Alex StamosThe amount of misinformation on Mastodon around Threads and the EU is a great demonstration of how motivated reasoning is not a problem only for commercial social media platforms.
Brendan Nyhan@alex say more...
INVISV@brendannyhan @alex Also might be worth teasing apart misinformation from speculation -- we're all doing the latter, in the absence of more/better hard facts. For example, this is an example of reasonable speculation, but speculation nonetheless:
https://hachyderm.io/@cundravy/110667552225119146
https://hachyderm.io/@cundravy/110667552225119146
@cundravy (@[email protected])
Attached: 1 image @[email protected] I’m still doing my research here but it seems like it can be a potential escape hatch against some of the “loom” ing DMA requirements. https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/priorities-2019-2024/europe-fit-digital-age/digital-markets-act-ensuring-fair-and-open-digital-markets_en
Buck@alex Are we talking about Gruber? Please elaborate
Virginia MurrWell, one fact we absolutely know is that it's run by a dude who enabled a genocide.
1 of many sources:
teledyn 𓂀And yet Amnesty International maintains a large presence on Facebook. How do you explain that?
Alon@VirginiaMurr @teledyn @alex Why, in your opinion, do the Rohingya human rights activists on Twitter stay on Twitter rather than moving to Mastodon or Bluesky, and why do they barely even mention Facebook as an enabler?
@teledyn @VirginiaMurr @alex You are both insane. The actual reason is that they talk about Burmese racism and massacres on Burmese terms; this is not something Facebook created but rather something that has been going on since independence that the world didn't notice during the military dictatorship because it was focused on ASSK's celebrity. Thus, their critique of Facebook is secondary to their intersectional critique of both genocidal Burmese racism and ARSA sexism.
@teledyn @VirginiaMurr @alex And the reason they're not here is that the Fediverse is full of patronizing Europeans and Americans who center online drama over global human rights content. Survivors of genocide aren't staying with abusers they know - what the fuck? They go to spaces where they can most effectively fight the genocide, and Mastodon isn't it. It's fine for European human rights content, but if I want to read about MENA or Southeast Asia, that's only on Twitter.
I get that you don't like my opinion--which is fine.
But, whatever your (or anyone else's) reasons, you cannot change the fact that you give Musk (and/or Zuck) an additional mDAU every time you login.
mDAU is their profit metric. It's how they entice investors $, advertisers $, and the number they use to keep "influencers" and media personalities. They profit from your presence.
It's not patronizing to say that. It's just a fact.
@VirginiaMurr @teledyn @alex None of this is remotely relevant to survivors of genocide. Center them and not your consumer politics.
@VirginiaMurr @teledyn @alex No, I think you should listen to the survivors and note what they do and don't talk about. Facebook is, to them, a secondary issue. They all use it. I haven't seen any of them express guilt over it, nor any attempt to organize a boycott. (Labor groups will tell you that you shouldn't ever do wildcat boycotts - they can backfire. Boycott if the union organizers ask for it.) Instead, they talk about Burma's long history of racism and about first-world indifference.
Wichtawstraw@teledyn @VirginiaMurr @alex Because it's a tool to spread awareness and raise money. They also use the US Postal Service platform without supporting everything the United States does. You can do two things at once.
Supporting the tax-payer funded USPS is not the same as supporting individuals who, for personal profit, create and/or allow extreme harms (such as genocides).
Yes, the choice to support the platforms can be rationalized (not limited to "raising awareness"), but it doesn't change that the support helps the people who own the platforms.
GeekGyrl@teledyn @VirginiaMurr @alex The devil you know and limited platform availability to reach a mass audience?
Miguel MadeiraSincerely, I think that idea does not make much sense - the Myanmar army does not have an internal communications system? It needed Facebook to organize massacres???
This could make some sense if we were talking about a bottom-up massacre, made by radicalized gangs of civilians, but not from a massacre made by the military.
Maybe read the article (it explains).
Also:
"Facebook admitted in 2018 that it had not done enough to prevent the incitement of violence and hate speech against the Rohingya, the Muslim minority in Myanmar." from the following article "Rohingya sue Facebook for £150bn over Myanmar genocide"
GrayGooGlitch 
@alex Only bits I've heard are that it isn't being released because it wouldn't meet GDPR requirements (which lets be real, isn't that shocking).
Rob Hague@alex It certainly seems more nuanced than most are making out. Can you recommend any good coverage? I'm particularly curious as to why they're launching here in the UK but not the EU, given that we still have the GDPR,
usually cited as the blocker.
usually cited as the blocker.
@robhague Because it's not GDPR, it's ambiguity in the requirements on a VLOP when launching a new platform under the DMA, which does not apply to the UK.
@alex Thanks — thought it was something along those lines, but hadn't found anything concrete. (I'm a lot less familiar with the DMA than the GDPR; will have to fix that.)
Damien Miller
Dr. Sobek
@infosec_jcp 🐈🃏 done differentlyBut non-specific non-accurate speculative accusations WITHOUT examples are considered... WOT, Alex? 😅
#Wikipedia & #Wookiepedia would say #CitationsNeeded to the above Alex. 😉
Here is a #LongTail #news #example 📰🗞️📡🛰️📺 from moi, Alex:
https://twitter.com/infosec_jcp/status/1677006696454189057
Is this a reaction to #NOYBeu story here, Alex? 👇⚠️
https://noyb.eu/en/cjeu-declares-metafacebooks-gdpr-approach-largely-illegal
One other thing... Did you know about this* 👇
*See attached image
Oh, I also have a story on this cite here with Adam.
@[email protected]🐈done different 👻🃏 on Twitter
“@finkd This seems like Mark got scared a bit by the Walrus about to delete his account unless this above happened? 😉 Cynical / Probably 😏 https://t.co/mlWWmz9Aw2”
🔥
🧵
🌐🕷️🕸️⬇️😏
https://infosec.exchange/@infosec_jcp/110680079266602267
I asked Mark Z. for comment 🎤 but... Still waiting on his Legal Department to approve his Threads / Twitter response since The Walrus threatened his ... Account for deleted or something. 😏
🔥🌐
https://twitter.com/infosec_jcp/status/1677761300376748032
@infosec_jcp 🆓🐦🐈🃏 done differently (@[email protected])
Attached: 1 image "You wouldn't spin up a #fediverse instance and #moderate IT, would you?! "👍 🔥 🧵 #fediverse #meme rn - 😏 Image Description: Spiderman with 🧵's of 🔥 pointing at each other #meme "You wouldn't spin up a #fediverse instance and #moderate IT, would you?! "👍 🔥 🧵 #fediverse #meme rn - 😏
kkeller@alex can you give some examples? Not that I'm doubting you, but that I don't read the federated timeline enough to see this misinformation so am unaware and would like to inform myself.
Ville Turpeinen@vinski wow, well, that's an opinion anyway. It is heartening to see a lot of pushback in the replies at least.
Frank Endrullat 🌻@alex I think all of the possible arguments for or against have now been made. At the end of the day it is up to every single person to decide if Threads is for them. With all the pros and cons, either way.
Recently I’ve seen a post somewhere where someone said that “the internet these days is basically the Intranet of 5 companies”. Kind of stuck with me since. Wish I could remember where to give proper credit. 😬
Recently I’ve seen a post somewhere where someone said that “the internet these days is basically the Intranet of 5 companies”. Kind of stuck with me since. Wish I could remember where to give proper credit. 😬
Enkiusz🇺🇦@alex please elaborate
Bearskiy@alex they're not allowed to give our personal information to Russia, but it's all the platform is about. They're probably trying to find a loophole without getting sued, but until then we don't need more Facebook in EU.
Zalasur 🐸🇺🇦@alex Yuuuuup
The DJ Mr P@alex personally, I don't understand the obsession with other social media platforms. We're here, not there, right? If Threads or BlueSky is your jam, more power to you. It's good to know the security/ privacy issues but really, adults get to make their own decisions.
I like my Mastodon instance because it's genuinely interesting. Threads, Twitter, whatever, why would I care? I'm not trying to sell Mastodon.
To users of other platforms: you do you.
I like my Mastodon instance because it's genuinely interesting. Threads, Twitter, whatever, why would I care? I'm not trying to sell Mastodon.
To users of other platforms: you do you.