On Air Today: Deen Freelon of UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media

Written by MATT O’BRIEN and WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS Sounding alarms about artificial intelligence has become a popular pastime in the ChatGPT era, taken up by high-profile figures as varied as industrialist Elon Musk, leftist intellectual Noam Chomsky and the 99-year-old retired statesman Henry Kissinger. But it’s the concerns of insiders in the AI research community that […]

Do you remember the time before social media? For children and young adults, social media is a significant part of their lives — and we’re still learning how it’s affecting them.  A study conducted by UNC researchers found a habitual checking of social media can impact brain development in adolescents. 

Written by DAVID KLEPPER and AMANDA SEITZ As Russia’s war in Ukraine plays out for the world on social media, big tech platforms are moving to restrict Russian state media from using their platforms to spread propaganda and misinformation. Google announced Tuesday that it’s blocking the YouTube channels of those outlets in Europe “effective immediately” but acknowledged “it’ll […]

Written by SAM McNEIL and VICTORIA MILKO Years after coming under scrutiny for contributing to ethnic and religious violence in Myanmar, Facebook still has problems detecting and moderating hate speech and misinformation on its platform in the Southeast Asian nation, internal documents viewed by The Associated Press show. Three years ago, the company commissioned a […]

Written by AMANDA SEITZ The reports of hateful and violent posts on Facebook started pouring in on the night of May 28 last year, soon after then-President Donald Trump sent a warning on social media that looters in Minneapolis would be shot. It had been three days since Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on […]

Written by DAVID KLEPPER and AMANDA SEITZ In March, as claims about the dangers and ineffectiveness of coronavirus vaccines spun across social media and undermined attempts to stop the spread of the virus, some Facebook employees thought they had found a way to help. By altering how posts about vaccines are ranked in people’s newsfeeds, researchers at […]

Written by BARBARA ORTUTAY and DAVID KLEPPER A former Facebook employee told members of Congress Tuesday that the company knows that its platform spreads misinformation and content that harms children but refuses to make changes that could hurt its profits. Speaking before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, former Facebook data scientist Frances Haugen […]

Written by MARCY GORDON A former Facebook data scientist has stunned lawmakers and the public with revelations of the company’s awareness of apparent harm to some teens from Instagram and her accusations of dishonesty in its fight against hate and misinformation. Now she is coming before Congress. Frances Haugen has come forward with a wide-ranging condemnation […]

Written by MARCY GORDON Political adversaries in Congress are united in outrage against Facebook for privately compiling information that its Instagram photo-sharing service appears to grievously harm some teens, especially girls, while publicly downplaying the popular platform’s negative impact. Mounting public pressure over the revelations have prompted Facebook to put on hold its work on […]

The Oversight Board of Facebook concluded Wednesday to continue former President Donald Trump’s suspension from its network. UNC professor and researcher Deen Freelon joins 97.9 The Hill’s Brighton McConnell to discuss Facebook’s reasoning, the potential ramifications and next steps for the social media platform.