Twitch begins its clampdown on hate raids after streamer boycotts
After streamers staged a 24-hour boycott on the platform in response to recurring hate raids, Twitch has finally started its legal clampdown on key offenders behind in-app harassment. For RekitRaven and other key streamers behind the growing #TwitchDoBetter movement, it’s safe to say: congratulations, the platform has definitely responded. Late last...
Current in News
Major solar storms could cause a global ‘internet apocalypse’
Every 100 years or so, normally harmless electromagnetic particles from the sun conjure a major solar storm. With the potential to damage electrical grids and undersea cables, scientists are concerned the next may cause a global ‘internet apocalypse’. In 2021, seeing Wi-Fi signal drop off in the lower corner of...
Genaq to convert air humidity into drinking water for millions
Spanish humanitarian firm Genaq is bringing clean drinking water to refugees and natural disaster survivors by extracting atmospheric humidity from the air. Spanning 45 countries, its ingenious generators currently provide up 1.5 million litres a day. With constant media emphasis on last month’s alarming IPCC reports and the general...
Astroscale satellite successfully removes space debris in first demo
Unveiled back in March, Astroscale developed a magnetic satellite capable of removing debris orbiting our planet. This week it has successfully completed its first outer space demo. This week, scientists hit a major milestone in the aim of removing space junk from our atmosphere. Back in March, we covered a story...
Twitch streamers plan 24-hour boycott in response to ‘hate raids’
Twitch streamers from marginalised communities have regularly spoken out against abuse and harassment they receive on the platform. With instances of ‘hate raids’ continuing to slip past moderators, a day long boycott now aims to drive change. If you’re big into streaming, you’ll likely have seen the hashtag ‘#TwitchDoBetter’ bouncing...
The new Ugandan app tackling online abuse against women
A Ugandan tech company called Pollicy has created an interactive game to help women across Africa become digitally literate and clued up on digital safety. The digital game, Digital Safe-tea, provides women with digital safety training by allowing them to confront online violence scenarios as three different personas: Goitse, Aisha, and...
Vine’s creator working on bizarre new NFT console Supdrive
Dom Hofmann, a founder of both Vine and Byte, has announced a firmware console called Supdrive. Using NFTs as game cartridges, each title will be unique to each player. This whole NFT trend is getting pretty out of hand now. Dom Hofmann, the founder of TikTok’s 2012 ancestor Vine, has recently announced plans to develop a firmware console which will take classic-style arcade games – like Pacman or Space Invaders...
Twitter finally makes reporting misinformation simple for users
Following mounting pressure from the White House, Twitter has announced a new user feature intended to better tackle the online spread of misinformation. If ever there was a specific period to really underpin the dangers of misinformation, with Covid-19, the introduction of 5G, and the US presidential election, 2020 was certainly that year. Those who previously spread unsubstantiated conspiracy theories about the dangers of Covid-19 vaccines or uncounted electoral votes –...
Facebook plans to become ‘water positive’ by 2030
The social media giant has announced it will restore more water than it uses globally within the next decade, intensifying the competition between tech firms to become carbon neutral. Your nan’s favourite source of stale memes and clickbait headlines, Facebook, has just announced plans to become ‘water positive’ by 2030. This means the company intends to restore more water than it consumes across the world - not just its US...
Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp suspended during Zambia’s election
Zambia officials threatened to suspend all broadband services on the day of its election to combat misinformation. In the end, its Ministry of Information froze traffic on WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. In the fight to stem the spread political misinformation during its presidential election, has Zambia compromised a sense of genuine democracy? When it comes to political advertising, social media sites frankly don’t know whether to stick or twist. Throughout large...
