YouTube is piloting TV-style channels for connected TV viewing, starting with Coachella TV offering 24/7 streaming of archival performances and 2026 festival highlights. The move expands YouTube's challenge to traditional broadcast TV. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/youtube-experiments-with-tv-style-channels-for-ctv-viewing/816553/ #Media #SocialMedia #YouTube

Google, Meta, Microsoft and Snapchat have issued a joint warning about child safety in the EU, saying they will continue voluntary actions after the ePrivacy Directive expired. Authorities need clearer rules on age checking, the platforms say. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/major-social-platforms-issue-joint-warning-about-child-safety-in-eu/816661/ #Media #SocialMedia #ChildSafety

TikTok is strengthening copyright protection for musicians using its SoundOn platform through a partnership with ACRCloud. The new Derivative Works Detection system uses advanced audio recognition to identify tracks that have been modified through speed or pitch shifting, helping combat AI-generated copies and ensure proper monetisation for creators. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/tiktok-and-acrcloud-partner-on-derivative-works-detection-system/816662/ #Media #SocialMedia #CreatorEconomy #TikTok

Authorities need clearer rules on social media age verification, with gaps in enforcement allowing 70% of Australian teens to still access social apps despite the under-16 ban. Australia's eSafety Office reports the 4-month-old law has failed to reduce online harm. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/authorities-need-to-establish-clearer-rules-on-social-media-age-checking/816664/ #Media #SocialMedia #Australia #Regulation

Wisconsin's governor has vetoed a bill that would have required age verification for porn websites, calling it an 'intrusion into the personal privacy of residents.' The legislation would have forced visitors to upload government ID, submit to biometric scans, or provide credit card information. https://www.404media.co/wisconsin-age-verification-bill-vetoed/ #Media #SocialMedia #DataPrivacy

Meta is preparing to release its first new AI models developed under Alexandr Wang's Superintelligence group, with open source versions planned. The project was formed when Meta acquired Scale AI for 15B USD in 2025. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/meta-will-soon-release-new-ai-models-developed-by-alexandr-wang/816780/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

#Socialmedia, particularly #XTwitter, has become a less relevant source of #traffic for publishers like FiveThirtyEight. While #socialmediatraffic is hard to measure, it is trending towards being a tertiary source of business. The content that garners engagement on Twitter is often #lowquality and #highlypartisan, with a noticeable #rightleaningbias. https://www.natesilver.net/p/social-media-has-become-a-freak-show?eicker.media #media #socialmedia

Three in four parents fear their child cannot make safe choices about personal data online, according to the data watchdog. A survey finds most parents believe online privacy education should be taught like road safety. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c070v00xzl5o #Media #SocialMedia #DataPrivacy

Spotify is expanding its AI-powered playlist feature to podcasts, allowing users to create custom collections using natural language prompts. The feature, previously limited to music, now works for podcasts too. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/07/spotifys-prompted-playlist-feature-will-now-work-for-podcasts-too/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

A former Meta employee is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police for downloading around 30,000 private Facebook photos. The engineer designed a program to bypass security checks and access personal pictures. Meta discovered the breach over a year ago, fired the employee and referred the matter to law enforcement. The incident highlights ongoing data privacy concerns at the Facebook parent company. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg049xz1ygo #Media #DataPrivacy

X has expanded its AI-powered auto-translate feature to all users worldwide, replacing Google Translate with its Grok AI system. The update also adds in-stream photo editing capabilities. The move aims to improve cross-regional engagement on the platform. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/x-expands-ai-translations-and-adds-in-stream-photo-editing/816911/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

Decentralised online crime networks are recruiting young people via TikTok, Discord, Roblox and Snapchat to commit offences from joyriding to assault, with content shared across social media to gain status. Australian Federal Police have set up a taskforce to identify and disrupt these 'crimefluencer' networks. https://theconversation.com/from-joyrides-to-assault-crimefluencer-networks-are-coercing-young-people-into-breaking-the-law-280027 #Media #SocialMedia

Greece has announced plans to ban social media for under-15s from January next year, joining France, Austria and Spain in restricting children's exposure to online platforms. Prime Minister Mitsotakis said the move aimed to tackle rising anxiety and sleep problems among young people, as well as the 'addictive design' of social media. Australia was the first country to require TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat to remove accounts held by under-16s. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgx1x742x5o #Media #SocialMedia

A 'self-doxing' rave in New York teaches trans people to remove their personal data from the internet using tools like PimEyes and HaveIBeenPwned. The workshop addresses rising anti-trans legislation. https://www.404media.co/trans-rights-privacy-online-cybersecurity-workshop-deadname-not-found/ #Media #DataPrivacy

A "self-doxing" workshop and rave in New York is teaching trans people how to find and remove their personal data from the internet using tools like PimEyes and HaveIBeenPwned. The event responds to rising anti-trans legislation across the US. https://www.404media.co/trans-rights-privacy-online-cybersecurity-workshop-deadname-not-found/ #Media #SocialMedia #DataPrivacy

Tubi has become the first major streaming service to launch a native app within ChatGPT, letting users discover its 300,000+ movies and shows via natural language requests. The Fox-owned platform reaches over 100M viewers, while ChatGPT boasts 900M weekly active users. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/08/tubi-is-the-first-streamer-to-launch-a-native-app-within-chatgpt/ #Media #AI

#Analysis of #tweets from 18 #publishers suggests that #links negatively impact engagement on #XTwitter. While most publishers, including those with paywalls, still heavily rely on linking to their websites, engagement-maxing accounts like Globe Eye News, which avoid links, see significantly higher engagement. https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/04/do-links-hurt-news-publishers-on-twitter-our-analysis-suggests-yes/?eicker.media #media #socialmedia

Instagram is expanding its movie-rating-inspired content restrictions for teens to more countries internationally, after launching the feature in limited markets last year. The system rates content similar to films - with age ratings for violence, nudity and other sensitive material. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/09/instagram-expands-its-movie-inspired-content-restriction-for-teens-internationally/ #Media #SocialMedia #ShortFormVideo

Instagram has introduced the ability to edit comments, addressing a long-standing user request. Users now have a 15-minute window to edit their comments after posting, with unlimited edits within that timeframe. The feature only supports text editing, not images. This follows Instagram's broader efforts to enhance user experience and address user frustrations. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/09/you-can-now-edit-your-instagram-comments/ #Media #SocialMedia #Instagram

EFF, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, has announced it is leaving X (formerly Twitter). The digital rights organisation follows various news organisations and others who no longer find X a viable source of traffic. The departure highlights growing concerns about the platform's direction under its current ownership. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/09/eff-is-the-latest-organization-to-leave-x/ #Media #SocialMedia #CommunityPlatforms