Social Archives - Page 2 of 201

Reddit celebrates World Environment Day with r/TinyAnimalsOnFingers
By Andy Walker: Editor on 5 June, 2017
Today the globe celebrates all things great and beautiful on social media, as World Environment Day begins the week. Google has already published a green-fingered doodle to mark the occasion, and shed some light on its green efforts. Twitter has been awash with the hashtags #withnature and #WorldEnvironmentDay. Reddit however? Well, it's gone one step further. The social news aggregation service has a slew of subreddits dedicated to the beauty of the environment, but /r/TinyAnimalsOnFingers is trending today. And for good reason: it's exactly what you need to get through Monday. "This subreddit is dedicated to creating a menagerie of pictures of tiny...
Sorry Donald Trump: Pope Francis is Twitter’s most popular world leader
By Julia Breakey on 5 June, 2017
In April, Burson-Marsteller released a study on how world leaders use Instagram to communicate with their constituents (or subjects, depending on who you ask). But while Instagram is an up-and-coming way to market yourself as a politician, there has always been One Platform to Rule Them All, and that platform is Twitter. It all began 5 March 2007, when Illinois Senator Barack Obama became the first world leader to join the platform in the build-up to his presidential campaign. Since then, 856 leaders have joined the text-based platform to make it the most popular among politicians and popes alike. Thinking we're only one signature away...
Snapchat Spectacles now available in five major European cities
By Andy Walker: Editor on 2 June, 2017
Snapchat Spectacles are now available in a select number of European cities, seven months after the wearables launched in the United States. The company first hinted that a move across the Atlantic was an option, suggesting that the glasses would be sold at tourist spots across the US first. And judging by the initial offering of European cities, the company is sticking to that philosophy. Spectacles have landed in Europe! https://t.co/KdmMnzNkYW pic.twitter.com/JpWMU2fxWY — Spectacles (@Spectacles) June 2, 2017 Barcelona, Berlin, London, Paris and Venice are the chosen cities, all noted for their high tourist volumes. ‪Snapbot at London Eye, UK 🇬🇧 ‬ A post shared...
Joke tweet gets called out as promoting rape culture
By Julia Breakey on 1 June, 2017
A tweet posted on Tuesday, intended as a cute story, has received backlash for promoting "rape culture." The tweet in question told of the Twitter user's 13-year-old brother, who had been crushing on a girl since pre-school. The user called the girl dumb, and included shots from a conversation the young friends had on Snapchat. In the chat, the brother had asked his crush if he could buy her something, and she said he couldn't because they're just friends, and "that's what more than friends do." He then pushed that they could be best friends, and she declined again saying she already had one. "Oh it's...
Sanlam debuts SA’s first WhatsApp drama in novel marketing campaign
By Andy Walker: Editor on 30 May, 2017
We've seen social media used extensively as the vehicle for performance art, but what about less image-heavy services like WhatsApp? Arriving via a clever marketing campaign by Sanlam, South African drama series Uk’shona Kwelanga (or The Death of Langa) is set to debut on the Facebook-owned chat app next month. Yes, a drama series made exclusively for WhatsApp. According to the press release, the show "tells the tale of a South African family struggling to deal with the emotional and financial ramifications of loss while planning their father's funeral". The screenplay is penned by Bongi Ndaba (previous head writer of Generations) while a...
Ex-model gets community service after Snapchat invasion of privacy suit
By Julia Breakey on 29 May, 2017
Former Playboy model Danielle Mathers has been sentenced to 30 days of community service and three years of probation after posting a picture of an unaware 70-year-old woman showering to her Snapchat account, The New York Times reports. Mathers used the image taken at the gym to mock the woman, captioning it "If I can't unsee this, then you can't either." Shortly thereafter, she posted a selfie with her hand over her mouth. Mathers, who was Playmate of the Year in 2015, was met with a wave of criticism online, and many deemed her post as body shaming. Still wondering if @DaniMathers thinks she's...
Hikers, T-rex throw impromptu dance party on Lion’s Head
By Staff Reporter on 26 May, 2017
With the taps running ever drier in the city, it seems that a select number of Cape Town residents have finally lost their minds. A group of fun-loving people decided that a great way to spend a Thursday morning would be to hike Lion's Head and have a mild party at the summit. Featuring an orchestrating human in a colourful leotard, an endangered tyrannosaurus rex, and a number of people Beyonce might think twice about hiring for her latest video, the top of the 600m peak was for but a brief moment a dancefloor. Lion's Head is one of the more popular...
5 inspirational quotes from Mark Zuckerberg’s Harvard speech
By Andy Walker: Editor on 26 May, 2017
If you could attend a lecture from anyone on earth (besides Shia LeBeouf), who would you want most? For Harvard students this week, they didn't have a choice, but they did get Mark Zuckerberg. The little known Facebook CEO, whose company worth is beyond the US$450-billion mark, returned to his old university after dropping out in 2005. It was a moment that he'll probably never forget, joking in the speech that his speech was the first time he completed anything at Harvard. But it's probably a speech many a student won't forget either. Reading through his speech, we've picked...
Mark ‘Zucker-Duck’ Zuckerberg is trolled hard by Harvard hacker
By Julia Breakey on 26 May, 2017
Mark Zuckerberg famously dropped out of the prestigious Harvard University to work on his small indie project Facebook, and while Harvard may forgive the students never forget. 12 years after leaving the school, the CEO was called back to campus to receive an honorary degree and give a speech -- but not before hackers got in a good deal of mocking. Mere hours before Zuckerberg was meant to take the stage, the university's daily newspaper, The Harvard Crimson, was taken over by a mysterious hacker with a personal vendetta. "Mark Zoinkerberg at it again," read one of their headlines. "OP-ED: I DID NOT STEAL FAKEBOOK...
Uber, Snapchat giving custom filters to riders in African markets
By Andy Walker: Editor on 25 May, 2017
Great news for you antisocial riders who never bother chatting to your Uber drivers. The transportation company has today announced a collaboration with Snapchat, which allows riders to "personalize their riding experience" using a number of custom filters. "Riders will be able to have a little extra fun by unlocking custom Snapchat filters so they can Snap while they ride," the press release continues. These custom filters include ETA filters, a number of custom Uber ride filters and a mystery filter for an "added surprise". 'Riders will be able to have a little extra fun by unlocking custom Snapchat filters so they can...
Facebook will pay up to $250k for original content from Buzzfeed and Vox
By Julia Breakey on 25 May, 2017
Facebook has signed a deal with entertainment creators Vox Media, BuzzFeed, ATTN, Group Nine Media and others to create original video content for the platform, and is paying willing to pay up. The deal will bring scripted and unscripted content to the platform, in a bid to compete with premium content creators like YouTube Red and Snap. The scripted shows are intended to last between 20 and 30 minutes (and will include ad breaks), while the unscripted shows will average between five and ten minutes. According to Reuters, Facebook will pay up to US$250 000 for the scripted shows, which will also grant it full ownership...
Twitter adds 230+ new emoji for your enjoyment
By Staff Reporter on 25 May, 2017
Twitter's 300-million strong user base can look forward to a treat today. The social network's UX designer Bryan Haggarty announced this week that users can look forward to seeing and using a slew of new emoji on the social network. 69 new Emoji 5.0 icons are now usable on Twitter for those who have supported platforms, and if you include the variations of these emoji, the number rises to 239. 🆕 🤩 We've just added all the new emojis to https://t.co/LOTAlBvtUR and updated our Twemoji open source repo 🥡 https://t.co/lD0IvE7ifj — Bryan Haggerty 🤩 (@bhaggs) May 23, 2017 If you use Twitter's website regularly,...
Snapchat introduces group sharing feature for Stories
By Andy Walker: Editor on 24 May, 2017
Social sharing platform Snapchat has today debuted a nifty group sharing mechanic to its Stories feature. "Today we’re announcing a new way to create custom Stories – about anything, with any of your friends, even for a specific location! It's perfect for a trip, a birthday party, or a new baby story just for the family," it writes on its blog. Heading to a gig with friends? Going to the big game on the weekend with chums? Or heading to your local canyon for some paddling with your besties? Snapchat now lets users create custom Stories to capture the moment with...
Facebook doesn’t want you to know its censorship policies
By Julia Breakey on 24 May, 2017
Facebook still won't tell the world what its censorship policies are, despite receiving a slew of criticism from experts and users alike for its ambiguity. While the controversy of what Facebook allows on its site has been around its entire existence, the criticism turned to uproar last year when the platform censored an iconic picture from the Vietnam war. It subsequently defended its decision, declaring it in line with its policy on nudity. Eventually, Facebook acknowledged that graphic images for the service of public interest are important enough to remain on the platform. This amended policy came into play last month, when videos of dying...
11 SA gaming YouTubers to keep an eye on [Digital All Stars]
By Hadlee Simons on 22 May, 2017
Digital All Stars is a series of articles which aims to celebrate the best of South African digital. The articles, which will appear on Memeburn and Ventureburn, recognise and celebrate South Africa’s best digital entrepreneurs, business people, advertisers, and media professionals among others. Gaming is massive business on YouTube. Don't believe me? Well, take a look at the most popular YouTuber in the world, PewDiePie. Take a look at the rest of the top 50 most subscribed channels, and you've got gaming personalities like VanossGaming and Jacksepticeye. What about South Africa though? Well, we've got our fair share of gaming YouTubers finding a...