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☆ TikTok knew its algorithm harmed kids, accidentally revealed internal documents show
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-11 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Internal research accidentally revealed this week indicates TikTok knew its algorithm was harmful. Lawyers for children harmed by social media say the apps have long known they are hurting kids. According to NPR, TikTok's internal documents show officials at parent company ByteDance discussing internal studies that show the app can harm children. According to NPR, the unredacted internal documents show that TikTok touted its tools for limiting teens' screen time despite knowing from its own research that these features had "little impact." Matthew Bergman, a founding attorney of the Social Media Victims Law Center, which represents over 3,000 plaintiffs in cases of adolescents harmed by social media, told BI that the unsealed information is "certainly consistent with what we're seeing" across TikTok and other social media.

Persons: TikTok, —, Adam Wandt, John Jay, Wandt, Jayne Conroy, Simmons Hanly Conroy, Conroy, it's, Matthew Bergman, Bergman Organizations: Service, Kentucky Public Radio, NPR, John, John Jay College of Criminal, Social Media, Law Center

☆ Meta sued by 42 attorneys general for addictive features targeting kids
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

A bipartisan group of 42 attorneys general is suing Meta over addictive features aimed at kids and teens, the AGs announced Tuesday. The support from so many state AGs of different political backgrounds indicates a significant legal challenge to Meta's business. Besides New York, the states that filed the federal suit include California, Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Washington and Wisconsin. It's also not the first time a broad coalition of state AGs have teamed up to go after Meta. Meta was well aware of the negative effects its design could have on its young users, the AGs allege.

Persons: Letitia James, It's, Meta, James, –, Frances Haugen, Instagram, Haugen, Brian Schwalb, Schwalb, Andy Stone, We're, Joe Biden, Jim Cramer Organizations: AGs, Meta, Northern District of, New York, Federal Trade Commission, Facebook, Street, CNBC, State Locations: Northern District, Northern District of California, New York, California , Colorado , Louisiana , Nebraska, South Carolina, Washington and Wisconsin, America

☆ Shein plans to ship Brazil-made products around Latin America from 2026
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Andre Romani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The firm started manufacturing clothes in Brazil earlier this year, its first production center outside China. "The idea is that by 2026 Brazil will be ready to serve Latin America," Magalhaes told reporters on Wednesday at an event at Shein's Sao Paulo office. She did not specify which Latin American countries Shein could ship products to from Brazil. Brazil is one of its five main markets and the largest in Latin America, the company said. In addition to Brazil, the company started manufacturing in Turkey this year and plans to build a factory in Mexico.

Persons: Chen Lin, Fabiana Magalhaes, Magalhaes, Chris Xu, Shein, Andre Romani, Peter Frontini, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, SAO PAULO, Shein's Sao Paulo, Thomson Locations: Singapore, Brazil, Latin America, China, Nanjing, Turkey, Mexico

Still, it could hurt perceptions of Chinese EV makers as they expand abroad, Bernstein analysts said in a client note. Nio and Geely declined to comment on the EU probe, while BYD, Xpeng and SAIC did not respond to requests for comment. Shares in European carmakers were also among the biggest fallers on the euro zone stock index (.STOXXE50) in early trading. STRAINED RELATIONSThe anti-subsidy probe, initiated unusually by the European Commission and not from any industry complaint, comes amid broader diplomatic strains between the EU and China. It accounted for 40.25% of EV exports from China between January and April 2023.

Persons: Annegret, Ursula von der Leyen, Bernstein, BYD, CATL, Cui Dongshu, EVs, Donny Kwok, Brenda Goh, Ryan Woo, Anne Marie Roantree, Tom Hogue, Jamie Freed, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, China, EV, EU, European, Ministry of Commerce, Eurasian Group, Reuters Graphics, Reuters Graphics Hong Kong, HK, Geely, SAIC, BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes, European Commission, China Passenger Car Association, EVs, for Strategic, Internal Studies, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, Europe, China, SHANGHAI, BEIJING, Beijing, EU, Brussels, Southeast Asia, Reuters Graphics Hong, Shanghai, Xpeng, Shenzhen, SZ, Moscow, Russian, Ukraine, U.S, Hong Kong

Analysts said the probe could slow capacity expansion and the capital spending cycle of China's battery suppliers, although the move should not pose a big downside risk for Chinese EVs. Hong Kong shares of market leader BYD fell more than 3%. Nio and Geely declined to comment on the EU probe, while BYD, Xpeng and SAIC did not respond to requests for comment. GROWING MARKET SHAREEU officials believe Chinese EVs are undercutting the prices of local models by about 20% in the European market, piling pressure on European automakers to produce lower-cost electric vehicles. It accounted for 40.25% of EV exports from China between January and April 2023, up from 36.5% in 2022.

Persons: Angelika Warmuth, Ursula von der Leyen, BYD, CATL, der Leyen, Li Qiang, Cui Dongshu, EVs, Donny Kwok, Brenda Goh, Ryan Woo, Anne Marie Roantree, Tom Hogue, Jamie Freed Organizations: BYD Company, REUTERS, China, EV, European Commission, EU . European, Analysts, HK, Geely, SAIC, EU, Chamber of Commerce, China Passenger Car Association, Center, Strategic, Internal Studies, Volvo, Thomson Locations: Munich, Germany, Europe, HONG KONG, SHANGHAI, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Xpeng, Shenzhen, SZ, China, Moscow, Russian, Ukraine, New Delhi, Brussels, U.S

☆ Americans want to delete Instagram more than any other app
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

There are a lot of reasons why you might want to delete a popular app from their phone — and you're far from alone. Popular social media apps Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat garnered the most internet searches from people looking to delete those apps over a recent six-month period, according to an analysis of search trends from cybersecurity website VPNOverview. During that period, there were more than 900,000 searches for how to "delete" or "deactivate" Instagram, more than any of the country's 30 most popular apps by downloads, VPNOverview said in its February report. And in recent years, polls have shown growing distrust of popular social media platforms over issues like disinformation, cyberbullying, phishing scams, privacy concerns and data mining. And, while the majority of teens today are willing to take breaks from social media, they're also mostly split on whether they could give up social media altogether.

☆ Twitter's team focused on ethics rushed to publish research papers before Elon Musk's takeover fearing he would lay them off, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter's AI ethics team hurriedly published studies in the weeks before Elon Musk's takeover, Wired reported. The team feared "the runway would shut down when the Elon jumbo jet landed," one ex-staffer told Wired. In Musk's first week owning Twitter, he laid-off most of the team, known internally as META. "We were rightfully worried about what this leadership change would entail," Rumman Chowdhury, who was engineering director on the team, told Wired. Employees told Wired that several more papers on misinformation and algorithms were quickly published too around the time of the takeover.

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