The Age of Peak Journalism?
Journalism’s value to consumers has decreased dramatically, even as its role in society has become increasingly important. Traditional media companies are struggling to get by, as they compete to stay relevant in the attention economy dominated by social media giants.
How Tiktok Ads and Online Retailers Get Under Your Skin
“Wait, babe, don’t leave just yet!” A full-screen popup appears on attempt to leave the Princess Polly website, offering you a 10% coupon in hopes that you’ll stay and make a (now discounted) purchase. On Amazon, millions of products are
Misinformation on WhatsApp – A Coronavirus Catalyst
“Breaking News: Scientists discover inhaling steam is a cure for coronavirus.” A few weeks ago, this message appeared on my phone’s screen. It was a forwarded message on WhatsApp from a relative in India. A quick Google search revealed that
Mitigating Misinformation
In the words of the World Health Organization’s director-general, the world is currently fighting not only a pandemic, but also an “infodemic.” Approximately 46,000 tweets per day were linked to inaccurate information in March 2020 alone. With anger and anxiety
We have the tools for privacy. Why don’t we use them?
Your data isn’t private, even if it’s anonymous. In 2006, AOL publicly released 20 million anonymized search logs. That same year, Netflix released 100 million anonymized movie ratings of its users. In both cases, researchers were able to re-identify the
An Undergraduate Account of the Real World Crypto Symposium 2020
Alfred Lerner Hall, where Real World Crypto 2020 took place. The Real World Crypto Symposium (often abbreviated as RWC) is an annual, 3-day conference for applied cryptography research organized by the International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR). It strives to bring
What Social Media is Feeding Us
You’re sitting in your room, browsing your favorite website. A Buzzfeed Tasty video sits at the top of your feed, and the thumbnail intrigues you, so you spend a few minutes watching the creation of French Toast Roll-Ups 4 Ways.