Warning: This email contains ‘throbbing nonsense’

November 12, 2021

*Read this newsletter on the web for the best experience*

Hello, geeks!

First off this week… This might be the best ‘worst’ review I will ever get 😮

Also…

What will be the BIGGEST trends on social media in 2022? Hootsuite’s Social Trends report is out with all the answers! [Ad]

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🔥 GEEKOUT HOT 5

  1. YouTube to hide the dislike counter [LINK] 

  2. Facebook is removing controversial ad targeting options [LINK]

  3. Instagram is testing a ‘Take a break’ feature [LINK]

  4. Twitter Blue is now available for US users [LINK] 

  5. TikTok is getting into mobile gaming [LINK]

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Spotted this week as I spun around my TweetDeck, RSS feeds, and message inboxes...

Facebook went Taylor Swift crazy due to this weird bug… Facebook had a #Saltbae problem… A viral Instagram post promising to plant trees for every response it received got out of control. This Twitter user did a deep-dive to discover how it all started…

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- Featuring insights from 113 top UK social media marketing agencies.

- Discover the strategies, platforms, and tools responsible for their growth.

- Check out the FREE report to see how your agency compares. [Ad]

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Meanwhile, Instagram appears to be preparing to shut down its stand-alone messaging app Threads… Elon Musk used a Twitter poll to settle a multi-billion dollar tax problem… This metaverse parody mocking Mark Zuckerberg went viral. And Mark joined in on the joke

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WORTH A LOOK… 

🔥 FREE GUIDE: How to cash in on the social shopping boom. [LINK]

🧑🏻‍🎨 DESIGN: How Meta designed its new logo for unknown worlds [LINK]

🛠 TOOLS: How to enable Google Chrome’s handy new screenshot tool [LINK]

⌨️ HARDWARE: Logitech’s funky-looking new keyboard you probably won’t buy [LINK] 

😄 FUN: This Twitter Blue promo video is a lot fun [LINK]

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Okay then… Let’s take a look at the news headlines keeping big tech PR teams busy this week👇

— Matt

P.S. Join me later for your weekly Geekout Debrief on Twitter Spaces at 4PM (UK) today (Fri 12th Nov)

We will discuss all the week’s BIG social media hot topics, breaking news, new features, and more. [Get a Reminder]

👷‍♀️ Social media jobs board

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NYC | Full-Time | Perm | Office-based | £undisclosed

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🚨 Everyone's talking about...

While Twitter's subscription product has been available in Canada and Australia since the summer, Twitter Blue took a big step forward this week with the rollout of a bunch of new features and a launch of the service in the USA and New Zealand.

Regular readers of this newsletter won't be surprised by many of the new features—they've been showing up in app code for weeks—but in practice they make for a compelling package.

Getting ad-free access to sites like the Verge, Insider, and BuzzFeed News is good (although it doesn't break through paywalls, so sites like Insider and The Atlantic will still limit the articles you see unless you pay them).

The Nuzzel-like 'Top Stories' which shows the most-shared links by the people you follow, is very useful for catching up, although a last-minute bug on iOS means it's only available on the web and on Android for now. And 'Thread Reader' genuinely does make threads more pleasant to read.

That's all on top of features like 'undo tweet' (get a quick chance to stop typos before your tweet publishes), and a customisable nav bar, app icon, and in-app colour theme.

It won't be a package that appeals to everyone, but power users should really appreciate it. And if Twitter can make it a success, it will have proved an old piece of social media 'common sense' wrong - the idea that subscription packages for consumer social media are a non-starter because you want as many people as possible using the service as possible.

Given how many users have begged to pay for a 'Twitter Pro' or 'Facebook Pro' for years, this is an experiment worth running.

Now, where's that UK launch, Twitter?

In its latest 'why didn't you do this ages ago?' move, Meta is cutting back on some of its more controversial ad targeting categories, as the Verge explains:

According to a post on the Meta for Business blog, the company is blocking advertisers from using detailed ad targeting options that show ads based on your engagement in “sensitive” areas including race or ethnicity, religious views, political beliefs, sexual orientation, health, and a whole lot more...

Meta emphasizes that detailed targeting options aren’t actually based on your physical characteristics or personal choices. Rather, they’re what advertisers think you might be interested in based on your activity. Even still, detailed targeting can be harmful. Predatory ads can feel discriminatory, reinforce addictions, negatively influence behavior, and even cause mental distress.

This isn't the first time the company has removed problematic targeting options. In the past, this has included options that allowed advertisers to exclude people of certain racial backgrounds from job and housing ads, or target anti-Semites.

Meta seems to be increasingly recognising through its actions that its business goals can run counter to the needs of a healthy society. We'll have to wait to see whether this realisation continues to inform its actions after the initial sting of Frances Haugen's leaks has gone away.

It's no secret that Twitter boss Jack Dorsey is a cryptocurrency and Web3 enthusiast. He's excited by bitcoin and has pushed forward a project to build a fully decentralised version of Twitter. Now Twitter is getting serious about building blockchain technologies into its main product with the launch of a new Crypto team.

In a thread, the team's boss Tess Rinearson explained its work would go beyond bitcoin tipping and support for NFTs (two things Twitter has already announced). Rinearson said "we’ll be exploring how ideas from crypto communities can help us push the boundaries of what’s possible with identity, community, ownership and more."

This all sounds a bit 'wait and see, we're not sure yet' in terms of specifics of what we can expect, but the ability to set an NFT as your profile picture definitely seems to be coming soon. We saw new details of the feature this week.

Whether this feature will prove popular beyond the NFT enthusiast crowd who set cartoon apes as their profile pictures and tweet "gm" every morning remains to be seen, but Twitter is in a good position to make NFTs about more than exclusive clubs and money laundering.

However, Twitter's Crypto team should remember that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. Discord had to row back on plans to explore crypto integration in its product after many users were very much not keen on the idea of incorporating a MetaMask crypto wallet into the Discord app.

Web3 might be a big part of the future of the internet, but not everyone is going to want to see it show up everywhere.

⚡ Must-watch of the week

Mark Zuckerberg had a video chat with Gary Vaynerchuk this week that is well worth a watch it you want to understand everything you can about Meta's metaverse plans.

❓ Question of the week

My followers really stepped up for this one. Tap through and get involved 👇

🔵 Meta news

All the latest from Meta brands: Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp:

Meta has a recruitment problem as it struggles with its reputation.

  • Facebook is overwhelmed by recommendations from its Oversight Board and is looking at ways to revise the current system. [Protocol]

  • Around 360m Facebook users say the app is bad for them, according to the company's own research. [Wall Street Journal $$$]

  • But Meta has fired back against the WSJ's reporting. [Meta newsroom]

  • Trust in the 'Facebook' brand fell after the Meta rebrand, according to new research. [Fast Company]

  • Frances Haugen's leaks from Facebook have emboldened the EU to act faster on social media regulation. [Wall Street Journal]

  • And Haugen spoke in front of the EU this week. [TNW]

  • ...although her links to an organisation lobbying against big tech have raised questions. [Politico]

  • Facebook's latest report on most-viewed content shows how much junk content gets big audiences. [Social Media Today]

  • Meta says bullying and harassment content is seen on Facebook 14 to 15 times per every 10,000 views of content, and on Instagram every 5 to 6 times per 10,000 views. [CNet]

  • Facebook's 'Share' button amplifies misinformation, the company's own research found. [Big Technology]

  • Facebook recently tested giving some 'power users' MORE political news. [Insider $$$]

  • Instagram is offering some creators bonuses as high as $35,000 this month. [Insider $$$]

  • Instagram and Channel 4 have teamed up for a UK TV series billed as a 'world first' social reality show. [Campaign]

  • Meta is partnering with GitHub to help protect users' security by fighting abuse of access tokens. [Facebook for Developers]

  • Facebook appeared to accidentally ban the #SaltBae hashtag. [The Independent]

  • Meta and Microsoft are partnering to bring Teams to Workplace. [The Verge]

  • A scammer convinced Instagram that the company's boss, Adam Mosseri, was dead. [Motherboard]

  • A viral use of Instagram's Add Yours sticker showed the potential of this new sticker, but the 'plant a tree for every pet picture' campaign wasn't all it seemed. [The Independent]

  • WhatsApp users have been warned about a 'friend in need' scam. [Sky News]

  • 40% of traffic to Pages on Facebook in 2018 went to plagiarised or recycled content, the company's researchers found. [Wall Street Journal $$$]

  • Meta's Branded Content Project will run for another two years thanks to $1m in extra funding from the Facebook Journalism Project. [Adweek $$$]

Insights to give you an edge at work:

  • Want to improve your messaging app skills for holiday season marketing? Facebook has some tips for you. [Social Media Today]

New features and tests:

Facebook:

  • Facebook seems to be testing a weekly news quiz in some users' News Feeds. [@MattNavarra]

  • Facebook is testing letting you react to posts from the notifications tab. [@MattNavarra]

  • Facebook will now help you discover new photo, video and audio editing tools, directly in Facebook Stories. [Facebook for Developers]

Instagram:

  • Instagram is testing 'take a Break', letting users opt to get nudges to shut the app after 10, 20, or 30 minutes. [9to5Mac]

  • Instagram Reels now has its own text-to-speech a dn voice effects features. [TechCrunch]

  • Instagram appears to be shutting down its Threads app next month. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram may soon let you video chat using your Facebook avatar. [@hammodoh1]

  • Instagram is rolling out its ‘Favorites’ feature to more users/ [@MattNavarra]

  • Instagram is working on the ability to place stickers in front of or behind other stickers. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram might soon show some Facebook viewers for your Stories in the list of views in the Instagram app. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram is developing the option to create lists of close friends. [@alex193a]

  • An Instagram UI tweak puts less emphasis on feed posts as the default content type. [@LindseyGamble_]

  • Instagram could soon let you use stickers straight from the Stories camera. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram is building a feature that would let you build your own private playlist of Reels. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram audio effects for Reels are now available for more users. [@MattNavarra]

  • Instagram is working on letting you add moderators to live video. [@alex19a]

  • Instagram may soon inform you when your battery is about to run out during a call. [@alex193a]

  • Instagram is working on an option to let you block your posts and profile from being embedded on websites. [@alex193a]

WhatsApp:

  • WhatsApp is building a 'Communities' feature similar to Twitter's. [WABetaInfo]

  • WhatsApp will soon let you hide your 'Last seen' status from specific contacts. [Android Police]

  • WhatsApp is working on integration with Meta's Novi wallet, which could mean support for payments is coming to the US. [XDA Developers]

  • WhatsApp has rolled out multi-device support to all iOS and Android users. [MacRumors]

  • WhatsApp's latest Android beta includes a new UI for contact information, new options for disappearing messages, and more. [XDA Developers]

  • WhatsApp will no longer keep notifying you about security code changes. [Android Central]

Quest/VR:

  • Quest apps will soon be able to send you notifications in both VR and the Quest mobile app. [UploadVR]

🐣 Twitter news

Twitter has renewed a multi-year content deal with ViacomCBS, which will include 'watch parties' on the platform.

  • Prince Harry claims he warned Jack Dorsey about the January 6th insurrection the day before it happened. [Sky News]

  • Twitter has announced a new Data Governance Committee. [Twitter blog]

New features and tests:

  • Twitter's 'add a content warning' option is coming to the web app. [@wongmjane]

  • Twitter's updated image editor has been spotted in the wild. [Social Media Today]

  • Twitter is putting the finishing touches on its Spaces player for the web app. [@nima_owji]

  • Twitter has shared a design for a dashboard to keep track of earnings from Ticketed Spaces. [@TwitterSpaces]

  • Full-size images in the Twitter feed now work on the web. [@TwitterSupport]

  • It appears NFT profile pictures will first be offered through Twitter Blue's Labs section. [@alex193a]

  • Twitter is working on a search feature to help you find specific settings in the app. [@wongmjane]

  • Twitter is still working on an account automation feature. [@alex193a]

  • Twitter could soon add a Search button ton the top nav bar. [@wongmjane]

  • Twitter is developing multi-coloured heart emoji reactions for Spaces. [@wongmjane]

🔺 TikTok news

TikTok... the gaming platform? Zynga is launching a new game called Disco Loco 3D exclusively on TikTok.

  • TikTok has now launched its Creative Exchange platform to connect brands with creators. [Social Media Today]

  • Distrust of TikTok is on the rise in America. [Axios]

Insights to give you an edge at work:

  • Planning a holiday campaign on TikTok? The company has a guide for you. [Social Media Today]

  • What TikTok content is popular with families? A new report will tell you. [TikTok newsroom]

💥 More social media news and updates

YouTube is about to run a week of live shopping events as it makes its biggest move yet in the social shopping space. [$$$]

  • YouTube has been paying TikTok stars to post to Shorts. [Insider $$$]

  • Reddit scored best on a 'misogyny report card' for social platforms, but even then it didn't score great. [Washington Post $$$]

  • Twitch has announced a new programme to support musicians. [Eurogamer]

  • Twitch now has a viewing app for Nintendo Switch. [The Verge]

  • Pinterest has shared data about the types of content it removed most during the first half of 2021. [Social Media Today]

  • China's Tencent has shared its own vision for the metaverse. [TechCrunch]

  • UK teachers are facing social media harassment campaigns led by their students. [The Guardian]

Insights to give you an edge at work:

  • What are people searching for on Pinterest as the holiday season approaches? Knowing the answer could help your campaign planning. [Social Media Today]

New features and tests:

  • Snapchat has tested product drops in AR. [Social Media Today]

  • Snapchat is working on a new UI for voice notes. [@alex193a]

  • Snapchat could soon offer text animations. [@alex193a]

  • Clubhouse has introduced show recording and replays. Unlike Twitter Spaces, creators can easily download a recording of their show for use elsewhere. [TechCrunch]

  • Clubhouse could soon let you hide your presence from other listeners in a room. [@alex193a]

  • Clubhouse is working on improving text captions. [@wongmjane]

  • YouTube now hides dislike counts to help fight harassment of creators. [The Verge]

  • YouTube has expanded its test that end users straight to Shorts when they open the app. [TechCrunch]

  • YouTube's crisis response panels now offer more mental health assistance. [Social Media Today]

  • Reddit could soon turn its Karma points into a crypto token. [Coin Telegraph]

  • Reddit's social audio platform Talks is now available to listen on the web. [Adweek $$$]

  • Twitch now supports recurring subscriptions on iOS. [Engadget]

  • Amazon will now let you share 30-second clips of Prime Video content on social media. [The Verge]

🌟 New feature of the week

Perhaps the best bit of fleets, it's image editor, lives on!

📈 Chart of the week

Has new technology made lying easier? This is fascinating new research...

📖 Weekend reading

"What the professional social network gets right. And what others can learn from it."

😳 And finally...

Jeff Bezos responded in a DARK way this week, after a video made it look like Leonardo DiCaprio was hitting on his girlfriend.

📅 Back next week...

...And that’s everything a social media geek needs to know this week!

Right… Time for me to go see if I can sweettalk someone at Twitter to enable Twitter Blue or Super Follows on my account.

Goodbye, geeks!

— Matt

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_________________

This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant.

Copyright 2021: Matt Navarra Media Ltd

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