







SCOOP: #WSocial is doctoring metrics on its homepage, inflating the number of comments on posts by prominent people on its network. I suppose a more accurate tagline for them should be "Trust your feed?" My article about it: "W Social, Fictional Metrics and the Beauty of Open Data" 🔗 : https://blog.elenarossini.com/w-social-fictional-metrics-and-the-beauty-of-open-data/ #blog #BigTech #EUBigTech #TEP #TrustedEuropeanPlatforms #TrustYourFeed
W Social, Fictional Metrics and the Beauty of Open Data
W Social's tagline is "Trust Your Feed" but the company's landing page displays inflated engagement metrics - a misrepresentation that contradicts its own promise.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

W — Trust your feed
We believe in the need for a global, trusted social media platform owned, run, and hosted in Europe. W is built on verified human users, transparency, privacy, and free speech.

Elena Rossini 🌈 (@_elena@mastodon.social)
Attached: 1 image 🚨 Important update about my latest #WSocial article 👀 A user on #ATproto cracked the code and came up with a reasonable explanation for the made up number of comments on W Social's homepage. The number next to the speech bubble (comment icon) are an "engagement metric": the sum of boosts and likes. It all makes sense now! https://blog.elenarossini.com/w-social-fictional-metrics-and-the-beauty-of-open-data/ (scroll down to the end of the article for the update)
W Don't Have Time (@wdonthavetime.selfhosted.social)
"Trust community, not wealth" Holding power accountable on the open social web. https://woosh.link/wdonthavetime.selfhosted.social
Some thoughts on #WSocial, how they have been responding to criticism and why I believe they are showing the limits of free speech absolutism. I agree with @echna.bsky.social that "W Social seems to be on an X speedrun - without ever having been like Twitter." 🔗: aseachange.com/@elena/statuses/01M0SDV98GRDW…
Elena Rossini on GoToSocial ⁂ (@elena@aseachange.com)
aseachange.comLATEST: on #WSocial's website, comment counts for posts by prominent users are incorrectly displayed, showing artificially elevated numbers. @opfuchs.gay came up with an interesting theory for it. "W Social, Fictional Metrics and the Beauty of Open Data": blog.elenarossini.com/w-social-fictional-metrics-an…
W Social, Fictional Metrics and the Beauty of Open Data
blog.elenarossini.comDo our social media algorithms correctly reflect our values? Our new article published today in @pnas.org shows that the answer is often not, and that the content that gets promoted into their ranked feeds is often actively counter to our values.
Hey everyone! I’m starting a monthly blog about trends in moderation from Blacksky’s Trust and Safety team called: “What’s Happening on My Feed?” The first post: “Putting the Trust back in Trust and Safety” is out now, check it out: whatshappeningonmyfeed.leaflet.pub/3mpont6fedc2z
Putting the Trust back in Trust and Safety
whatshappeningonmyfeed.leaflet.pubDo our social media algorithms correctly reflect our values? Our new article published today in @pnas.org shows that the answer is often not, and that the content that gets promoted into their ranked feeds is often actively counter to our values.
Have you been Wned? W Social says it respects your #privacy. But how much of your personally identifiable information is published by them to the open web for anyone to find? wdonthavetime.tngl.io/wsocial-wned/ #WSocialFacts #WSocial
Have you been Wned: Has W Social made your personal information public?
wdonthavetime.tngl.ioSocial media algorithms don't allow us to understand or control what we see online and why... until now! Top scholars @jonathanstray.com and @noupside.bsky.social are sharing @mysky.social, a tool that allows users to adjust their feed’s priorities and explains why certain posts appear over others.
🎛️📲 Meet the algorithm you can actually control and understand
newpublic.substack.com