social media

A digital drawing, made with black pencil and red and neon-blue gouache, shows a teenager standing in the center. The figure's human head has been replaced with a red rose, which is losing its petals.

Health & Safety

'All we want is revenge': How social media fuels gun violence among teens

11:06am August 25, 2023

by Liz Szabo

Teens share photos or videos of themselves with guns and cash, sometimes calling out rivals, on social media. When posts go viral, fueled by "likes" and comments, the danger is hard to contain.

National

New York City officially bans TikTok on all government devices

7:19pm August 17, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

City employees will begin to lose access to TikTok and its website from all city-owned devices and networks, according to a New York City Hall spokesperson.

Ukrainian soldiers fire artillery towards Russian positions near the eastern town of Bakhmut in November 2022.

World News

From drone videos to selfies at the front, Ukraine is the most documented war ever

4:43pm August 08, 2023

by Greg Myre

NPR's Greg Myre has covered more than a dozen wars dating back to the 1980s. He says the conflict in Ukraine is the most documented war ever, providing a view we've never had before.

Queue Listen Now

A large video monitor on the campus of Meta, Facebook's parent company, in Menlo Park, Calif. in February. New research about Facebook shows its impact on political polarization.

Politics & Government

New study shows just how Facebook's algorithm shapes conservative and liberal bubbles

5:43pm July 27, 2023

Research conducted at the height of the 2020 election reveals new details about how Facebook's algorithms handle political content. But it suggests there are no easy fixes to political polarization.

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the latest member of the Kennedy dynasty to run for president, regularly shares a dizzying range of falsehoods and conspiracy theories.

RFK Jr. is building a presidential campaign around conspiracy theories

4:28pm July 13, 2023

by Shannon Bond

The latest member of the Kennedy dynasty to run for president regularly shares a dizzying range of falsehoods and conspiracy theories on podcasts and at other campaign appearances.

Are smartphones safe for tweens? Parents should be aware of the risks, a screen consultant advises.

Health & Safety

So your tween wants a smartphone? Read this first

7:02pm July 12, 2023

by Michaeleen Doucleff

When's the right time to start your child with a phone? Is 12 too young? Here's what a professional screen time consultant tells parents about the risks kids face online.

Queue Listen Now

Is Threads really a 'Twitter killer'? Here's what we know so far

5:48pm July 06, 2023

by Emily Olson

Meta's new app, Threads, may be the latest in a long-string of Twitter's competitors, but it appears to have an edge in the game thanks to its ties to Instagram. Over 30 million users have joined.

U.S. is barred from combating disinformation on social media. Here's what it means

7:19pm July 05, 2023

Under a judge's new ruling, much of the federal government is now barred from working with social media companies to address removing any content that might contain "protected free speech."

A deep hole dug from layers of paper covered with text. The layers of paper are of alternating colors.

AI-generated text is hard to spot. It could play a big role in the 2024 campaign

4:10pm June 29, 2023

by Huo Jingnan

Recent research shows how generative AI could make effective and cost efficient propaganda. It's difficult to detect AI-generated text, raising concerns about the 2024 election.

Montana becomes the first state to ban TikTok

9:16am May 18, 2023

by Ayana Archie

Gov. Greg Gianforte banned the app on state government electronic devices last December, and has said he is concerned about people's user data being compromised by the Chinese government.