in a deluge of criticism for developing an Instagram app for children under the age of 13. That criticism has come from all sides, from child health experts to ...
Big tech sues Texas over social media censorship law
Two trade groups representing some of the world’s largest tech companies filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas today concerning a law that would inhibit social media companies from censoring users for their political views. NetChoice and the Computer and Communications Industry Association filed the lawsuit against HB 20, a law that would prevent ...
Facebook’s Oversight Board asks for more transparency in VIP moderation program
Facebook Inc.’s Oversight Board said today that it thinks the public deserves to know more information about how the company’s “cross-check” system works. After a report by the Wall Street Journal earlier this month, it came to light that Facebook has been giving millions of users a certain kind of immunity when it comes to ...
Facebook introduces new tactic to fight ‘social harm’
Facebook Inc. said today it’s expanding its horizons when it comes to tackling coordinated behavior on the platform that might cause harm. The social media giant has for a long time cracked down on “coordinated inauthentic behavior,” although Facebook said that alone isn’t good enough. The company now wants to concentrate its efforts to tackle ...
Report: Facebook knows just how much Instagram is hurting youth
U.S. senators are asking for answers after a report today by The Wall Street Journal revealed that Facebook Inc. seemingly downplays the impact Instagram has on the mental health of the young. Internal documents seen by the Journal show that Facebook knew that the immensely popular app is damaging for a large percentage of its teenage ...
Report: Facebook program gives VIPs immunity from standard moderation
Facebook Inc. has a program that gives millions of users immunity from the company’s standard moderation practices, according to an article published in the Wall Street Journal today. Documents obtained by the Journal seem to suggest that there’s a “one rule for us and one rule for them” situation at Facebook, relating to a program ...
Amazon announces it will pay full college tuition for employees in the US
Amazon.com Inc. said today that it will cover all college tuition fees should any of its 750,000 operations workers in the U.S. decide to take on higher education. The e-commerce giant said as part of a $1.2 billion investment in education and skills training, it will cover fees, books and classes. As part of the ...