Privacy: Apple said to not encrypt cloud backup data of your iPhone
Apple reportedly dropped plans to encrypt all backup data from iPhones, leaving open a vulnerability – likely small – to access private data.
Psychology: Your brain fixates on bad things, and propagandists use that to manipulate you
A new book discusses our focus on negative news – and how negativity in all aspects of our life is not where we need to be. I’m buying the book.
Journalism: Newsweek caught making up a story. Again.
Newsweek did it again. They just keep making things up. I grew up on Newsweek and this surely isn’t the Newsweek of yesteryear. Its turned into quite a joke – more like Newsweak.
Business: “Fake Diversity” used to fool consumers
Rather than hire actual diverse workforces, or recruit actual diverse student bodies, businesses and universities are using AI generated fake images of people in order to show their diversity. Seriously.
Mass hysteria: Delusions of drone sightings
The FAA and other officials, using high tech gear, are unable to locate any drones among the media reports of unknown drones cruising over the skies of Colorado, then Nebraska, and now California and North Carolina. This post includes a listing of numerous well publicized drone sightings, alleged near misses and collisions that turned out to have never occurred. But such wide spread publicity led to mass hysteria, which is itself a technique of propaganda messaging.
State of Colorado says no evidence of criminal activity, finds evidence of people confusing stars, planets and toys as a drone fleet in the sky.
Journalism: A little duct tape, some Gorilla Glue and they should be good to go
Get a good laugh at this C-130 with a destroyed left wing and left engines – and the headline saying “no major damage”. Uh huh.
Social media: Did you know you can’t trust what you read on social media? :)
A Facebook bug inadvertently revealed the names of who is actually writing the content of various online personalities. What a shocker – the posts are coming from others. Take a look …
Privacy: Facial recognition everywhere, whether you approve or not
Facial recognition is popping up everywhere and will be used to amass databases of your daily life and your interactions. This is really, really, really creepy and uncomfortable. Read this entire article.
Social media: Are fewer and fewer people posting Tweets?
Twitter is randomly inserting tweets from people I do not follow and this seems to be increasing. That suggests fewer and fewer people may be posting content on Twitter, or at least posting less. In order to continue providing content and making it look like Twitter is being used, Twitter’s algorithm is inserting more random Tweets from people we do not follow.
Journalism: It’s all 24×7 rage, says former NBC TV Anchor
Tom Brokaw, former NBC TV news anchor, now retired, notes that today’s media (and culture) has devolved to 24 x 7 rage, or what I call, “The culture of perpetual outrage”. He has several very good observations and comments. Social media frequently takes its cues from media. Thus, the rage and bitterness that has become common in the media gets amplified by sharing and discussion – or may be just shouting – on social media.