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Twitter is a social networking site that was created in 2006. Users send "tweets" to let people know what they are doing. It was created by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams.

Twitter accused of hypocrisy over Trump tweets

Twitter is a social networking site that was created in 2006. Users send “tweets” to let people know what they are doing. It was created by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams. Prior to building the service, they were working on a podcast directory called Odeo.

Odeo was a directory and search destination website for RSS-syndicated audio and video. It employed tools that enabled users to create, record, and share podcasts with a simple Adobe Flash-based interface.

When iTunes 4.9 was released, it ultimately made Odeo irrelevant. The people behind the company went on to create a service called Twttr. Twttr would eventually be called Twitter. iTunes 4.9, believe it or not, ultimately led to the creation of one of the most popular social networks in the world.

The major turning point for service’s popularity was the 2007 South by Southwest Interactive conference. Over the next few years, Twitter began to see rapid growth. For mobile devices, it originally relied upon third-party apps. In 2010, Twitter acquired application developer Atebits. Atebits had built the Twitter app known as Tweetie for the Mac and iPhone. It was renamed as Twitter and released for free.

Over the years, the apps have seen various revisions. There are currently versions available for iOS while desktop users must either use the web interface or a third party app like Tweetbot or Twitterrific.

X blue checkmarks being forced on journalists who don’t want them

X blue checkmarks held in an artificial white hand

Ah, the saga of X’s blue checkmarks! Originally a sign that someone was who they claimed to be, and later sold so that cryptocurrency scammers could see their posts boosted, the company is now coming full circle with some journalists.

Elon Musk last week announced his latest policy on the now-discredited blue-and-white pixels, and some of those on the receiving end aren’t happy about it …

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Grok AI chatbot | Abstract image of masked figure against colorful background

Grok AI chatbot coming to all premium X subscribers this week

The Grok AI chatbot, which was previously going to be exclusive to X’s top-tier Premium+ subscribers, will instead be coming to all premium subscribers this week.

The move is likely geared to boosting revenue in the face of falling usage and an exodus of advertisers, but it’s leading some Premium+ subscribers to question what they are now getting for their money …

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Threads joining the fediverse; Trending posts fully rolling out in the US

Threads joining the fediverse | Interconnected cotton threads

We’ve known for a while that Threads is joining the fediverse, and parent company Meta has now provided a preview of how things will work.

The concept of the fediverse is to network together individual social media platforms, such that you can post once on one of them, and then share your post on other services …

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PSA: X audio and video calls probably don’t use strong encryption

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X audio and video calls started rolling out last year, in a feature nobody appeared to ask for and few seem to want. We previously shared how to deactivate the feature, and now it seems there’s another reason to do so …

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Senate hearing on social media: Zuckerberg apologises to families; bizarre racism

Senate hearing on social media

The Senate hearing on social media saw Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologise to families who hold social media responsible for children who harmed themselves, including some who took their own lives.

It also saw some bizarre racism by one senator who apparently can’t tell the difference between Singapore and China …

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Social media CEOs testifying to congress on teen safety

Social media CEOs quizzed | Apps shown on iPhone

The timing of Meta’s announcement of new teen safety measures earlier this week likely wasn’t coincidental: Mark Zuckerberg and other social media CEOs are set to testify to Congress on the topic.

Facebook’s founder will be joined by the chief execs of TikTok, Snap, Discord and X as Congress seeks to determine whether the companies are doing enough to protect teens from harm …

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Apple hates free speech, Disney CEO should be fired | Mickey Mouse at Disneyland

A year after saying Apple hates free speech, Musk calls for Disney CEO to be fired

X owner Elon Musk has continued his tirade against major corporations who’ve suspended advertising on his social network, after growing concerns about hate speech on the platform.

Musk last year asked whether Apple “hate[s] free speech in America” when the company paused advertising over previous concerns about the social network, and is now calling for Disney CEO Bob Iger to be fired …

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More than 100 brands have followed Apple’s example in ceasing ads on X

Brands ceasing ads on X | Disused runway marked by X warning symbol

More than 100 brands have now ceased ads on X over antisemitic content allowed to propagate on the social network. They are following the example of companies like Apple and Disney, which made the decision early last week.

X itself had estimated that the financial hit could be around $11M, but the company’s own internal documents reveal that the total loss could be as high as $75M …

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X lawsuit in response to Apple suspending ads unlikely to succeed – TechCrunch

X lawsuit | Virtual gavel image

Apple was one of a number of major companies to suspend advertising on X, following a report showing that their ads appeared next to hate speech on the platform. That led to an X lawsuit against Media Matters, which first reported the problem.

A new report suggests that the lawsuit is unlikely to succeed, and in fact contains within it an admission by X that what Media Matters said was happening was indeed happening …

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X launches new $3/mo Basic and $16/mo Premium+ subscription tiers

X (Twitter) has just launched its new lineup of subscription tiers. The $8 per month ‘Premium’ verified tier remains the default standard, but the new Basic tier comes in at $3 per month as a cheaper option.

Basic does not include a verification checkmark, but you get features like longer posts, edit button, themes and custom app icons. Premium+ is the new high-end option coming in at $16 per month, most notably offering ad-free experience in the For You and Following tabs.

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X is now rolling out audio and video calls – and here’s how to turn them off

X roundup | Company logo on grunge background

X (formerly known as Twitter) announced earlier this year its plans to introduce audio and video calls to its users in an ambitious plan to turn the platform into a “super app.” With the latest update to the X app, which is now available on the App Store, the social network is rolling out audio and video calls. And if you don’t want to use this feature, we’ll show you how to turn it off.

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Zuckerberg: Threads on track to be a billion-person app that’s ‘more positive’ than its competitor

Threads logo on colorful background

While people on Twitter (currently known as X) are quick to downplay the popularity of Threads, all indications are that the platform is thriving. During Meta’s quarterly earnings call today, CEO Mark Zuckerberg offered an update on the Threads, saying that the service has “just under” 100 million monthly active users.

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Apple promoting its upcoming ‘Scary fast’ event on X with #AppleEvent hashmoji

Apple promoting its upcoming 'Scary fast' event on X with #AppleEvent hashmoji

After much speculation about a potential Apple announcement in the coming days, the company today confirmed that it will hold a special event on October 30 to unveil new Macs. Titled “Scary fast,” the event will be broadcast online on Monday – and Apple is already promoting it on X (formerly Twitter) with a special #AppleEvent hashmoji.

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Musk may block X in Europe, to avoid having to fix disinformation problem

Must may block X in Europe | Musk with X logo

Elon Musk reportedly thinks it may be simpler to block X in Europe, rather than fix the massive problem with disinformation on the platform.

The issue is now so bad that video game footage has been passed off as news coverage of the terrorist attack in Israel, and Musk himself has been promoting accounts known for racist content and conspiracy theories …

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