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☆ I'm 72 and still form new habits — and break others. Making promises to others doesn't work for me, but these 5 things do.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-17 | by ( Louisa Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

I've learned that if I want to form a new habit, promising someone I will doesn't work for me. AdvertisementWhen I was a teenager, I developed a habit of repeatedly promising my mother I would go on a diet. When I'm struggling to change a habit or face a tough decision, I sometimes use art to depict my mental state. Ever since, I've been able to moderate my pace by watching the person I'm eating with — usually Barry, my husband, who tends to eat slower than I do. Many people use computer software or apps to track their habits, but I'm old-fashioned and prefer the mind-body approach of handwriting.

Persons: I've, —, I'm, Barry, Benjamin Franklin Organizations: Service, Moody Locations: Marlboro, checkmarks

☆ Elon Musk's AI-driven plan for news on X is like 'old Twitter on steroids,' expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-21 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In short, Musk thinks social media posts can be aggregated into a real-time news feed using AI. However, using AI to curate a real-time news feed could come with some serious risks. 'Old Twitter on steroids'Nic Newman, of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford, told Business Insider the model was reminiscent of pre-Musk Twitter. According to Musk, X "very quickly" corrects itself when misinformation is spread on the platform. AdvertisementMisleading 'experts'According to Musk, AI and the internet are already "aggregating the wisdom of the people."

Persons: —, Elon, Mark Read, Musk, Musk's, Nic Newman, Newman, they've, they're, Matt Navarra Organizations: Service, Cannes Lions, WPP, Business, Reuters Institute for, Journalism, University of Oxford, Twitter, Reuters Institute

☆ Elon Musk has been getting Trumpier. A direct line to Trump may be next
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Clare Duffy | Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Elon Musk has sought to accumulate political capital commensurate with his extravagant wealth. Musk has discussed advising Trump should he win the 2024 election, the Journal reported, citing unnamed sources. Musk called Trump directly via cellphone to explore a role that could potentially give Musk significant influence over US policies. Reporting that Musk and Trump’s relationship has improved comes after Musk’s politics have become more aligned with Trump’s. For Musk to have a direct, private line to a future President Trump “would seem to be a blatant conflict of interest,” said Darrell West, a senior fellow in the governance studies program at the Brookings Institution.

Persons: CNN — Elon Musk, Musk, Donald Trump, Trump, Brian Hughes, –, Andrew Harnik, ”, Darrell West, ” West, Herika Martinez, —, Donald Trump’s, Biden, Ron DeSantis, Robert Kennedy , Jr, Paul Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, White supremacists, Imran Ahmed, X, CCDH, Donie O’Sullivan Organizations: CNN, Republican, Wall Street, Trump, SpaceX, Tesla, Brookings Institution, Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Trade Commission, Traffic Safety Administration, Justice Department, Migrants, US Border Patrol, AFP, Getty, Twitter, US, Republican Florida, Politico Locations: Paris, El Paso , Texas, Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua State, Mexico

☆ Elon Musk’s reversal on blue checkmarks shows his desperation to lure high-profile users back to X
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Elon Musk has given up, restoring the “lords and peasants” blue checkmark system he once admonished and assailed as elitism. “Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit,” Musk wrote in November 2022. But most journalists and other notable users who once sported the checkmark declined to fork over the cash. Even worse, trolls impersonating the identities of others were granted blue checkmarks, stripping the symbol of its core value: identity verification. A representative for X did not respond to a request for comment on Musk’s move to restore the blue checkmarks.

Persons: New York CNN — Elon Musk, Twitter’s, X, Musk, ” Musk, Musk —, —, “ Organizations: New York CNN Locations: New York

☆ My daughter attends an IB charter school. Her student-driven classes are more about mastery than memorization.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Jamie Davis Smith | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

That’s when she enrolled in an IB program, and everything changed for her. When my daughter started middle school, she enrolled in a public charter school with an International Baccalaureate (IB) program. AdvertisementThe IB program focuses on mastery of skills — not memorizationOne of the things that drew me and my daughter to the IB program is its emphasis on mastering skills instead of rote memorization. Learning in the IB program is more student-drivenOne of the first classes my daughter took at her IB school was called Student-Led Learning. Whatever my daughter winds up doing in life, I am confident that her IB education will be an asset.

Persons: — Organizations: Business, IB Locations: Washington ,

Musk has dismantled core features of what made Twitter, Twitter — its name and blue bird logo, its verification system, its Trust and Safety advisory group. “We’re still negative cash flow," he posted on the site on July 14, due to a about a "50% drop in advertising revenue plus heavy debt load." Insider Intelligence estimates that X will bring in $1.89 billion in advertising revenue this year, down 54% from 2022. “Even though the cultural relevance of Twitter was already starting to decline," before Musk took it over, "it’s as if the platform no longer exists. Usually when a social platform, starts to lose its relevance there are at least some external factors at play, but that’s not the case here.”

Persons: Elon Musk, it's, hasn’t, Jasmine Enberg, Musk, ” Enberg, —, Ian Bremmer, “, algorithmically, ” It's, We’re, ”, Linda Yaccarino, it’s, that’s Organizations: FRANCISCO, —, Twitter's San, Twitter, Media Matters, European Commission, NBC, Facebook, Meta, Google, ., Intelligence Locations: Twitter's, Twitter's San Francisco, Maine, Israel

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — X, formerly known as Twitter, has stopped showing headlines on articles shared on the platform. Now, X only displays an article’s lead image and a link to the story. Linked articles now appear as an image, and include text in the left-hand corner noting the domain of the link. Musk's latest decision builds on the growing rift between the platform and news organizations who for years used it to build their audiences. Among his more controversial moves was a decision to upend the site's verification system.

Persons: Elon Musk, “, Musk Organizations: FRANCISCO, European Union, Defamation League, Twitter, New York Times

☆ Elon Musk just escalated his war against the media
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Elon Musk is escalating his war on the media. Musk says it's for "esthetics" but his long history of blasting the news media suggests otherwise. AdvertisementAdvertisementElon Musk isn't shy about his disdain for the media, and his latest change to X makes that even more apparent. Musk has previously called The New York Times "propaganda" and "an unregistered lobbying firm for far left politicians." When NPR subsequently said it would quit Twitter, Musk threatened to give its handle away unless it started posting again.

Persons: Elon Musk, Elon, Fortune, Musk, X, Musk's Organizations: Reuters, The New York Times, Facebook, New York Times, Twitter, Times, NPR Locations: clickbait, Washington, The, Russia, China

☆ Elon Musk will reportedly force brands to spend at least $1,000 on Twitter ads every month — or lose their gold checkmark
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The company will soon require brands to spend $1,000 monthly on ads to keep verification, per WSJ. Owner Elon Musk said earlier this month that Twitter had seen a roughly 50% drop in ad revenue. Earlier this month, Musk said that the company had suffered a roughly 50% decrease in ad revenue and had negative cash flow. In December 2022, Twitter's revenue fell 40% compared with the same month in 2021. In another attempt to revive ad revenue, the company has offered discounted rates to some advertisers, the Journal reported.

Persons: Elon Musk, —, Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Yaccarino Organizations: Twitter, Morning, Street, The New York Times, NBCUniversal Locations: Air France

☆ Elon Musk says Twitter's ad revenue drops 50% and cash flow is negative
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Elon Musk disclosed on Twitter Saturday that, due to a 50% drop in advertising revenue and a “heavy debt load,” the platform still has a negative cash flow. Ad revenue has been a contentious issue and an uphill battle for the site, after hordes of advertisers fled after Musk took over. The New York Times reported that Twitter’s US advertising revenue from the five weeks from April 1 to the first week of May was down 59% year-over-year, citing an internal presentation. “It’s definitely been extremely difficult,” Musk said in Twitter Spaces livestream event Musk hosted with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr last month. On Thursday, Twitter announced content creators would be able to get a slice of the site’s ad revenue, seemingly to encourage more creators to join the site.

Persons: New York CNN — Elon Musk, Musk, Linda Yaccarino, “ It’s, ” Musk, Robert F, Kennedy, Jr, it’s, Andrew Tate, “ Organizations: New, New York CNN, Twitter, BBC, The New York Times, CNN Locations: New York, Romania

☆ It's a huge win for Zuckerberg if Threads steals Twitter's lost charm and serendipity
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Shona Ghosh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

But making it more popular than Twitter would be a big win for Mark Zuckerberg. Most Twitter users know that the platform comes alive during a breaking news event, such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Those paying average Joes are now prioritized in the feed, devaluing Twitter as a place to discover interesting people. A recurring theme on Threads: It's a nice place to hang out (for now...) Insider/Shona Ghosh/ThreadsThat niceness could be fragile and temporary. Threads may go the same way since, as the internet loves to say, we can't have nice things.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, TikTok's, Zuckerberg, Samuel Beckett, beery louts, Paul Graham, Paul Graham Zuckerberg, Shona Ghosh, Twitter, he'll Organizations: Twitter, Meta, ICE Locations: Ukraine

☆ The internet's biggest fake news producers are gaining traction through Twitter Blue accounts promoting their disinformation about Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Katie Hawkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The BBC identified four major fake news stories about Ukraine viewed by millions. These fake stories were perpetuated by accounts that paid for Twitter Blue to promote their posts. Some of these falsehoods can be traced back to Russian propaganda and Kremlin-controlled media. The BBC identified four major falsehoods posted by several accounts with blue checkmarks — that is, accounts that paid for Twitter Blue so their content is promoted to other users — about Ukraine that garnered millions of views. The BBC determined that several Twitter Blue accounts promoted the claim, garnering hundreds of thousands of views.

Persons: —, Elon Musk Organizations: BBC, Twitter, Kremlin Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, France

☆ Pharrell Williams stages Louis Vuitton debut on Pont Neuf
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Mimosa Spencer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Designer Pharrell Williams appears at the end of his Menswear ready-to-wear Spring/Summer 2024 collection show for fashion house Louis Vuitton, on the Pont Neuf bridge, during Men's Fashion Week in Paris, France, June 20, 2023. REUTERS/Gonzalo FuentesPARIS, June 20 (Reuters) - For his debut collection at Louis Vuitton, Pharrell Williams drew his global audience to the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris, kicking off his tenure as creative director of menswear with a celebrity-packed outdoor show that further anchored the LVMH-owned (LVMH.PA) label in popular culture. Abloh had been the industry's highest profile Black designer, credited with forging a place for street style and loose skateboard looks in high-end fashion. Williams was first introduced to the Arnault clan in a collaboration to design sunglasses with Louis Vuitton designer Marc Jacobs in 2004. Williams' appointment raised eyebrows despite his extensive fashion experience, including founding streetwear brands with Japanese designer Nigo and designing capsule collections at Chanel.

Persons: Pharrell Williams, Louis Vuitton, Gonzalo Fuentes PARIS, strode, Williams, Virgil Abloh, Abloh, Virgil, Bernard Arnault, Arnault, Marc Jacobs, Nigo, Erwan Rambourg, Robert Schramm, Fuchs, Janus Henderson, Schramm, Mimosa Spencer, Helen Reid, Vanessa O'Connell, Richard Chang Organizations: REUTERS, Louis, LVMH, Chanel, Juilliard, HSBC, Thomson Locations: Pont, Paris, France, American, LVMH

☆ Elon Musk names NBCU ad chief Linda Yaccarino as Twitter CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —Elon Musk on Friday named longtime media executive Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter, months after he promised to step back from the role. “I am excited to welcome Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter!” Musk wrote in a tweet on Friday. NBCUniversal’s ad sales team has generated $100 billion in ad sales since she joined in 2011, according to her profile, and forged partnerships with many new media companies including Twitter as well as Apple News, Buzzfeed, Snapchat and YouTube. Ad sales represented more than 90% of the company’s revenue before Musk purchased it in October. Musk has previously spoken about improving ad sales by focusing more on the relevance of its ads.

☆ Elon Musk threatened to hand NPR's Twitter handle to 'another company' if the organization didn't start tweeting again, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Elon Musk has threatened to reassign NPR's Twitter handle, according to the broadcaster. NPR announced in mid-April that it would no longer tweet from its 52 official Twitter accounts. The move came after Twitter labeled NPR as "state-affiliated media." Elon Musk threatened to reassign NPR's Twitter handle to another entity if it didn't start tweeting again, the broadcaster reported. In a further email, Musk reportedly wrote: "Our policy is to recycle handles that are definitively dormant.

☆ Twitter appeared to suffer a new glitch during the Met Gala, logging out desktop users seemingly at random
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter appeared to suffer another outage on Monday, as users were logged out of the platform. The issue continued during the Met Gala, a typically high-traffic event as users discuss celebrity fashion. Twitter appeared to suffer another glitch on Monday, as desktop users reported being repeatedly logged out of the platform. ET – a couple hours before celebrities arrived on the red carpet for the Met Gala. In February, Twitter suffered an outage during another high-traffic event, the Super Bowl halftime show.

☆ Twitter users have found a loophole to get their legacy verified blue ticks back just by writing a few key words in their bios
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

People have found a way to get their Twitter blue checks back for free — though it's just a temporary fix. Legacy verified Twitter users have found a temporary fix to get their blue tick back for free — just by adding in a few words to their bio. Cheryl Teh, a news editor from Insider — who lost her blue tick when Twitter CEO Elon Musk axed the legacy blue tick program on April 1 — confirmed that writing "former blue check" in her bio restored the blue tick. But Musk replaced it with a subscription-based service, where legacy verified users could keep their checkmarks by signing up for the Twitter Blue subscription program. The posthumously installed blue tick beside these celebrities' names on Twitter erroneously claims: "This account is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number."

"Twitter Blue is a mess. Within the next 48 hours, all but 110 of the most-followed Twitter accounts suddenly had verification through Twitter Blue, indicating Twitter likely gifted the check marks, independent researcher Travis Brown told Reuters. GRADUAL PULLBACKSince the initial rollout of the Twitter Blue service in November, imposter tweets have spread harmful misinformation. Imposter Twitter accounts also tarnished the online reputations of Lockheed Martin Corp(LMT.N) and Nintendo Co Ltd(7974.T). "The volume of imposter accounts seems to depend on several things -- Is the client doing a high profile event that week?

☆ Mark Cuban says he's losing nearly 1,000 Twitter followers a day—and paying $8 for a blue check hasn't helped
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

And his experiment to fix the problem — paying for Twitter Blue, which costs $8 per month, to give his account the blue checkmark it used to sport for free — isn't working. Last month, he asked Twitter CEO Elon Musk in a tweet for suggestions on how to "retain or grow" his follower count. In December, Musk tweeted Twitter was "working on a software update" where users would be able to see if their accounts were shadow-banned or not. "We're rapidly improving transparency & fairness on this platform, but there is still a lot of work to do," Musk tweeted on Monday. The act damaged the blue checks' value by making them both less exclusive and less credible, Cuban suggested.

☆ Mark Cuban says he could get people to pay $100 for Twitter's blue checkmarks—Elon Musk's strategy is a 'huge mistake'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

"There were 100 ways [Musk] could have asked legacy checks for $100," Cuban wrote. When rolling out the subscription service, Musk removed blue checkmarks from previously verified users, and made them available to anyone willing to pay. It's unclear whether he's paying for Twitter Blue or Musk is covering his subscription. Musk's implementation of Twitter Blue could make both elements harder for many users, particularly when they're no longer sure who they're actually speaking with. "Twitter still is the best game in town for so many different types of communications," Cuban wrote.

☆ Fact Check-Twitter did not change its policy to prohibit attacks against Twitter Blue subscribers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Twitter’s Hateful Conduct policy was not changed to include a line about prohibiting users from attacking others based on having Twitter Blue status, a subscription that provides users with a blue check next to their username. A Facebook user said: “Twitter changed its policy to say that making fun of someone for PAYING for Twitter is now equivalent to attacking them for their identity. The posts share a screenshot of Twitter’s Hateful Conduct policy, which can be seen (here). “I thought it would be funny,” the user told Reuters in a Twitter message, confirming they digitally edited the policy. The screenshot of Twitter’s Hateful Conduct policy was altered and intended as a parody, the user who created it told Reuters.

☆ Twitter gave a gold checkmark to a troll account impersonating a defunct Disney TV channel for kids, which then posted a racial slur
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A fake Disney account was given a verified gold checkmark before it was suspended on Monday. Twitter appeared to give a gold checkmark to a random account pretending to be an official Disney account, before suspending it after a tweet from the account went viral. The troll also suggested they'd already had the gold checkmark for two days before gaining attention with Monday's viral tweet. After Twitter removed verified checkmarks from everybody who wasn't subscribed to Twitter Blue last week, a backlash saw some campaign to "Block The Blue." The handle used by the trolls was previously used by an official Disney account until October 2020, when the TV channel by the same name was closed down.

☆ Twitter descends into chaos as users lash out over Elon Musk's blue-check reversal for celebrities: 'Feel my wrath Tesla man!'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Blue checks were reinstated on several accounts but users said they hadn't paid for them. Rapper Lil Nas X, whose blue check remained, tweeted that he didn't pay for Twitter Blue. Some users who had died, including Kobe Bryant and Anthony Bourdain, had blue checks on their profiles. The ongoing confusion highlights the challenges Musk has faced in getting people to sign up for Twitter Blue. Bloomberg reported that traffic data showed only 4% of people who visited the Twitter Blue sales website in March subscribed.

☆ Twitter grants UK far-right party Britain First 'official organization' label
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter labeled the British far-right political party Britain First an "official organization," raising questions about the direction in which Elon Musk has taken the platform after its content moderation and verification overhaul. When clicking on the checkmark, a textbox shows the message: "This account is verified because it's an official organization on Twitter." On April 20, about 400,000 legacy-verified Twitter accounts lost their blue checkmarks as part of Musk's drive to gain the platform more money from subscriptions. Individual users must pay $8 for a membership with Twitter Blue, which gives them features such as the blue tick and the ability to edit tweets. In response to those labels, NPR and CBC announced they would stop using Twitter in an official capacity to disseminate reporting.

☆ Elon Musk appears to troll Twitter users who complain about being given blue checkmarks for free
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk is giving out free blue checkmarks to some who complain about Twitter Blue. Lil Nas X and Bette Midler are among the celebrities who say they didn't pay for Twitter Blue. Twitter users who complain about being given blue checkmarks for free or back a campaign to block those who do pay for them are being trolled by Elon Musk. It comes after some Twitter users started a movement to encourage others to block accounts that pay for Twitter Blue by tweeting with the hashtag #BlockTheBlue. "However, I will say, I think this is the very first funny thing Elon Musk has ever done."

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