Social media allows young people to explore how they express themselves, says Taylor Fang of Logan, Utah, the winner of our youth essay contest.
We asked teenagers what adults are missing about technology. This was the best response. Read More
Status update: We are all now sci-fi telepaths, deafened by the blaring thoughts of humanity.
The Dawn of Twitter and the Age of Awareness Read More
Memes come off as a joke, but some people are starting to see them as the serious threat they are.
How memes got weaponized: A short history Read More
When your technology changes the world, you bear a responsibility to help address the world you have helped create.
Tools and Weapons: The Promise and the Peril of the Digital Age Read More
The boundaries of privacy are in dispute, and its future is in doubt. Citizens, politicians and business leaders are asking if societies are making the wisest tradeoffs. The Times is embarking on this monthslong project to explore the technology and where it’s taking us, and to convene debate about how it can best help realize human potential.
The Privacy Project Read More
For the first time, the Cambridge Analytica whistleblower tells the inside story of the data mining and psychological manipulation behind the election of Donald Trump and the Brexit referendum, connecting Facebook, WikiLeaks, Russian intelligence, and international hackers.
Mindf*ck: Cambridge Analytica and the Plot to Break America Read More
The New York Times, September 26, 2019
By Davey Alba and Adam Satariano
“Despite increased efforts by internet platforms like Facebook to combat internet disinformation, the use of the techniques by governments around the world is growing, according to a report released Thursday by researchers at Oxford University. Governments are spreading disinformation to discredit political opponents, bury opposing views and interfere in foreign affairs.”
At Least 70 Countries Have Had Disinformation Campaigns, Study Finds Read More
Directed by: Karim Amer & Jehane Noujaim
Writing Credits: Karim Amer, Erin Barnett & Pedro Kos
Worldwide release by Netflix July 24, 2019
“Explore how a data company named Cambridge Analytica came to symbolize the dark side of social media in the wake of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.”
The Great Hack Read More
Communications of the ACM, June 2018, Vol. 61 No. 6, Pages 18-19
By Logan Kugler
“Facebook and Google lead the way in this arena. Facebook allows users to customize their personal profile to their liking and indicate their interests by engaging with content. Every reaction a user has to a post teaches Facebook’s algorithms his/her preferences; these algorithms then serve more content that even better matches the user’s preferences.
The result? The user visits and revisits the site, staying for longer, making them a richer target for advertising.”
Getting Hooked on Tech Read More
Communications of the ACM, June 2018
By Susan Landau
“The road to the Cambridge Analytica/Facebook scandal is strewn with failures. There’s the failure to protect users’ privacy, the failure to protect voters, and the failure to uncover the actions and violations of laws that may well have affected the Brexit referendum and the U.S. presidential election.”
What Went Wrong? Facebook and ‘Sharing’ Data with Cambridge Analytica Read More
“The New York Times bestseller about a noted tech venture capitalist, early mentor to Mark Zuckerberg, and Facebook investor, who wakes up to the serious damage Facebook is doing to our society – and sets out to try to stop it. “
Roger McNamee has been a Silicon Valley investor for 35 years. He co-founded successful funds in venture, crossover and private equity. His most recent fund, Elevation, included U2’s Bono as a co-founder. He holds a B.A. from Yale University and…
Zucked: Waking Up to the Facebook Catastrophe Read More