LOS ANGELES: Social media site Bluesky has gained 1 million new users in the week since the US election, as some X users look for an alternative platform to post their thoughts and engage with others online.
Bluesky said Wednesday that its total users surged to 15 million, up from roughly 13 million at the end of October.
Championed by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Bluesky was an invitation-only space until it opened to the public in February. That invite-only period gave the site time to build out moderation tools and other features. The platform resembles Elon Musk’s X, with a “discover” feed as well a chronological feed for accounts that users follow. Users can send direct messages and pin posts, as well as find “starter packs” that provide a curated list of people and custom feeds to follow.
The post-election uptick in users isn’t the first time that Bluesky has benefitted from people leaving X. Bluesky gained 2.6 million users in the week after X was banned in Brazil in August — 85 percent of them from Brazil, the company said. About 500,000 new users signed up in the span of one day last month, when X signaled that blocked accounts would be able to see a user’s public posts.
Despite Bluesky’s growth, X posted last week that it had “dominated the global conversation on the US election” and had set new records. The platform saw a 15.5 percent jump in new-user signups on Election Day, X said, with a record 942 million posts worldwide. Representatives for Bluesky and for X did not respond to requests for comment.
Bluesky has referenced its competitive relationship to X through tongue-in-cheeks comments, including an Election Day post on X referencing Musk watching voting results come in with President-elect Donald Trump.
“I can guarantee that no Bluesky team members will be sitting with a presidential candidate tonight and giving them direct access to control what you see online,” Bluesky said.
Across the platform, new users — among them journalists, left-leaning politicians and celebrities — have posted memes and shared that they were looking forward to using a space free from advertisements and hate speech. Some said it reminded them of the early days of X, when it was still Twitter.
On Wednesday, The Guardian said it would no longer post on X, citing “far right conspiracy theories and racism” on the site as a reason. At the same time, television journalist Don Lemon posted on X that he is leaving the platform but will continue to use other social media, including Bluesky.
Lemon said he felt X was no longer a place for “honest debate and discussion.” He noted changes to the site’s terms of service set to go into effect Friday that state lawsuits against X must be filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas rather than the Western District of Texas. Musk said in July that he was moving X’s headquarters to Texas from San Francisco.
“As the Washington Post recently reported on X’s decision to change the terms, this ‘ensures that such lawsuits will be heard in courthouses that are a hub for conservatives, which experts say could make it easier for X to shield itself from litigation and punish critics,’” Lemon wrote. “I think that speaks for itself.”
Last year, advertisers such as IBM, NBCUniversal and its parent company Comcast fled X over concerns about their ads showing up next to pro-Nazi content and hate speech on the site in general, with Musk inflaming tensions with his own posts endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory.
Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X
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Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X
- Bluesky said Wednesday that its total users surged to 15 million, up from roughly 13 million at the end of October
- Championed by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Bluesky was an invitation-only space until it opened to the public in February
Event in London asks whether advanced technology might be key to longer life
- ATOM Conference explores ways in which advances in AI, quantum computing and biomedical sciences might revolutionize healthcare and extend lifespans
- ‘We have spent a lot of money on ... things to understand the non-living universe but … we don’t understand our bodies,’ says Armen Sarkissian, former president of Armenia
LONDON: Experts in the fields of healthcare and technology gathered for the ATOM Conference at London’s National Science Museum to explore the ways in which advances in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biomedical sciences might revolutionize healthcare and extend human life.
They focused in particular on how best to leverage cutting-edge technologies to aid understanding of the “living universe” with the aim of improving health so that 100-year lifespans become the norm.
“Life matters. At the end of the day, whatever is happening on our planet, for us it’s about life,” Armen Sarkissian, the former president of Armenia, said during his opening remarks to delegates.
“We have spent a lot of money on our accelerators, our space stations, observation telescopes and many other things to understand the non-living universe but I realized that I don’t understand my body; we don’t understand our bodies.”
Sarkissian, who trained as a physicist and computer scientist before becoming a politician, was joined at the conference by an array of prominent expert speakers, including: Irene Tracey, the vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford; physicist Konstantin Novoselov, a Nobel prize-winner for his work on graphene; and Eric Xing, the president of Mohammed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in Abu Dhabi.
King Charles, a friend of Sarkissian, was scheduled to attend the conference but his speech was instead delivered by a spokesperson. In it, the monarch emphasized the royal family’s commitment to medical innovation, noting in particular his own interest in cancer research and treatment.
“Many of you will know that earlier this year (the king) was diagnosed with cancer, and (he is) very keen that other people should gain some benefit from his diagnosis,” said Dr. Michael Dixon, head of the Royal Medical Household.
“Perhaps he is more aware than any of us of the extraordinary potential to unleash a healthier future for us all.”
The conference was organized by the ATOM Institute, which was founded by Sarkissian and his son Vardan, the Science Museum and Singapore University.
Speakers highlighted the fact that our limited understanding of the living universe contrasts sharply with our advanced knowledge of many aspects of the non-living one. The discussions also considered the effects of conflicts and climate change on global health.
“We are living a time where there are devastating wars worldwide; in Ukraine, in Gaza, in Lebanon, in Armenia and elsewhere in the world, hundreds of thousands of lives are being lost,” Sarkissian said.
“You can restore a bridge, you can restore a house, you can restore many things (but) how on earth do you restore lives that are destroyed? How on earth do you (restore) the millions of people who are wounded? How do you restore the mental problems and depression of tens of millions of people (resulting from) our activity?”
Other panel discussions considered pressing health-related challenges such antimicrobial resistance, which was recently highlighted at the UN General Assembly, and the resilience of healthcare systems during pandemics and natural disasters.
Specialist sessions focused on the growing global crisis in mental health; the transformative potential of AI in the health sector, including its implications for patient care, diagnostics and longevity; and ethical challenges relating to data security and privacy.
The ATOM Institute, the name of which stands for “Advanced Tomorrow,” seeks to foster collaborations on issues spanning geopolitics, medical innovation and technological breakthroughs with the aim of revolutionizing healthcare and extending the human lifespan.
OpenAI considers taking on Google with browser, the Information reports
- OpenAI has already entered the search market with SearchGPT
- Google commands the lion’s share of the browser and search market
ChatGPT-owner OpenAI has recently considered developing a web browser that would combine with its chatbot and has separately discussed or struck deals to power search features, the Information reported on Thursday.
OpenAI has spoken about the search product with website and app developers such as Conde Nast, Redfin, Eventbrite and Priceline, the report said, citing people who have seen prototypes or designs of the products.
Google and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
The move could pit the Sam Altman-led company against search giant Google, which commands the lion’s share of the browser and search market. OpenAI has already entered the search market with SearchGPT.
Alphabet shares were down 1 percent after the bell, after falling nearly 5 percent in regular trading on Thursday.
Snap launches new office, first hub for creators in Saudi Arabia
- Diriyah’s JAX District is location for platform
- Move will support partnership with Kingdom’s Ministry of Culture
DUBAI: Snap is expanding its presence in Saudi Arabia with the launch of a new office and the Kingdom’s first creator hub, named Majlis Snap for Content Creators, in Diriyah’s JAX District, near Riyadh.
Majlis Snap for Content Creators will serve as a platform to grow and support the local creator community through training, educational programs and opportunities for collaboration.
The opening ceremony of the new office was attended by Evan Spiegel, co-founder and CEO of Snap Inc.; Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih; and Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha.
The event featured a conversation between Spiegel and Jomana Al-Rashid, the CEO of the Saudi Research and Media Group, about Snap’s growth and popularity in the Kingdom.
Spiegel also hosted exclusive sessions with content creators to commemorate the launch of Majlis Snap for Content Creators.
The establishment of the new office will support Snap’s partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture by upskilling local talent.
Abdulla Alhammadi, managing director of Snap Inc. in Saudi Arabia, said that the Kingdom was one of the company’s “most dynamic growth markets” and the investment would “enhance the experience” of both Snapchat users and advertisers.
Hussein Freijeh, the vice president of Snap Inc. in the Middle East and North Africa region, said that the company’s expansion in Saudi Arabia “symbolizes more than just a physical presence,” and represented “a deeper commitment to enhancing Saudi Arabia’s digital ecosystem.”
He added: “This marks a huge milestone in our journey in KSA, and we look forward to strengthening our connection with Saudi partners and clients, in line with the country’s digital transformation agenda.”
Snapchat has 25 million active monthly users in the Kingdom, reaching 90 percent of those aged between 13 and 34, with users opening it 50 times a day on average.
An AI-powered tool aims to combat fake news in the Arab world and beyond
- Developed jointly with EU academic institutions, FRAPPE is the brainchild of Preslav Nakov of Abu Dhabi’s MBZUAI
- System trained with 23 different linguistic techniques, can identify specific persuasion and propaganda techniques
RIYADH: Rising concern over disinformation’s role in manipulating public opinion has motivated Preslav Nakov, a professor at the UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, to develop an AI-powered tool for detecting propaganda.
FRAPPE, short for Framing, Persuasion and Propaganda Explorer, is designed to assess news framing techniques and identify potential instances of information manipulation.
Nakov, chair of the natural language processing department and professor of natural language processing at the Abu Dhabi-based MBZUAI, said that AI plays a central role in FRAPPE by analyzing, categorizing and detecting complex patterns that influence readers’ opinions and emotions.
The tool offers real-time, on-the-fly analysis of individual articles while enabling a comprehensive comparison of framing and persuasion strategies across a wide range of media outlets, he told Arab News.
The UN defines disinformation as inaccurate information deliberately created and disseminated with the intent to deceive the public and cause serious harm. It can be spread by both state and non-state actors and can affect human rights, fuel armed conflict and undermine public policy responses.
The Global Risks Report 2024 by the World Economic Forum identifies misinformation and disinformation as a top short-term global risk. These forms of deceptive communication not only mislead the public but also erode trust, deepen societal divisions and threaten fundamental human rights.
Nevertheless, the WEF highlighted in an article in June that while AI technologies are being used in the production of both misinformation and disinformation, they can be harnessed to combat this risk by analyzing patterns, language and context.
Nakov said that FRAPPE, trained with 23 different linguistic techniques, “uses AI to identify specific persuasion and propaganda techniques, such as name-calling, loaded language, appeals to fear, exaggeration and repetition.”
“FRAPPE further uses AI to perform framing analysis,” he said, adding that the tool distinguishes “the main perspectives from which an issue is being discussed: Morality, fairness, equality, political, and cultural identity.”
With a database of in excess of 2.5 million articles from more than 8,000 sources, the multilingual system enables users to explore and compare how different countries and outlets frame and present information.
DID YOUKNOW?
• Disinformation is the intentional spread of false information to sway public opinion.
• Propaganda often employs loaded language to elicit emotional reactions.
• A WEF report identifies disinformation and misinformation as a top short-term risk.
Moreover, to build the training data for the system, more than 40 journalists from several European countries contributed to the manual analysis of news content in 13 languages.
This manual analysis, according to Nakov, allows FRAPPE to discern the underlying frames that shape how stories are told and perceived. By identifying the dominant frames within an article, FRAPPE compares these across media sources, countries and languages, providing valuable insights into how framing varies globally.
FRAPPE is designed for a broad audience, including the general public, journalists, researchers, and even policymakers.
“For the general user, FRAPPE serves as an educational tool to explore how news content is framed, enabling them to identify propaganda techniques like name-calling, flag-waving, loaded language and appeals to fear,” Nakov said.
“For journalists and policymakers, FRAPPE offers a powerful tool to examine and compare framing and persuasion strategies across different countries, languages and outlets,” he added.
The system relies on annotations from journalists who manually identified persuasion and propaganda techniques across a wide range of articles. This minimizes the risk of overly subjective or one-sided interpretations.
Opinion
This section contains relevant reference points, placed in (Opinion field)
Transparency and unbiased analysis were fundamental in the development of FRAPPE. Nakov said: “Users should be aware that our models use neural networks and, as such, they lack explainability.”
He also warned that “despite our intent, due to potential unintended article selection biases, FRAPPE might be favoring some political or social standpoints.”
On the positive side, however, “FRAPPE has the potential to influence the way news articles are perceived and consumed, and journalists may become more aware of the language they use and its potential impact on readers.”
To spot persuasive or manipulative techniques in news content, Nakov advises readers and viewers to “watch out for emotional language designed to provoke strong reactions like fear or anger, and be mindful of loaded words, such as ‘radical’ and ‘heroic, which carry emotional weight.”
He urged readers to critically assess articles that rely too heavily on a single expert or selective quotes, stressing the importance of considering how different outlets might report the same event in contrasting ways.
To gain a clearer perspective, Nakov advises cross-checking sources and comparing how different media outlets cover the same story. This approach helps reveal varying angles, biases or framing techniques.
He also stressed that oversimplified “us versus them” narratives “often indicate manipulation, as do articles that frame an issue with a particular angle, leaving out important details.
“False dilemmas, where only extreme choices are presented and repetitive phrases meant to reinforce a point are also red flags,” he said.
“FRAPPE envisions empowering individuals and institutions to make more informed decisions by revealing the framing and persuasion techniques embedded in media content. Its aim is to enhance transparency in journalism, promote trust in media and contribute to a more informed, media-literate public.”
Developed in collaboration with the European Commission’s Joint Research Center and several academic institutions across Europe, FRAPPE was launched ahead of the 2024 European Parliament election, held in the EU between June 6-9 this year.
The tool, integrated into the Europe Media Monitor, has been featured in numerous EU workshops focused on combating fake news.
Israel faces backlash for defacing Lebanese war memorials
- At least 2 memorials honoring victims of Hula massacre targeted
- Incidents are latest in series of alleged attacks on cultural, religious heritage sites
LONDON: Israel’s reported defacing of war memorials in Lebanon has ignited widespread outrage online, with critics accusing Tel Aviv of yet another “immoral” act during its ongoing conflict.
“A memorial in the village of Hula, commemorating the massacre committed by the Israeli army in 1948, defaced & desecrated with the above Hebrew graffiti, by Israel’s most immoral army in the world,” said Lebanese-British journalist and author Hala Jaber on X.
According to online reports, which Arab News could not independently verify, Israel’s Golani Brigade allegedly vandalized a memorial in Hula — a southern Lebanese village — dedicated to victims of a 1948 massacre. Graffiti sprayed on the memorial reportedly read: “A good Shiite is a dead Shiite.”
The desecration has drawn sharp criticism, with users on social media highlighting the act as emblematic of broader issues within Israeli society.
A user said: “Netanyahu represents a large part of Israelis … no, the war and the atrocities committed by Israel are not only the work of Netanyahu … the evil of Israeli society is much deeper.”
L’Orient-Le Jour quoted Hula City Council Chairman Chakib Koteich confirming the vandalism, as well as the destruction of a monument commemorating the same massacre.
Funded by Lebanon’s Southern Council, the memorial was unveiled in 2002 in a ceremony led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
The memorial honored victims of the Oct. 31, 1948, Hula massacre, in which members of the Haganah, a Jewish paramilitary group, disguised as Arab Relief Army soldiers, surrounded and attacked the village.
Over two days, 80 residents — men, women, children, and the elderly — were killed and the village’s 250 homes destroyed.
The incidents are the latest in a series of alleged attacks on cultural and religious heritage sites in Lebanon and Gaza since October 2023.
Local media reported in November that Israeli forces had destroyed cemeteries and historic burial sites in southern Lebanon, including the ancient shrine of Prophet Benjamin in the village of Mhaibib.
Israeli forces were earlier accused of demolishing a memorial to Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh at the entrance to the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
UNESCO recently placed 34 Lebanese heritage sites under “enhanced protection,” citing targeted strikes near World Heritage landmarks in Baalbek and Tyre. These areas, both Iran-backed Hezbollah strongholds, are home to ancient Roman ruins of global cultural significance.
The outrage comes as the International Criminal Court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials, accusing them of war crimes in Gaza.
While the suspects are unlikely to face trial, the announcement could alter the dynamics of the current conflict, although its broader implications remain uncertain.
