Bluesky hits 40 million users, introduces ‘dislikes’ beta
Bluesky is looking to a new signal — “dislikes” — to personalize users’ feeds.
Social Media
Threads is giving you more control over your replies
Threads is launching two new tools today designed to give users more control over replies on their posts so they can keep conversations civil, respectful, or on-topic. Reply approvals will require more legwork and attention, but it allows Threads users to monitor and individually select which replies will appear publicly on their posts before anyone […]
Threads now lets you approve and filter your replies
Threads now lets you approve and filter your replies.
Threads adds ‘ghost posts’ that disappear after 24 hours
Instagram Threads is launching “ghost posts,” a new disappearing-posts feature that lets users share updates that automatically archive after 24 hours. The ephemeral option—rolling out globally on Monday—aims to encourage more casual, low-pressure sharing
ICE is building a social media panopticon
As Immigration and Customs Enforcement carries out raids across the country, the agency is working rapidly to expand an online surveillance system that could potentially track millions of users on the web. Federal records uncovered by The Lever reveal that ICE is paying $5.7 million to use an AI-powered social media monitoring platform called Zignal […]
Instagram’s latest feature lets you go back see your watched Reels
With this new feature, users can go back and find videos they might not have had the chance to save.
Instagram rolls out custom icons…but only for teens
Instagram introduced custom app icons for its teen accounts, but not everyone is thrilled. In replies to the company’s post on X, users criticized the feature for being age-gated, arguing that adults like personalization, too.
WhatsApp and Messenger add new warnings to help older people avoid online scams
WhatsApp will now warn users before sharing their screen with unknown contacts, and Messenger will flag suspicious messages using AI.
X to launch marketplace for buying inactive handles
Rare handles could be priced at anywhere from $2,500 to over seven figures, X says.
A new wave of social media apps provide hope in a doomscrolling world
“The platforms that won were the ones that kept people scrolling the longest, not the ones that made them feel the most connected,” Zehra Naqvi told TechCrunch. “Now there is an abundance of content but a scarcity of joy.”