What better subject to zoom in on during the holiday season than play? I've written a lot on the subject, here, through the years but, in a way, this is Part 4 of a series I started in 2009 (here are the 2nd and 3rd parts). So now, at the turn of a new year, it’s not only a perfect time but high time to come back to the power of play. Happy holidays to all who celebrate them, happiness to those … [Read more...] about ‘Playful by Design,’ a landmark report
Research
9 things that make viral hoaxes challenging
Remember “Blue Whale”? Almost five years ago, when I was getting to the bottom of that murky hoax, it wasn’t yet understood as one. It was being called a “suicide game,” and those two words were scaring parents around the world, literally. I was looking all over the Web for reliable sources and found my best one – still one of the world’s top experts on the subject, I believe – to be Georgi … [Read more...] about 9 things that make viral hoaxes challenging
If anything needs to go viral, it’s this…
...the message, "Report it. Don't share it." The "it" in this public awareness campaign Facebook just launched is child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the accurate term for what is typically called "child pornography" in the United States. Thankfully, it's extremely unlikely you'll ever see content like this. "The prevalence of this content on our platform is very low," Facebook researchers … [Read more...] about If anything needs to go viral, it’s this…
Key piece of the puzzle: Australia’s ‘Safety by Design’ tools
A vital piece of the global online safety puzzle has just fallen into place: Australia’s eSafety Commissioner’s Office this week unveiled its Safety by Design tools for Internet companies everywhere. They’re the outgrowth of extensive international research and consultation with people in industry, government, academia and advocacy, including youth and parents – a process eSafety started in … [Read more...] about Key piece of the puzzle: Australia’s ‘Safety by Design’ tools
Could platforms design for 2nd chances?: Insight from key study
No stage of life is easy, but being a teen is hard in a very particular way. “Adolescence is a period of rapid cognitive, social and emotional development,” said researcher Amanda Lenhart, Health & Data lead at the Data & Society Research Institute in New York, at a conference this week, for example. “They’re a protected legal category. They don’t have the same power or ability to make … [Read more...] about Could platforms design for 2nd chances?: Insight from key study