There’s a 68 in 100 chance you’ll read this article about the audience for FiveThirtyEight-style election predictions
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Tuesday, November 8, 2022
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There’s a 68 in 100 chance you’ll read this article about the audience for FiveThirtyEight-style election predictionsIn other words, the odds are pretty good — but it’s far from a lock. By Nicholas Diakopoulos. |
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How a nonprofit media company conducted its first political poll ahead of the midtermsFuturo Media isn't the type of news outlet that normally conducts political polling, which is why it wanted to dip its toes in. By Hanaa' Tameez. |
What We’re Reading
Platformer / Casey Newton
Elon Musk is thinking about putting all of Twitter behind a paywall →
“…given Twitter's huge debt burden, the backward economics of Blue, and the recent pause in spending by major advertisers, it's clear that Musk and his brain trust will have to do something to significantly increase revenue. And whatever they choose, it seems increasingly clear that Twitter will never be the same.”
Wired / Steven Levy
Mark Zuckerberg set up the Oversight Board to investigate how Meta handles controversial posts. Now its members want to transform how social platforms work. →
“If one of the world's most transgressive companies thinks that the oversight is going fantastically, how great can the board be?”
Rest of World / Viola Zhou
WeChat users are handwriting apologies to get their banned accounts back →
“Losing one's WeChat account means getting cut off from social networks, digital wallets, and basic social services. That devastating experience, however, has become increasingly common as the social media app regularly shuts users out for transgressions ranging from spamming to criticizing the government.”
Law & Crime / Marisa Sarnoff
A federal judge dismissed Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy’s defamation lawsuit against Insider over its stories on his sexual misconduct →
"[T]he fact that defendants published the articles behind a paywall, and that they sought to increase revenue by publishing the stories, does not give rise to an inference of actual malice," [Chief U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor] wrote.
Bleeding Heartland / Laura Belin
Gannett’s Des Moines Register plant has been printing fake, “pink slime” newspapers →
“At least eleven printed publications, which are part of the conservative network Local Government Information Services (LGIS), have been distributed to Illinois residents since August. Sometimes known as ‘pink slime’ journalism, such publications combine political advocacy with stories resembling neutral coverage of local news or sports. The material has the look and feel of a newspaper, but the content is more like political advertising.”
TechCrunch / Amanda Silberling
A beginner’s guide to Mastodon, the open-source Twitter alternative →
“If you're a Twitter purist who likes to use basic functionality like private DMing, quote-tweeting and user-friendly onboarding, Mastodon might not be for you. But if you're looking to try something new on the social internet, then why not give Mastodon a whirl? Elon Musk isn't there!”
Axios / Sara Fischer and Kerry Flynn
Alden has abandoned its bid for Lee, at least for now →
The decision is “in part due to rising interest rates and a tougher market to finance deals, sources told Axios.”
The Fine Print / Julia Thomas
Where media people donated money in the midterms →
“…There is a media constituency that does give a lot to political candidates: the people who own and manage the media companies. And like other wealthy Americans, these people gave big-ticket donations to both Democratic campaigns and committees, as well as significant sums to Republicans who, incidentally, have made bashing the media a signature issue these last few decades.”
The Washington Post / Pranshu Verma
Immigrant groups face an “impossible” job of fighting election lies on social media and messaging apps →
“Immigrant and media groups are trying to do it themselves, using machine learning, chatbots and traditional forms of fact-checking journalism. But the scale of lies are too much, they said, leaving them overmatched.”
The Boston Globe / Bina Venkataraman
Lies spread faster than the truth. Can communities change that? →
“While misinformation is a global problem implicating Russian bots, public figures like Kyrie Irving and Elon Musk, and massive technology platforms such as Facebook and YouTube, what's happened in Maine suggests that at least part of the solution might lie at the scale of communities, where a lie can be counteracted by trusted people establishing the truth on the ground for their fellow community members.”
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