YouTube, Instagram, SoundCloud, and other online platforms are changing the way people create and consume media. The Verge's Creators section covers the people using these platforms, what they're making, and how those platforms are changing (for better and worse) in response to the vloggers, influencers, podcasters, photographers, musicians, educators, designers, and more who are using them. The Verge’s Creators section also looks at the way creators are able to turn their projects into careers — from Patreons and merch sales, to ads and Kickstarters — and the ways they’re forced to adapt to changing circumstances as platforms crack down on bad actors and respond to pressure from users and advertisers. New platforms are constantly emerging, and existing ones are ever-changing — what creators have to do to succeed is always going to look different from one year to the next.
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Instagram’s ‘Made with AI’ label swapped out for ‘AI info’ after photographers’ complaints
The AI label from Meta angered photographers after it tagged real-life pictures that had been retouched in editing tools like Photoshop.
Streamers will be able to drop in on each other with Stream Together, clips are getting a more optimized creation flow, and the platform’s enhanced broadcasting feature will soon be available for all streamers to try, among other things.
Twitch is also making a “Streamer Achievement Program. Streamers will get statues after their channel reaches certain milestones for hours watched.
Per a Rolling Stone report with more details about the ban:
YouTube’s former global head of gaming partnerships at Google, Ryan Wyatt, confirmed to Rolling Stone that Beahm was not offered a contract due to chatter about the circumstances of his Twitch ban. He says that a Twitch employee and journalists investigating the incident told YouTube employees that it involved inappropriate messages to a minor.
reports Dexerto. And the San Francisco 49ers are now cutting ties with him, too.
The game studio he co-founded also cut ties, and so did peripheral manufacturer Turtle Beach, following my colleague Ash’s reporting that he sent inappropriate messages to a minor. On Tuesday, he shared his side of the story.
Instagram’s Threads: all the updates on the new Twitter competitor
The latest app taking on Twitter is getting a boost from Instagram’s billions of users.
Casey Newton shines a light on the increasingly common social media scam that primarily targets teen boys in his most recent Platformer newsletter:
But when a terrifying scam comes along that has led to at least 20 confirmed deaths in the past two years, a whole stack of investigations can’t seem to get a conversation going. [...] Perhaps the surgeon general, instead of his new ham-fisted campaign against every risk that social media presents, could warn parents about this one.
[Platformer]
Dr Disrespect finally shares why he was banned from Twitch
The streamer says he was banned in 2020 for sending messages to a minor that ‘leaned too much in the direction of being inappropriate.’
Yelp is adding searchable accessibility attributes that make it easier to find businesses that meet mobility, hearing, and vision accessibility needs, but only if business owners add the new attributes to their listings.
The app and website will start automatically adding AI-powered alt text to restaurant, bar, and nightlife photos for people using screen readers — available on desktop starting today.
Some of the biggest players in the music industry are suing generative AI music startups Suno and Udio for copyright infringement. In the lawsuits, plaintiffs include examples of AI songs that sound a lot like human artists — and some are pretty blatant.
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Space Vacation’s gorgeous prints celebrate fan-favorite movies
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TikTok, like other social platforms, has become part of the political fabric: politicians campaign on TikTok and groups attempt to spread propaganda via influence campaigns.
In the lead up to the UK general election, TikTok is surfacing videos from journalists and fact checkers. It’s also sharing tips for spotting fake news and definitions for things like disinformation.
The new versions of Final Cut Pro are rolling out to the iPad and Mac starting today. While the iPad version of the app includes a new live multicam feature and external project support, the Mac update features new AI editing features. Both apps are available as a free update for existing users.
[Apple Newsroom]
Today the company rolled out an expanded takedown requests process for AI content following its initial announcement back in November.
But requesting removal doesn’t guarantee YouTube will comply. The company says it will consider things like whether the content could be mistaken as real and whether it’s parody or satire.
This time from the Department of Justice, after the Federal Trade Commission said it was referring a complaint to the agency based on an investigation involving a children’s privacy law. The FTC said it doesn’t usually make this kind of referral public, but believed it in the public interest. TikTok said it “strongly disagree[s]” with the allegations and said many of them are outdated.
[Federal Trade Commission]
A deep dive by Rolling Stone tracked the deaths of children who died after taking fake drugs they bought on the app. Parents and law enforcement officials blame, in part, the disappearing messages feature that made Snapchat popular in the first place.
[Rolling Stone]