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Social media has revolutionised how we communicate. In this series, we look at how it has changed the media, politics, health, education and the law.

Social Media Revolution Series

We archived 84 million tweets to learn about the pandemic – each one is a tiny historical document

Jun 20, 2021 12:18 pm UTC| Technology

The first tweet that the UKs Department of Health and Social Care published about its new coronavirus testing regime came on January 25 2020. Less than a week later, the department tweeted its first announcement of two...

Social Media Revolution Series

Restricting digital media is a gamble for African leaders

May 03, 2021 02:54 am UTC| Politics

COVID-19 pushed much of the world into the digital realm for everything from schooling and work to religious worship and dating. At the same time, many governments were turning data connections off. Full or partial...

Social Media Revolution Series

Why our dislikes should be celebrated as much as our likes

Apr 22, 2021 05:46 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

Millions might tune into the Oscars every year, but Im always interested in the Razzies, which recognize spectacular cinematic underachievement. Im not the only one who thinks dislikes can be every bit as interesting as...

Social Media Revolution Series

Facebook removes 16,000 groups for fake reviews

Apr 10, 2021 09:54 am UTC| Business Technology

Facebook Inc removed 16,000 groups for selling or buying fake reviews of products and services on its platforms, after a second prompt by UKs competition watchdog CMA. CMA Chief Executive Andrea Coscelli said that the...

Social Media Revolution Series

Twitter, Snap invest in India's version of TikTok

Apr 09, 2021 07:54 am UTC| Business Technology

Snap and Twitter joined other investors in pouring $502 million into Indias Mohalla Tech, the operator of TikTok-like app Moj and social media platform ShareChat. The funding round, which was led by investment firms...

Social Media Revolution Series

Why online platforms banning Trump won't stop — or even slow down — his cause

Jan 15, 2021 08:12 am UTC| Technology

Last week Twitter permanently suspended US President Donald Trump in the wake of his supporters violent storming of Capitol Hill. Trump was also suspended from Facebook and Instagram indefinitely. Heads quickly turned...

Social Media Revolution Series

Facebook antitrust battle escalates tensions between government, Big Tech

Jan 14, 2021 06:36 am UTC| Technology Law

Facebook made news this week by blocking U.S. President Donald Trump from posting to its platform. A seperate power struggle between government and Big Tech that will be far more consequential in the long term is unfolding...

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Economy

What should you do if you can’t pay your rent or mortgage?

The cost of living crisis is making it difficult for many people to pay their bills, including housing costs. Private sector rents have increased by an average 9% over the year to February 2024, and rising interest rates...

Reducing energy demand and improving efficiency will help prevent the next gas crisis

Gas prices have relaxed, Europe has come out of the winter with record gas storage levels and a surfeit of liquefied natural gas is set to reach the shores of Europe over the coming years. Many commentators are hopeful...

Minimum wage for South African farm workers: study shows 2013 hike helped reduce poverty even though compliance was poor

Minimum wage policies are typically aimed at reducing poverty. Yet there is little direct evidence of this effect, especially in developing countries. And none for South Africa. In a recent paper, we consider the...

Gas is good until 2050 and beyond, under Albanese gas strategy

The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel through to 2050 and beyond. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuels uses would change over...

South Africa’s plan to move away from coal: 8 steps to make it succeed

The South African governments Just Energy Transition Implementation Plan was launched in November 2023. It is a roadmap guiding the country away from reliance on coal-fired power towards renewable energy alternatives by...

Politics

US Supreme Court upended decades of precedent in 2022 by allowing voters to vote with gerrymandered maps instead of fixing the congressional districts first

For the 2022 midterm elections, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use congressional districts that violated the law and diluted the voting power of Black citizens. A 5-4 vote by the Supreme Court in February...

Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections

Ahead of the European parliament elections in June, Germany has lowered the age limit on participation to 16. This makes it the largest of just a handful of states in the EU to allow people under the age of 18 to vote....

South Africa will be president of the G20 in 2025: two much-needed reforms it should drive

South Africa will play an important international role in 2025 as president of the G20. The G20 is a group of 19 countries as well as the African Union and the European Union. Between them they represent 85% of global...

What early 2024 polls are revealing about voters of color and the GOP

By the end of winter 2024, the return of Donald Trump to the top of the GOP presidential ticket has revealed a surprising trend in the former presidents base of support: his increasing popularity among Black and Latino...

Science

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without...

IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects

About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these relic neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they cant harm you. In fact, only one of them is...

The Mars Sample Return mission has a shaky future, and NASA is calling on private companies for backup

A critical NASA mission in the search for life beyond Earth, Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. Its budget has ballooned from US$5 billion to over $11 billion, and the sample return date may slip from the end of this...

Dark matter: our new experiment aims to turn the ghostly substance into actual light

A ghost is haunting our universe. This has been known in astronomy and cosmology for decades. Observations suggest that about 85% of all the matter in the universe is mysterious and invisible. These two qualities are...

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

Technology

Vanguard’s New CEO Says Bitcoin ETF Not on the Table: Report

Vanguards new CEO, Salim Ramji, has confirmed that the investment giant will not launch a Bitcoin ETF, emphasizing the firms commitment to its investment philosophy. Despite his past involvement with BlackRocks Bitcoin...

iPhone Owners Alarmed as iOS 17.5 Resurfaces Deleted Nudes, Troubling Bug Reported

A troubling bug in Apples iOS 17.5 update is reportedly resurfacing previously deleted photos, including sensitive images, causing alarm among iPhone owners. Users on Reddit and beta testers have flagged this issue,...

Shiba Inu Rep Lucie Makes Major Bullish Statement on Shibarium Coins

Lucie, the Shiba Inu teams official marketing head, has taken to her X social media account (previously known as Twitter) to declare the SHIB, BONE, and LEASH pricing behavior she expects to see during a hypothetical...

Tesla Cybertruck to Receive Full Self-Driving V12.5 Update in June, Elon Musk Announces

Elon Musk provided a new update on the Tesla FSD development, which appears to be moving faster than anticipated. FSD V12.4, which aims to enhance miles per intervention by tenfold over V12.3, is set to begin internal...
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