Twitter is reportedly losing some of its top executives
It’s not a good day if you’re part of Twitter’s top brass. Recode sources claim that multiple executives are leaving the social network, including senior engineering VP Alex Roetter, global media VP Katie Jacobs Stanton, product VP Kevin Weil and Vine leader Jason Toff. The reasons for leaving vary, but some departures are believed to be more voluntary than others — Stanton may be one of the few exiting on her own terms. If the leak is authentic, you’ll get the full details as soon as Monday (January 25th).
The departures would be sudden, but not unexpected. Twitter is still having problems attracting new users, and recently installed CEO Jack Dorsey has been cleaning house in a bid to turn things around. This would just be the first time that his axe falls on management in a big way. There’s no telling whether or not this will work, but it’s safe to say that this won’t look good to outsiders — while some new hires may be on the way, it’ll look like a loss of internal confidence.
[Image credit: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Source: Recode (1), (2), (3)
Computers may one day understand sarcasm on Twitter
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
Languages are fraught with nuances, but the one language technique that gives people problems understanding – let alone computers – is sarcasm. Despite this obvious degree of difficulty, researchers at the Carnegie Mellon University are developing a system that can identify sarcasm on Twitter. As detailed in their paper titled “Contextualized Sarcasm Detection on Twitter”, authors David Bamman and Noah Smith break sarcasm down to its roots, identifying that sarcasm can be better identified if we can understand the context in which it is used in. For instance, the use of the hashtag, #sarcasm, on Twitter is not necessarily an indicator of the use of sarcasm, but a signal to those reading the tweet that what they are reading is the true meaning of the tweet, rather than the implied meaning as is usually the case with sarcasm. Confused? Me too.
Even though this seems like a pretty impossible task for a computer to do, the algorithm used by Bamman and Smith has managed to achieve 75% accuracy when it comes to identifying sarcasm if considering only the tweet. This accuracy rises to 85% if the algorithm is allowed to also consider who the author is, their audience, and the response to the tweet. Obviously it’s not a perfect system yet, but it’s well on its way to being useful. You may be asking why this is even important: the simple answer is this could be extremely useful in determining whether threats made on social media, like Twitter, are genuine threats or simple sarcasm.
What do you think about this research about sarcasm on Twitter? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
The post Computers may one day understand sarcasm on Twitter appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Apple Planning Fix for Broken Twitter Links in Safari on OS X
For the past couple of months, Twitter users who click shortened “t.co” links with an HTTPS URL have noticed a frequent, irritating bug that prevents content from loading. Oftentimes, when a “t.co” link is clicked, it opens up a blank web page and hangs at a loading screen for several minutes before giving an error message.
There are threads about this issue on the MacRumors forums and the Apple Support Communities, with most people complaining that the problem started around the beginning of November.
Aside from reloading the t.co URL several times, removing the “https” from the URL, or switching to a different browser, there’s no way to fix the link loading issue. Clearing Safari’s cached files also helps, but only temporarily. Chrome and Firefox aren’t affected, nor are links that do not use HTTPS.
In a recent post on the issue, The Verge uncovered a January 14 tweet from Timothy Hatcher, a WebKit Developer Experience Manager at Apple. Hatcher says the problem is lower level than WebKit (Safari is built on WebKit) and that Apple has a fix identified.
Hatcher did not specify when the fix might be implemented, and it is unclear if it could come in a standalone Safari update or if a full OS X update will be required.
Discuss this article in our forums
Twitter slammed for hiring Apple’s (white) head of diversity
Twitter is one of the Silicon Valley companies most criticized for a lack of diversity, and its latest hire isn’t helping that image. The company recently announced that Jeffrey Siminoff will replace Janet Van Huysse as vice president of diversity and inclusion. Siminoff, who is white and male, was previously Apple’s head of diversity and is a strong promoter of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights. However, the move was criticized by diversity proponents like Mark S. Luckie, who didn’t take issue with Siminoff himself, but rather the decision. “Not saying a white guy can’t be head of diversity, but for a company that hires a majority white guys [sic] it sends the wrong message,” he tweeted.
Twitter this makes no sense. I’m sure he’s a great guy but you’ve set the company back instead of moving it forward https://t.co/2vD9Y8woO4
— Mark S. Luckie (@marksluckie) December 29, 2015
Twitter publicly promised to increase the number of women and under-represented minorities in 2015 after seeing declining numbers the year before. However, in a recent Medium post, the company’s formerly highest-ranking black employee, Leslie Miley, said that Twitter’s diversity problem won’t be easy to fix. “There was very little diversity in thought and almost no diversity in action.” He said that includes an “over-reliance on a limited number of schools and workplaces for talent, [which] has caused a type of group-think to dominate.”
@marksluckie Not only that, but it’s another exec who doesn’t use Twitter much. Only 835 tweets in 5 years.
— dwight silverman (@dsilverman) December 29, 2015
Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson pointed out that “Blacks and Latinos over-index on using Twitter, but their board of directors and C-suite leadership remain all white,” according to USA Today. Recent statistics show that 30 percent of Twitter users, but only six percent of Twitter employees are black or Hispanic. That also brought up another criticism — Siminoff, like most Twitter execs, isn’t exactly a prolific user, with only 800-plus tweets in five years. In fact, the only senior Twitter employee who tweets very much is CEO Jack Dorsey. And critics like Erica Joy think that Siminoff’s tenure as diversity chief will be doomed unless Dorsey himself becomes extremely hands-on with the issue. “Nobody but the CEO is going to be able to fix [diversity problems],” she said in a Medium post.
Via: USA Today
Source: Twitter (Twitter)
Twitter updates rules on abusive behavior and hateful conduct
Twitter issued a statement earlier on its blog that they’re still fighting abuse and will not tolerate any harassment.
One of the major downsides of social media is the amount of abuse and harassment that takes place. Twitter has updated its policy multiple times to better enforce its rules against abusive users and has updated its service terms yet again. Twitter added a “hateful conduct” section which further exemplifies the issue and indicates what could happen if a user breaks these terms.
Earlier this year, Twitter made it easier to report trolls and harmful behavior. Today, the company sent out an important reminder that it hasn’t forgotten about these issues and will continue to take them with all seriousness.
Source: Twitter
Come comment on this article: Twitter updates rules on abusive behavior and hateful conduct
Twitter wants you to know it’s still dealing with harassment
Twitter is continuing its (long overdue) fight against abusive users by updating its service terms with more specific language about harassment. This time around, there’s a new section dedicated to “hateful conduct,” which reiterates that users can’t threaten or promote violence towards others based on their race, gender, ethnicity, and other characteristics. Beyond that, there’s not much that’s too different from Twitter’s previous set of rules, which were announced back in April alongside the launch of new filtering technology and methods for dealing with abusive accounts. The company also made it easier to report trolls earlier this year.
As with every online communication platform, Twitter has been plagued with trolls since its inception. But it’s a particularly hot lightning rod for abuse since its main appeal is free-roaming, public conversations. Twitter will need more than mere language changes to deal with that.
Twitter granted a patent for a drone, might be used for taking selfies
Just a couple weeks ago, Twitter was caught trying to trademark the word “subtweet,” and this week they’ve been granted a patent for a drone that can take videos and selfies and post them to a Twitter account. Both legal moves are definitely out of the ordinary for a social media company.
The company didn’t explicitly say anything about what they’re planning on using these drones for, but a spokesperson did simply say “drone selfies.” Considering how successful Twitter’s Periscope video streaming experiment has been, it makes sense that they might want to expand on that with drones in the near future. But until something is made official, which will certainly be a ways off, there’s no telling what Twitter has planned for this patent.
Personally, I’m only going to be happy if the drone is shaped like a little blue bird.
source: Patent
via: CNBC
Come comment on this article: Twitter granted a patent for a drone, might be used for taking selfies
Twitter has lots of ideas for drones, patent form reveals
All of a sudden, a Twitter drone doesn’t seem like such a crazy idea. The social network applied for a patent earlier this year for a “Messaging-enabled unmanned aerial vehicle,” which describes pretty much what you’d expect: A drone that can post media to a Twitter feed of its own. Beyond that, Twitter users would also be able to control certain elements of the drone with their own posts. That includes its subject, location, orientation and more. When asked for comment by CNBC, a Twitter rep simply said, “Two words: Drone selfies.” As always, a patent application doesn’t mean we’ll see exactly what’s described, but they’re a good indicator of what companies are planning for the future.
Sure, this all sounds pretty crazy and fairly unsafe. But it’s not hard to imagine that Twitter could create a “safe zone” for the drone to move about without crashing into people. The application also notes that drone controls could be determined “through democratic means,” as well as triggered after a certain amount of engagements.
Had we heard about this patent application last year, it probably would have seemed a tad unbelievable. But it makes much more sense now, following Twitter’s Periscope launch earlier this year. A drone would be the perfect way to deliver killer live streams, and allowing users to control it remotely would make it an even more engaging experience for social media fans. The patent application also points out that a Twitter drone could be equipped with a microphone and screen of its own, which could make it a useful tool for conducting interviews remotely. And it can even be equipped with a payload that users can control.
[Photo credit: Shutterstock]
Via: CNBC
Source: USPTO
Facebook, Google and Twitter agree to delete some hate speech
Germany has long complained that major internet services don’t do enough to fight hate speech, and it now looks like those companies are going to do something about it. Facebook, Google and Twitter have all promised Germany that, “as a rule,” they’ll delete criminal forms of hate speech (such as inciting people to violence) within 24 hours. The push for action comes primarily in response to increased racism following Europe’s refugee crisis, but it’s not unexpected in light of the country’s decades-old battle with hate.
The move is slightly surprising when you consider the tendency of these services to fight censorship tooth and nail. Facebook, for instance, has denied that it recently broke German law by leaving hate speech online. However, the two sides clearly share some common ground. Facebook, Google and Twitter already have policies forbidding hate speech — to some extent, they’re just reconciling those guidelines with Germany’s policies.
[Image credit: Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images]
Source: Reuters
Twitter brings curated ‘Moments’ to the UK
For years, Twitter has served us text, photos and videos in chronological format, allowing us to keep up with news and events the very minute they happen. That’s great if you follow a wide range of people, but when information isn’t centralised, it can be hard to stay up-to-date with developments. The company has dabbled with features like “While you were away” recaps, which have been met with mixed responses, but more recently it launched Moments: a feature that makes keeping up with trending topics and news items a whole lot easier. After being let loose in the US in October, Twitter has finally decided it’s ready for testing in the UK.
From today, Twitter will begin rolling out the lightning symbol (pictured above) to its website and apps. When selected, you’ll see curated slideshows of image and video tweets that are based around a trending topic or news item. Already, some users are seeing tweets focused on Tim Peake, who will become the first British astronaut in over 20 years to go to space.
Twitter has built an editorial team staffed by former journalists to curate feeds and deliver news that is most relevant for users. Selected media partners will also be able to show “Moments that matter now” around topics that include Today, Entertainment, News, Sport and Fun.
For many, Moments will be an unwanted addition to Twitter. However, the service will likely target new users who don’t yet understand the point of Twitter or how it works. Facebook already offers a similar feature, which collates trending topics and lets users see all of the relevant Facebook posts and pages discussing them.
Source: Twitter Moments
AIVAnet 