Elon Musk bought Twitter.

[yermum]

Social media can go fuck itself.

It’s a shame because for a while twitter was genuinely useful for my work in academia.

We are in the age of algorithmic control. The world is being led backwards and forwards by big tech and its desire for profit.

Don’t engage.

[JM2K6]

I left Twitter a long time ago but opened a Bluesky account a few days ago to see what it was like. I can confirm that left leaning liberal types can be every bit as cunty as the other lot, just with a fully functioning superiority complex.

Deleted that one as well

Try Mastodon

I find it relaxing.

Just don't bother with social media, I reckon. I'd take cunty left-liberal types over the racists and actual Nazis any day of the week, but all these things are designed to provoke in some way or another and our brains aren't good at dealing with all that information, that method of communicating with a bonkers number of people, and the very nature of infinite discourse.

I will take my own advice at some point I'm sure.

[inactionman]

I stick to forums, as you start to build at least some sort of understanding of - if not necessarily a rapport with - the other posters and can normalise the more extreme. It of course helps that most have a common interest.

The more broadcast forms of social media are a mess. Aside from algorithms just presenting me with the same tired shit, I've no idea what everyone's agenda is - aside from self-aggrandisement - and the loudest on social media definitely have agendas. I'd rather converse with people, even if I don't agree with them, than shout over them.

I always hoped the whole Web 2.0 (woah, that's going back a few years) was going to be about connecting people, but it's ended up more about segmenting people and serving them adverts - the connection between people is totally missing.

[JM2K6]

Exactly. Forums allow you to build up a picture of what everyone is like, a set of social norms develops, and they're usually a genuine community no matter how dysfunctional. That's why I've never lumped forums in with social media, because they're so self contained.

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

[robmatic]

Twitter is a mess but I feel like I unfortunately need it to keep up with current affairs in Turkey where the mainstream media is not reliable in any shape or form.

I limit my exposure to 30 minutes per day. That is usually enough for news.

[robmatic]

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

[JM2K6]

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Social media makes everyone appear on the spectrum I reckon. It's literally designed to make everyone fixate on shit in the weirdest ways

[Uncle fester]

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Mind how you throw terms like that about please.

Also bots, you can't talk about xhitter without talking about the bots.
Apologies in advance for any offense caused to bots.

[PornDog]

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Mind how you throw terms like that about please.

Also bots, you can't talk about xhitter without talking about the bots.
Apologies in advance for any offense caused to bots.

[Margin__Walker]

Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Mind how you throw terms like that about please.

Also bots, you can't talk about xhitter without talking about the bots.
Apologies in advance for any offense caused to bots.

Yep, bots on Twitter are the biggest issue for me now. Heavily effects functionality and the user experience before you even get to any discussion of Musk. Any post by even accounts with a mid level profile are flooded with blue tick bot nonsense, making any discourse pretty much impossible.

[Biffer]

Musk also confirmed in the last few days that tweets with external links are throttled, which then controls the news people see, access to other opinions, etc.

[inactionman]

He's even indirectly messing up the Royal Society, although that's probably more the fault of those who elected him.

Oxford scientist resigns from Royal Society over Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship

Prof Dorothy Bishop said fellowship was ‘a contradiction of all the values’ of UK’s national academy of sciences

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... fellowship

[inactionman]

Might as well post this here - Oz have barred kids (anyone under 16) from social media.

Not entirely sure how it will be regulated, but an interesting step.

[Guy Smiley]

Might as well post this here - Oz have barred kids (anyone under 16) from social media.

Not entirely sure how it will be regulated, but an interesting step.

I'm not following as closely on this as I have with other political matters in Oz as there's just so much bad policy being enacted everywhere that it gets a bit overwhelming... but this is bad policy. There's no practical way it can be enforced that looks easy or economical, and the government have completely bypassed parental autonomy. It's populist wankery.That said, there is a glaring need for some sort of limit to the various social media platforms and there have been a number of docos produced in Oz detailing the issues around this.

[Dinsdale Piranha]

Might as well post this here - Oz have barred kids (anyone under 16) from social media.

Not entirely sure how it will be regulated, but an interesting step.

https://www.betootaadvocate.com/breakin ... s-pornhub/

[Guy Smiley]

[sockwithaticket]

While excessive social media consumption is certainly bad for children/teens (didn't some social media execs testify before congress that they won't let their own kids use it?), it's not much better for adults as we see by the rampant spreading of misinformation on platforms. Even in the form of incredibly obvious AI generated pictures. What we need is severe regulation of social media and big tech companies as a whole, not just to try and shield a small proportion of the population from them.

Can't see how they're going to enforce this ban, but good luck to them.

[PornDog]

While excessive social media consumption is certainly bad for children/teens (didn't some social media execs testify before congress that they won't let their own kids use it?), it's not much better for adults as we see by the rampant spreading of misinformation on platforms. Even in the form of incredibly obvious AI generated pictures. What we need is severe regulation of social media and big tech companies as a whole, not just to try and shield a small proportion of the population from them.

Can't see how they're going to enforce this ban, but good luck to them.

To add to that, advertising on social media should be held to the same standards as advertising on TV and Radio - so fucking many scam advertisements, often with deepfaked celebrities, on Facebook and YouTube. And that's not even counting the 'legitimate' advertisers that are just making wild claims about their products and services.

[Sandstorm]

While excessive social media consumption is certainly bad for children/teens (didn't some social media execs testify before congress that they won't let their own kids use it?), it's not much better for adults as we see by the rampant spreading of misinformation on platforms. Even in the form of incredibly obvious AI generated pictures. What we need is severe regulation of social media and big tech companies as a whole, not just to try and shield a small proportion of the population from them.

Can't see how they're going to enforce this ban, but good luck to them.

To add to that, advertising on social media should be held to the same standards as advertising on TV and Radio - so fucking many scam advertisements, often with deepfaked celebrities, on Facebook and YouTube. And that's not even counting the 'legitimate' advertisers that are just making wild claims about their products and services.

Wait, are you saying that adverts like this are fake???

"Powerful German technology eliminates the need for running water and electricity, boosting water pressure of this pressure washer up to 30 times!!"

[Hal Jordan]

Utility CEOs hate this!

[PornDog]

The display ads at the end of shitty website news articles are gas as well. I live in a pretty small rural town and see ads like "Millionaire's in <2horsetown> don't want you to know this" with a nice picture of some slick dude and his hot chick posing next to his Ferrari.

[Biffer]

Twelve kids and he spent Thanksgiving with Donald Trump.

[Hellraiser]

Twelve kids and he spent Thanksgiving with Donald Trump.

That's because his kids hate him.

[Biffer]

Twelve kids and he spent Thanksgiving with Donald Trump.

That's because his kids hate him.

Exactly

[tabascoboy]

[Uncle fester]

Graphic novel about Space Karen can't get an English language publisher.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... -publisher

[Sandstorm]

Graphic novel about Space Karen can't get an English language publisher.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... -publisher

Twat thinks he’s Darth Vader crossed with Dr Evil.

[fishfoodie]

Graphic novel about Space Karen can't get an English language publisher.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... -publisher

Twat thinks he’s Darth Vader crossed with Dr Evil.

He's the Bond villain in Moonraker; Drax.

Roger Moore has a quote along the lines of Drax wanting to live on a floating stud farm in space.. I've a feeling that's what Space Karen imagines for his impossible Mars Colony.

[Niegs]

Musk's mother saying we can afford more kids if we don't go to the movies. Love the comment that she's Lucile Bluth with Jessica Walters' charisma.

https://www.threads.net/@theartcandee/p ... qnx42Cwc3g

[sockwithaticket]

Musk's mother saying we can afford more kids if we don't go to the movies. Love the comment that she's Lucile Bluth with Jessica Walters' charisma.

https://www.threads.net/@theartcandee/p ... qnx42Cwc3g

"You don't have to go to the movies, you don't have to go out to dinner."

Yes, why can't the proles remember that they're not here to enjoy themselves, they're here to squeeze out more wage slaves for the oligarch class. All the better if they're born into poverty while social mobility continues to collapse.

Fucking ghoul.

Of course her ridiculous offspring is doing such a wonderful job the the dozen or so sprogs he rarely ever sees and at least three of which actively, publicly hate him.

[Enzedder]

Musk has bought Trump, now he's moving into UK politics via Farage

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/3605 ... list-party

It’s a photo that sent a tremor through British politics: Elon Musk flanked by British politician Nigel Farage and a wealthy backer, in front of a gilt-framed painting of a young Donald Trump.

Taken this week at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the image suggested that Musk, a key player in the incoming US administration, could soon turn his disruptive attention to the UK.

Farage, Trump’s highest-profile British champion, confirmed talks are underway about Musk making a hefty donation to Farage's party Reform UK. The Times of London reported it could be as much as US$100 million (NZ$177m), which would be far and away the largest political donation in UK history. The reports have sparked calls for Britain’s rules on political donations to be tightened — quickly.

“We did discuss money,” Farage told broadcaster GB News after the meeting with Musk. “That’s a negotiation we will go back and have again. He is not against giving us money. He hasn’t fully decided whether he will.”

Britain has strict limits on how much political parties can spend on elections, but they can accept unlimited donations, as long as the donors are UK voters or companies registered in Britain. Musk’s social network X has a British arm, Twitter UK Ltd, with a registered address in London.

Critics say that is a loophole that allows foreign influence in UK politics. The voting watchdog, the Electoral Commission, is calling for changes including limiting the amount a company can donate, so that it can't put in more money than it earns in Britain.

“It’s crucial that UK voters have trust in the financing of our political system,” the commission's chief executive Vijay Rangarajan told The Guardian.

“The system needs strengthening, and we have been calling for changes to the law since 2013, to protect the electoral system from foreign interference.”

Britain’s centre-left Labour Party pledged during the summer election campaign to tighten the rules on political donations, though legislation is not scheduled in the coming year. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesman Dave Pares said Wednesday that work is already underway to “reinforce existing safeguards” against “impermissible proxy donations.”

Both the Labour government and the right-of-centre opposition Conservatives are trying to figure out how to deal with Musk, who has taken a keen interest in the UK – and seemingly formed a strong dislike for Starmer.

Musk often posts on X about the UK, retweeting criticism of Starmer and the hashtag TwoTierKeir – shorthand for an unsubstantiated claim that Britain has “two-tier policing,” with far-right protesters treated more harshly than pro-Palestinian or Black Lives Matter demonstrators. Musk has compared British attempts to weed out online misinformation to the Soviet Union, and during summer anti-immigrant violence across the UK tweeted that “civil war is inevitable”.

Farage has echoed some of those themes in his own social media output and his party’s anti-“woke” agenda, which includes pledges to slash immigration, scrap green-energy targets and leave the European Convention on Human Rights.

Founded in 2021, Reform UK is the latest in a string of small hard-right parties led by Farage that have had limited electoral success, but an outsized influence on British politics.

Farage’s opposition to the European Union helped push the country toward voting in 2016 to leave the bloc, a seismic political and economic break with the UK’s nearest neighbours.

Reform UK won just five of the 650 seats in the House of Commons in July’s election, but came second in dozens more and secured 14% of the vote. Now it is pushing for fast growth, trying to professionalise its previously ramshackle organisation and holding gatherings around the UK to recruit new members.

Farage, a strong communicator who has embraced TikTok and other platforms, aims to emulate Trump’s success in using the power of personality and social media to reach the “bro vote” — young men who are traditionally less likely to turn out at election time.

Farage told GB News that Musk has “already given me considerable help – understanding the process from start to finish, reaching disaffected communities who frankly feel there’s no point voting for anybody.”

The electoral power of social media was on show recently in Romania, where far-right candidate Călin Georgescu came from nowhere to win the first round of the presidential election in November, aided in part by a flood of TikTok videos promoting his campaign. Amid allegations that Russia had organized the social media campaign to back Georgescu, Romania’s Constitutional Court cancelled the presidential election runoff two days before it was due to take place.

With Britain’s Conservative Party trying to recover from its worst election result since 1832, Farage dreams of making Reform the main opposition – or even the government — after the next election, due by 2029.

That’s a long shot, but Rob Ford, professor of political science at the University of Manchester, said a big donation from Musk could have “disruptive potential in all sorts of ways”.

He said Musk’s money would give Reform “the opportunity to try and build up a serious campaign organisation, which is something that they have generally lacked.”

“It’s certainly adding a new joker to the pack of cards in British politics,” Ford said.

“We’ve had no shortage of surprising developments here in the past few years. And maybe this is the next one.”

[laurent]

found today

[Guy Smiley]

found today

My find today...

"Sissy SpaceX"

[Slick]

I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

[tabascoboy]

I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

Saw this the other day

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

https://bsky.app/profile/sethabramson.b ... r4u336ik2x

[Lobby]

I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

Saw this the other day

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

https://bsky.app/profile/sethabramson.b ... r4u336ik2x

[Kiwias]

Trump is such a child, making it easy for the Dems to wind him up with President Elon comments.

[Niegs]

I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

Saw this the other day

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

https://bsky.app/profile/sethabramson.b ... r4u336ik2x

[Punter15]

Trump is such a child, making it easy for the Dems to wind him up with President Elon comments.

Elonia is has overstepped and Donnie is taking his ball back. Inevitable.

[Gumboot]

In the same vein...