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Reddit to start charging AI companies for data

Apr 19, 2023
Reddit threads are a big part of the diet of large language models like ChatGPT.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Behind SVB's collapse were a whole lot of texts on messaging groups

Mar 17, 2023
Chatter among the bank's depositors on social media and texting groups may have exacerbated its demise.
Bank runs of the 1930s happened slowly, because we banked and communicated differently then.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Consumers' "revenge reviews" have been rising since the pandemic

Mar 9, 2023
Many with serious gripes about goods or services post their complaints on social media, according to the National Customer Rage Survey.
Despite the risk of looking like a "Chad" or a "Karen" online, nearly a quarter of customers with a serious gripe about products or services post their complaints on social media now, according to the National Customer Rage Survey.
Wavebreakmedia/Getty Images

Loneliness is an epidemic — social media may not always help

Mar 2, 2023
Social media platforms that bring people together IRL can help. Those that privilege one-way communication from influencers to followers may make matters worse.
Social media can be a tool for human connection, but some experts say some follower-type platforms can instead exacerbate loneliness.
Manan Vatsyayana/AFP/Getty Images

How does a water bottle go viral — and stay viral?

Feb 21, 2023
Stanley, the popular drinkware brand, has transitioned from venerable camping staple to TikTok sensation.
A woman with a Stanley tumbler in hand. Short-form social media has accelerated the trend cycle of various products, says marketing professor Justin Huang.
Courtesy Stanley

Online advertising has been getting more expensive. That's pinching small businesses.

Feb 17, 2023
Some small firms can't afford not to advertise.
Owners of online businesses, like Kate Matsudaira of Ink+Volt, rely on digital advertising to spread awareness of their offerings. She recently hired a full-time social media manager.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

How ASMR videos earn bonus revenue for this cleaning company

Feb 15, 2023
“It has become so easy,” said Samad Abdulai, owner of C3 Laundry Services.
Samad Adbulai, owner of C3 Laundry Services in Accra, Ghana, is seen with a truck full of rugs.
Courtesy Abdulai

For public good, not for profit.

How people are making six figures a year through Instagram Reels

Jan 13, 2023
Many of the videos show creators reacting to a filter that generates a random answer to questions like "What Disney princess are you?"
"Instagram really wanted people to create material from the features that already existed on the site," says Jacob Sweet, who writes for The New Yorker.
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

To tweet or not to tweet? How brands are wrestling with Elon Musk's Twitter

Dec 16, 2022
While many companies like General Mills and General Motors stopped or reduced paid advertising, most are staying on the platform. 
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

Can Mastodon replace Twitter or is it a different beast?

Nov 18, 2022
Looking for a Twitter alternative, over a million people have recently signed up for Mastodon, a non-profit open source social media service.
Mastodon gets its name from a prehistoric mammoth-like animal.
Courtesy Mastodon