Latest Social media News

Australian states back national plan to ban children younger than 16 from social media

Nov. 08, 2024 01:23 AM EST

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s states and territories on Friday unanimously backed a national plan to require most forms of social media to bar children younger than 16. Leaders of the eight provinces held a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to discuss...

Who will buy Infowars? Both supporters and opponents of Alex Jones interested in bankruptcy auction

Nov. 08, 2024 00:07 AM EST

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' Infowars broadcasts could end next week as he faces a court-ordered auction of his company's assets to help pay the more than $1 billion defamation judgment he owes families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Or maybe not. ...

YouTuber known for drag race videos crashes speeding BMW and dies

Nov. 07, 2024 12:46 PM EST

NEW YORK (AP) — A car influencer who posted YouTube videos of drag races on New York City streets died when he crashed his speeding BMW into a light pole near John F. Kennedy airport, police said. Andre Beadle, 25, crashed just after 1 a.m. Wednesday on the Nassau Expressway near...

Australia plans a social media ban for children under 16

Nov. 07, 2024 06:32 AM EST

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The Australian government announced on Thursday what it described as world-leading legislation that would institute an age limit of 16 years for children to start using social media, and hold platforms responsible for ensuring compliance. “Social media...

Canada orders TikTok's Canadian business to be dissolved but won't block app

Nov. 06, 2024 21:39 PM EST

TORONTO (AP) — Canada announced Wednesday it won’t block access to the popular video-sharing app TikTok but is ordering the dissolution of its Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind it. Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said...

South Korea fights deepfake porn with tougher punishment and regulation

Nov. 06, 2024 05:28 AM EST

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea on Wednesday announced a package of steps to curb a surge in deepfake porn, saying it will toughen punishment for offenders, expand the use of undercover officers and impose greater regulations on social media platforms. Concerns about...

Influencer is banned from future NYC marathons for bringing a camera crew to last weekend's race

Nov. 05, 2024 21:22 PM EST

NEW YORK (AP) — A social media influencer from Texas was disqualified from last weekend's New York City Marathon and banned from future competitions after he ran the race with a camera crew on e-bikes in tow. New York Road Runners, which organizes the venerable race, said in a...

After his arrest for Facebook posts, a Cambodian reporter says he will become a farmer instead

Nov. 05, 2024 09:25 AM EST

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — It’s tough being a reporter in Cambodia, whose government frowns on independent journalism that questions authority. Veteran investigative reporter Mech Dara learned the hard way, when he was recently jailed on a felony charge for some items he had...

South Korea fines Meta $15 million for illegally collecting information on Facebook users

Nov. 05, 2024 04:16 AM EST

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s privacy watchdog on Tuesday fined social media company Meta 21.6 billion won ($15 million) for illegally collecting sensitive personal information from Facebook users, including data about their political views and sexual orientation, and sharing it with...

You may have blocked someone on X but now they can see your public posts anyway

Nov. 04, 2024 15:04 PM EST

Elon Musk’s X has been modified so that accounts you’ve blocked on the social media platform can still see your public posts. X updated its Help Center page over the weekend to explain how blocking now works on the site. While you can still block accounts, those accounts will...