Why Elon Musk is obsessed with casting Twitter/X as the most “authentic” social media platform

[Nieman Lab: The Daily Digest] Monday, October 30, 2023 [Why Elon Musk is obsessed with casting Twitter/X as the most “authentic” social media platform]( “Threads’ vibes may have been cheerful and friendly at the outset — disingenuously so, according to Musk — but it may well prove that, eventually, all social media sites regress toward the meanest.” By Michael Serazio. [The death toll for journalists in the Gaza conflict has reached 29]( What We’re Reading Substack / Ian Betteridge [SEO will be over for publishers. You need to adapt. →]( “[A Search Generative Experience]-driven shopping search experience will ultimately bypass publishers and drive traffic direct to the retailer, with the AI making individually tailored recommendations on what to buy. This threatens to be disastrous for publishers. Effectively, SGE delivers a one-two punch of reduced traffic as more search queries are answered on the results page, plus reduced traffic to and revenue from affiliate pages.” Semafor / Max Tani and Liz Hoffman [Joe Biden didn’t like The New York Times’ headline on the Gaza hospital either →]( “The president told a small group of Wall Street executives in the White House’s Roosevelt Room early last week that he thought the headline was irresponsible and could have triggered military escalation in the Middle East, two people briefed on the conversation told Semafor. He fumed in particular that the headline had appeared ‘in an American newspaper.'” Medialyte / Mark Stenberg [How brand safety made reporting unprofitable →]( “This process has the intended effect of preventing brands’ ads from running alongside polarizing content, but it also has the unintended effect of demonetizing news publishers’ coverage of these news cycles.” Press Gazette / Charlotte Tobitt [How the FT’s visual storytelling team tries to give readers “light bulb” moments →]( “It is hard to explain the world and investigate it in one piece…To go very forensic is a slightly different skill set — you’re looking for the needle in the haystack, the one thing that reveals something new. And then our visual stories should be explaining the much broader context and using visuals to explain to you why and how some things happen.” TechCrunch / Ivan Mehta [A Threads API is reportedly in the works →]( But head Adam Mosseri couldn’t resist a dig at publishers: “We’re working on it. My concern is that it’ll mean a lot more publisher content and not much more creator content, but it still seems like something we need to get done.” The New York Times / Benjamin Mullin [BuzzFeed is in advanced talks to sell Complex Networks, backtracking on a digital media bet →]( “… at less than half the price it paid for the company two years ago, a sign of the industrywide troubles afflicting digital media… BuzzFeed is planning to keep First We Feast, the division of Complex responsible for the popular ‘Hot Ones’ interview franchise, after the transaction, one of the people said.” The Guardian / Virginia Harrison [The U.S. vows to support “free media” in the Pacific region as concerns over Chinese influence grow →]( “The US already provides access to wire services such as Associated Press to newsrooms in several Pacific countries. [State Department official Elizabeth] Allen said the US would continue to look for opportunities to encourage independent journalism, which may include ‘how to create access outlets like AP, AFP wire services…to make sure that they’re getting access to objective editorially sound information.'” The New York Times / Tiffany Hsu and Stuart A. Thompson [AI is muddying the Israel-Hamas war in unexpected ways →]( “Disinformation researchers have found relatively few A.I. fakes, and even fewer that are convincing. Yet the mere possibility that A.I. content could be circulating is leading people to dismiss genuine images, video and audio as inauthentic.” The New York Times / Steven Kurutz [The latest social media stars: blue-collar workers →]( “Their videos are about as far as you can get from the ‘get ready with me’ makeup videos that are a TikTok staple, resembling instead a social media version of ‘Dirty Jobs,’ the long-running show on the Discovery Channel. In some cases, as with Mr. Knowles, these hard-working influencers have signed sponsorship deals with brands, giving them an additional source of income.” TechCrunch / Rebecca Bellan [Posts corrected by Community Notes on X will be “ineligible for revenue share” →]( “The idea is to maximize the incentive for accuracy over sensationalism,” wrote Elon Musk, apparently without irony. The Verge / Emilia David [Biden releases AI executive order directing agencies to develop safety guidelines →]( “The order has eight goals: to create new standards for AI safety and security, protect privacy, advance equity and civil rights, stand up for consumers, patients, and students, support workers, promote innovation and competition, advance US leadership in AI technologies, and ensure the responsible and effective government use of the technology.” The Guardian / Mark Sweney [Axel Springer’s bid to buy The Telegraph is now in doubt over a debate over print →]( “‘We never comment on M&A speculation but I can tell you that we have defined a digital-only strategy and we remain interested in growing our digital media portfolio,’ [Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner] said, speaking on Politico’s Power Play podcast, which is hosted by Anne McElvoy. ‘Digital first, digital only,’ Döpfner added.” The Guardian / Samuel Earle [Loud and uncowed: How UnHerd owner Paul Marshall became Britain’s newest media mogul →]( “UnHerd has quickly become one of the biggest sites for political commentary in the UK, and now the hedge fund founder behind it — who also funds GB News and donates to the Tories — is trying to add the Telegraph to a fast-growing empire. What does he really want?” CNN / Clare Duffy and Brian Fung [Messaging app Telegram blocks access to Hamas-run channels →]( “The restrictions mark a significant clampdown on a major source of pro-Hamas propaganda since the Israel-Hamas war began, one that Telegram’s error messages suggest may be driven by the [iOS and Google Play] app store policies. Other popular Telegram channels that have expressed support for Hamas have also been restricted, according to CNN’s analysis.” InPublishing / Sarah Ebner [A look at the FT’s most-opened newsletter →]( Fashion Matters is a year old and its open rate is over 50%. “My ideas about what the newsletter is and who it is for have definitely evolved, and I wish I could have foreseen that and aligned the launch messaging a bit better. I’m happiest when readers email or tweet me to say that they aren’t or weren’t previously that interested in fashion, but the newsletter has made them interested or given them a peek into a wholly different world every week.” Engadget / Andrew Tarantola [Leica’s $9,480 M11-P is a disinformation-resistant camera built for wealthy photojournalists →]( “Content Credentials works by capturing specific metadata about the photograph — the camera used to take it, as well as the location, time and other details about the shot — and locks those in a secure ‘manifest’ that is bundled up with the image itself using a cryptographic key (the process is opt-in for the photog).” The New York Times / Jesus Jiménez [As users abandon X, sports Twitter endures →]( “[In] the same way that many households [stuck with cable for game broadcasts]( sports fans and sports reporters still find X indispensable because, they say, it remains the go-to place for live updates and hot takes about coaching decisions and umpire calls.” The New York Times / Zachary Small [Artforum fires top editor after open letter that supported Palestinian liberation →]( “The editor in chief, David Velasco, said he had been terminated after six years as Artforum’s leader. He had worked at the publication, considered among the world’s most prestigious art magazines, since 2005…’I have no regrets,’ Velasco said in an email. ‘I’m disappointed that a magazine that has always stood for freedom of speech and the voices of artists has bent to outside pressure.'” Media Nation / Dan Kennedy [Following the Lewiston shootings, two Maine papers drop their paywall →]( “Meanwhile, The Boston Globe is treating this as a local story, going all-in with multiple reports. Today’s print edition includes four front-page stories, ranging from a round-up of what we know so far to a story on Maine’s gun laws. There are two opinion pieces and four more articles in the metro section covering topics such as the fear experienced at nearby Bates College and how teachers should discuss mass shootings with their students. The Globe is also running updates on its homepage.” [Nieman Lab]( / [Fuego]( [Twitter]( / [Facebook]( [View email in browser]( [Unsubscribe]( You are receiving this daily newsletter because you signed up for for it at www.niemanlab.org. Nieman Journalism Lab Harvard University 1 Francis Ave.Cambridge, MA 02138 [Add us to your address book](