Social Media

WaPo: Trump Tried To Sell Truth Social To Elon Musk

The Washington Post reports: Former president Donald Trump asked Elon Musk last summer whether the billionaire industrialist would be interested in buying Trump’s social network Truth Social, according to two people with knowledge of the conversation. The overture to Musk, whose business empire includes SpaceX, Tesla and the social networking site X, did not lead to a deal. But the …

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TODAY: House Votes On Bill To Ban TikTok Nationwide

CNN reports: The House is expected to vote Wednesday on a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban against TikTok, a major challenge to one of the world’s most popular social media apps that comes as former President Donald Trump has signaled opposition to a ban. The bill would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media …

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Judge Disqualifies Himself In Ex-Twitter Execs Lawsuit

Bloomberg Law reports: A California federal district court judge has recused himself from hearing a lawsuit four former Twitter Inc. executives brought against Elon Musk for allegedly refusing to pay them severance. Judge Gilliam Haywood said he is “disqualified” from the case led by Parag Agrawal, who served as the chief executive officer of the social media site that Musk …

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Trump Ally Claims He’ll Buy TikTok If It Gets Banned

The Hill reports: “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary suggested that he will buy social media platform TikTok if a proposed ban goes ahead. “Not going to get banned, ‘cause I’m gonna buy it,” O’Leary said on Fox News. “Somebody’s going to buy it, it won’t be Meta and it won’t be Google, ‘cause…regulator [will] stop that.” “This is worth billions, …

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House Advances Bill That Could Result In TikTok Ban

The Hill reports: The House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously advanced a bill Thursday that would require TikTok’s China-based parent company ByteDance to divest the app or face a U.S. ban. The bill advanced out of committee with overwhelming bipartisan support just two days after it was introduced by Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the top lawmakers …

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GOP AGs To YouTube: Drop Abortion Pill Fact-Check

The Christian Post reports: A coalition of 16 attorneys general has demanded that YouTube remove information labels attached to videos discussing chemical abortions that they argue are “misleading” to viewers. In a letter sent to YouTube CEO Neal Mohan on Monday, the attorneys general argued that the information panels the company included below videos on the popular video-sharing platform “misleads …

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Kansas AG Sues TikTok For “Promoting Filth To Kids”

Topeka’s ABC affiliate reports: The Kansas Attorney General’s Office announced his office has filed a lawsuit on Wednesday, March 6 in Shawnee County District Court against social media company TikTok for misrepresenting its age-appropriateness in app stores, deceiving parents about the effectiveness of its parental tools and creating and aggressively promoting an addictive app that erodes the mental health of …

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Fired Twitter Execs Sue For $128 Million In Severance

Ars Technica reports: Elon Musk and X Corp. were sued yesterday by four former Twitter executives who say they were cheated out of more than $128 million in severance when Musk bought the social network and fired them. Former Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, former CFO Ned Segal, former Chief Legal Officer Vijaya Gadde, and former General Counsel Sean Edgett filed …

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All Meta Platforms Appear To Have Crashed Worldwide

The Daily Mail reports: Meta’s Facebook, Threads, Messenger and Instagram are down worldwide, leaving thousands of users unable to access the social media platforms. The issues appeared around 10:20am ET and are impacting both social media sites’ apps and website. Rather than showing a skeleton version of the site, Facebook will automatically kick you out. An error message saying that …

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FL Senate Passes New Social Media Ban For Minors

Florida Politics reports: The Senate has passed a replacement bill regulating social media use by minors. After a 30-5 vote, the measure now heads back to the House. Days after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed legislation barring anyone under age 16 from most social media platforms, lawmakers brought new language to the floor giving more say to parents. Sen. Erin Grall, …

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X Could Face Antitrust Crackdown Under New EU Rules

Politico Europe reports: Elon Musk’s X, formerly known as Twitter, may face tough new restrictions under the European Union’s new digital antitrust rulebook, the European Commission said after the company told regulators they could come under the scope of the rules. X, TikTok-owner Bytedance and travel website group Booking told the Commission on Friday that they run digital services that …

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FL Republican Intros New Social Media Ban For Minors

Florida Politics reports: Language for a new social media bill with provisions for parental consent has been filed in the Senate. The move came after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed an all-out ban on those under 16 using most social media platforms. Sen. Erin Grall, a Fort Pierce Republican, filed an amendment with new language negotiated with the House, Senate and …

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DeSantis Vetoes Bill Banning Minors From Social Media

The Washington Post reports: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) vetoed what would have been one of the nation’s most restrictive bans against children using social media on Friday, drawing a line in the debate over kids’ online safety over concerns the bill did not allow parents to supervise teens’ activity. But unlike laws in Utah and Arkansas blocking kids under …

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Justices Skeptical Of Laws Against Social Media Bans

The New York Times reports: The Supreme Court seemed troubled on Monday by a Florida law that prohibits social media companies from disfavoring conservative speakers, at least to the extent that it bars major platforms like Facebook and YouTube from making editorial judgments. But several justices indicated that the sprawling law may be constitutional as applied to other sites like …

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Today: SCOTUS Hears Laws Against Social Media Bans

Vox reports: In mid-2021, about a year before he began his longstanding feud with the biggest employer in his state, Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation attempting to seize control of content moderation at major social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter (now called X by Elon Musk). A few months later, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, also …

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DeSantis Gets Bill Banning Minors From Social Media

Florida Politics reports: Florida’s Republican-led Legislature passed a sweeping bill Thursday in Tallahassee that would ban all kids under 16 from using social media — even with a parent’s permission — and would require everyone else in the Sunshine State to prove they are adults to continue using their online accounts. The Senate voted 23-14 to pass the bill, a …

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FL Rep: Letting Parents Consent To Kids Using Social Media Is Like Letting Them Consent To Kids’ Drug Use

Florida Politics reports: The Senate continues to adjust a controversial ban on social media for Floridians under age 16. But legislation (HB 1) ready for a vote in the Senate still doesn’t allow parents final say whether kids can log into platforms. Sen. Erin Grall, a Fort Pierce Republican, said the state needs to treat access to addictive platforms the …

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Twitter Suspends Account Of Alexei Navalny’s Widow

Sky News reports: X has suspended the account of Alexei’s Navalny’s widow. It is unclear why the social network, formerly Twitter, has suspended Yulia Navalnaya’s account. Earlier today on X, Ms Navalnaya urged the Kremlin to “give back Alexei’s body and let him be buried with dignity”. She also said she “did not care how the killer’s press secretary comments …

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GOP Senators To Biden: Delete Your TikTok Account

Reuters reports: A group of 18 Republican lawmakers has urged President Joe Biden to deactivate his campaign’s TikTok account citing national security concerns. The lawmakers in a letter seen by Reuters said Biden was “ignoring TikTok’s well-established national security risks. How can the federal government warn Americans about the risks of this app if the Commander in Chief uses it, …

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SEC Approves Merger To Take Truth Social Public

Politico reports: Donald Trump may be finally headed for Wall Street. The Securities and Exchange Commission has signed off on one of the last outstanding hurdles to a more than two-year-old planned merger to take the former president’s media venture public, according to the companies behind the deal, Trump Media & Technology Group and Digital World Acquisition Corp. Now, pending …

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