Amazon has transformed its podcast business, eliminating over 100 jobs from Wondery studio but continuing under Audible. A new Creator Services department works with celebrities like the Kelce brothers, combining content with merchandise and shoppable products. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/26/amazons-new-podcast-strategy-monetize-everything/ #Media #SocialMedia #Amazon

Esther Ghey, mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey, has criticised Sir Keir Starmer for meeting tech giants before speaking to bereaved families about online safety. In an open letter with 12 other families, she said the PM should hear from those who have experienced the devastating consequences of online platforms. The government says it is determined to keep children safe online. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpwjwze5qgzo #Media #SocialMedia

AI-generated websites have surged to a third of all new sites since 2022, researchers from Stanford and the Internet Archive found. The research also found the web is becoming more cheerful and less varied as AI-written text floods online. #AI #Media https://www.404media.co/study-finds-a-third-of-new-websites-are-ai-generated/

Consumers lost 2.1B USD to social media scams in 2025, FTC reports show. This marks a significant rise from previous years as fraudsters increasingly target users on platforms. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/27/consumers-lost-2-1-billion-to-social-media-scams-in-2025-ftc-reports/ #Media #SocialMedia #SocialNews

Research shows AI tools helping people represent themselves in court has surged since 2022. Pro se cases rose from 11% to 16.8%, clogging the legal system with more complex filings. https://www.404media.co/people-using-ai-to-represent-themselves-in-court-are-clogging-the-system/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

University professors at Arizona State University have discovered that their lectures were used to train ASU's AI-powered Atomic platform without their knowledge. The system slices lecture videos into clips, then generates AI-based learning modules from them. Faculty say they were never consulted and that the resulting material was often inaccurate and out of context. https://www.404media.co/asu-atomic-ai-modules-arizona-state-university/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

UK government promises age or functionality restrictions on social media for under-16s, following concerns over childrens online safety. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y7d2zx63jo #Media #SocialMedia #DataPrivacy

An AI-powered tool called BrandShield was used to automatically remove posts criticising SXSW from Instagram, including one from a homelessness charity. The tool flags trademark violations but cannot distinguish between infringement and protected free speech, say EFF. Trademark law has no mandatory counter-notice process like copyright does. https://www.404media.co/sxsw-used-ai-powered-trademark-tool-to-censor-dissent-on-instagram/ #Media #AI

Jack Dorsey-backed Divine launches publicly today as a Vine reboot, giving users access to some 500,000 restored videos from the original platform and allowing new six-second loops to be posted. The app, backed by Dorsey nonprofit and Other Stuff, initially launched to testers in November with 100,000 videos and now hosts content from nearly 100,000 original creators. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/29/jack-dorsey-backed-vine-reboot-divine-launches-to-public/ #Media #SocialMedia #ShortFormVideo

Apple fixed an iOS bug that stored deleted Signal messages in the iPhone notification database, letting the FBI forensically extract them. The patch now purges these stored notifications retroactively. https://www.404media.co/apple-fixes-bug-that-let-fbi-extract-deleted-signal-messages-after-404-media-coverage/ #Media #SocialMedia #DataPrivacy

Meta has reported its first ever decline in daily active users in Q1 2026, citing new regional restrictions as the cause. The social media giant previously reported consistent growth in user numbers for over a decade. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/metas-daily-active-user-count-declined-in-q1-2026/818904/ #Media #SocialMedia #SocialNews

TikTok has launched a new Campus Hub featuring college group chats and personalised feeds designed to help students stay connected with their campus communities, even while away for the summer. The hub builds on last year's campus verification feature and is available across more than 6,000 universities. https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/30/tiktoks-new-campus-hub-features-college-group-chats-and-feeds/ #Media #SocialMedia #ShortFormVideo

LinkedIn revenue rose 12% in the first quarter, driven by B2B marketing and AI-powered recruiter tools. Paid video posts grew nearly 30% year over year. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/linkedin-revenue-rose-12-in-the-first-quarter/819034/ #Media #SocialMedia

Kent cricket club has disabled social media comments on its accounts as a duty of care to players, citing harmful feedback from some supporters. The club said supporters can give feedback via email and at members forums instead. https://www.bbc.com/sport/cricket/articles/cgjp77l25xzo #Media #SocialMedia

China pressured Zambia to cancel RightsCon, the world''s largest digital human rights conference, after organisers included speakers from Taiwanese civil society. The conference was scheduled to take place in Zambia this week. https://www.404media.co/china-pressure-canceled-worlds-largest-digital-human-rights-conference/ #Media #SocialMedia #Community

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has released new Oscar rules declaring only performances with human actors will be eligible for Academy Awards. Screenplays must also be human-authored to qualify. https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/02/ai-generated-actors-and-scripts-are-now-ineligible-for-oscars/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

YouTube is testing new AI-powered tools that let creators generate royalty-free instrumental tracks to replace copyrighted audio, and a new conversational comment moderation feature for community management. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/youtube-tests-new-music-generation-and-moderation-tools/819154/ #Media #SocialMedia #YouTube

Instagram's viral 'Flash' filter uses AI to change users' features, including skin tone, according to BBC Verify testing. The investigation found the filter altered appearances in ways that left testers saying 'That doesn't look like me'. https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/c5y74lg05z4o #Media #SocialMedia #AI

OpenAI, Google and Microsoft are backing a new US bill that would fund AI literacy programmes in schools. The LIFT AI Act would give grants to develop curricula for K-12 students. https://www.404media.co/literacy-in-future-technologies-artificial-intelligence-act-adam-schiff-mike-rounds/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI

Instagram has launched a new AI creator label for accounts that regularly use artificial intelligence tools to build their posts. The label appears on both profiles and content, aiming to increase transparency around AI-generated material. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/instagram-adds-ai-creator-labels/819267/ #Media #SocialMedia #AI