Meta Threw a Party for a Right-Wing Influencer Who Wants to “Save the West”

Right-wing activist Robby Starbuck joins Meta as an AI advisor focused on ‘bias’ | CNN Business

Conservative influencer and anti-DEI agitator Robby Starbuck has a new role: advising tech giant Meta on how to prevent “bias” in its artificial intelligence systems.

Left & Right: The Psychological Significance of a Political Distinction

This book brings together for the first time an updated, revised collection of influential essays and articles that capture some of the most exciting scientific and scholarly contributions to the topic ...

Elon Musk’s Diplomacy: Woo Right-Wing World Leaders. Then Benefit. - …

archived 13 May 2024 19:26:28 UTC

SF's Tech Right Debates the Ideal Dictator

Putrid vibes reigned at SF billionaire-funded Hamilton Society debate.

The Rise of the Right-Wing Media Machine

This conservative media machine now rivals—and may well surpass—the power and the influence of the old-line press. It holds sway over much of the national agenda, deciding which ideas and...

The Rise of the Right-Wing Media Machine

This conservative media machine now rivals—and may well surpass—the power and the influence of the old-line press. It holds sway over much of the national agenda, deciding which ideas and...

Opinion | Meta Is Dying. It’s About Time.

Meta has commenced a long, slow slide into irrelevance.

Opinion | Meta Is Dying. It’s About Time.

Meta has commenced a long, slow slide into irrelevance.

Who are the rightwing influencers filling Trump’s head with visions of antifa?

Meet the content creators whose videos from Portland and Chicago shape the president’s distorted view of reality

Can We Fix Social Media? Testing Prosocial Interventions using Generative Social Simulation

Social media platforms have been widely linked to societal harms, including rising polarization and the erosion of constructive debate. Can these problems be mitigated through prosocial interventions? We address this question using a novel method - generative social simulation - that embeds Large Language Models within Agent-Based Models to create socially rich synthetic platforms. We create a minimal platform where agents can post, repost, and follow others. We find that the resulting following-networks reproduce three well-documented dysfunctions: (1) partisan echo chambers; (2) concentrated influence among a small elite; and (3) the amplification of polarized voices - creating a 'social media prism' that distorts political discourse. We test six proposed interventions, from chronological feeds to bridging algorithms, finding only modest improvements - and in some cases, worsened outcomes. These results suggest that core dysfunctions may be rooted in the feedback between reactive engagement and network growth, raising the possibility that meaningful reform will require rethinking the foundational dynamics of platform architecture.

Can We Fix Social Media? Testing Prosocial Interventions using Generative Social Simulation

Social media platforms have been widely linked to societal harms, including rising polarization and the erosion of constructive debate. Can these problems be mitigated through prosocial interventions? We address this question using a novel method - generative social simulation - that embeds Large Language Models within Agent-Based Models to create socially rich synthetic platforms. We create a minimal platform where agents can post, repost, and follow others. We find that the resulting following-networks reproduce three well-documented dysfunctions: (1) partisan echo chambers; (2) concentrated influence among a small elite; and (3) the amplification of polarized voices - creating a 'social media prism' that distorts political discourse. We test six proposed interventions, from chronological feeds to bridging algorithms, finding only modest improvements - and in some cases, worsened outcomes. These results suggest that core dysfunctions may be rooted in the feedback between reactive engagement and network growth, raising the possibility that meaningful reform will require rethinking the foundational dynamics of platform architecture.

Meta surrenders to the right on speech

“I really think this a precursor for genocide,” a former employee tells Platformer

Mapping an Ecology of Integrative Approaches to Addressing the Metacrisis

Dear friends, The Institute of Applied Metatheory (IAM) is pleased to announce the release of a new white paper that charts the landscape of leading-edge responses to the global metacrisis. In “Mapping an Ecology of Integrative Approaches to Addressing the Metacrisis”, IAM scholars Brandon Norgaard, Nicholas Hedlund, PhD, and Claudia Meglin provide a sweeping (albeit

Whistleblower exposes Meta, Bolsonaro, and Cerimedo election meddling partnership

On Mexican TV, assassination target of jailed disinformation merchant Fernando Cerimedo explains how he worked with the Bolsonaros and Meta to reduce Lula’s visibility on its platforms.