Instagram is starting to roll out recommended posts directly into users’ home feeds, according to TechCrunch.

Previously, the home feed was dedicated to posts from accounts that users follow as well as ads, whereas recommended posts were located solely in the Explore tab.

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Happy New Year! Are you looking to reach and engage with customers in a new and exciting way? This is going to be the year your business embraces content marketing in a real and serious way. Why is this going to be the year of content marketing?

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When effective content marketing meets your customers, the magic happens. Before we dive in to the secret sauce behind the magic, what comes first, content or the customer? That is not a trick question. It’s a real test to see which direction your content marketing is headed. If you’re not sure about how this should play out for the benefit of your marketing and your customer…read on.

As a marketer and a consumer, I always think about the value content plays in a marketing strategy and campaigns.

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Just how dominant a business tool was social media in 2017? Despite being involved in an investigation by Congress, Facebook reported its highest earnings ever in Q3, up nearly 50% from a year ago.

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RSS is now competing for my time with Twitter, Reddit, internal Verge chats, and other news sources

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Ten years ago if we told people that social media management will be a full-time job, they might have laughed at us. As simple as they are to use, managing a number of platforms for businesses can be quite challenging. With so many platforms and changing algorithms, and hashtags to choose and use, you can easily feel that things are getting out of control.

I spoke to my colleague Sarah who manages different social media accounts for our clients and asked her about the common mistakes that people make when managing their brand accounts, and what should business owners avoid doing on social media:

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CJ Marple wanted to teach his young students how quickly information can spread on the Internet.

So earlier this year, the third-grade science teacher wrote up a tweet with the help of his students, asking for other users to retweet the message, or even reply to the message with their location.

The Kansas teacher says he expected 1,000 or so retweets, but within days the tweet went viral and gained more than 227,000 retweets and 75,000 replies from users all over the world. His students, who are probably a little too young for their own social media accounts, learned a lot that week about the power of social media.

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In another blow to RSS fans everywhere, Digg announced that it would soon be shuttering Digg Reader.

As of March 26, the RSS service will no longer work on the web or in Digg's mobile apps. The company didn't say why it was closing the service, which it started in response to Google killing off its own RSS service in 2013.

Naturally, the news was pretty upsetting to Digg Reader fans who had turned to the service as a replacement for the once beloved Google Reader.

But if you are one of the many folks still clinging to RSS feeds in 2018, you are not entirely out of luck. There are a number of capable alternatives out there. Here are five of our favorites.

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As Facebook fights its own fake news problem, Twitter looks like it's interested in finding more ways to push news content to its microblogging service. According to a report at BuzzFeed, Twitter has confirmed that it is testing new algorithm-curated timelines when big events happen, then putting tweets from news organizations and other users at the top of your timeline. So far, Twitter says humans are involved in story selection, but a Twitter spokesperson told BuzzFeed that it could be come only algorithmic in the future.

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For years, we have known that social media platforms inspire jealousy. A 2013 study showed that people fall into a spiral of envy when Facebook reveals that their friends are excelling or leading glamorous lives. Scientific American reported that many studies indicate that spending a lot of time on Facebook is linked to diminished well-being, with Facebook-inspired envy increasing feelings of depression. FOMO (fear of missing out) has become a very real thing

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Imagine if someone could scan every image on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, then instantly determine where each was taken. The ability to combine this location data with information about who appears in those photos—and any social media contacts tied to them—would make it possible for government agencies to quickly track terrorist groups posting propaganda photos. (And, really, just about anyone else.)

That is precisely the goal of Finder, a research program of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Agency (IARPA), the Office of the Director of National Intelligence's dedicated research organization.

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Instagram announced some changes to user feeds today, but before you get too excited, no it is not a return to the chronological feed.

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It appears inevitable that censorship is coming to social media. The political head of steam behind the idea is such that it’s going to happen. Oh, sure, it will be voluntary codes of conduct, fights against fake news, but it will amount to much the same thing – it will be possible to say some things on Facebook, Twitter and the like, and not others.

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Half a million doctors worldwide are sharing their knowledge on a social network for medics to find answers for their patients.

On MedShr, set up in 2014 by a London cardiologist, doctors can post details of cases and other medics can give their input.

A doctor treating a young Afghan refugee in Serbia, who needed plates and pins in his legs, received advice from other specialists that helped formulate a plan to help the boy walk again. In Kenya, hospitals run by junior doctors are able to get remote support from seniors.

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According to a survey in 2017 by the Royal Society for Public Health, Britons aged 14-24 believe that Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter have detrimental effects on their wellbeing. On average, they reported that these social networks gave them extra scope for self-expression and community-building.

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As Facebook fights its own fake news problem, Twitter looks like its interested in finding more ways to push news content to its microblogging service. According to a report at BuzzFeed, Twitter has confirmed that it is testing new algorithm-curated timelines when big events happen, then putting tweets from news organizations and other users at the top of your timeline. So far, Twitter says humans are involved in story selection, but a Twitter spokesperson told BuzzFeed that it could be come only algorithmic in the future.

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The biggest mistake people make when promoting their brand, company or even themselves on social media is thinking that simply posting is enough. However, that’s far from the case. Managing a Facebook, Instagram or Twitter account means having to strategize ways to keep your current audience captivated, while simultaneously attracting new users to your page.

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If you want better customer service -- and who doesn't? -- there are strategies, and there are social media strategies.

Like many consumers, Ryan James, has discovered the latter lately. When he needed to arrange a wheelchair for a recent flight from Budapest to Montreal, he skipped the phone just tweeted to Air Canada.

They were so responsive, says a James, college professor from Budapest. Problem solved.

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While responding quickly to incoming customer inquiries has almost become table stakes in social media, many sophisticated brands have learned that proactive customer care can provide additional benefits to both the company and the customer.

Proactively contacting prospects and customers can create a surprisingly positive customer experience, provide marketing benefits like brand awareness, and even save servicing costs. It can also Proactively listening to prospects and customers on social media can identify key trends, new product opportunities, and customer pain points.

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You have none of the usual constraints of traditional forms of media in terms of length, deadlines, format or language.

Plus -- and this is no small plus -- podcast listeners are some of the most loyal consumers of any form of media available today. If they listen once, they're likely to come back, again and again.

There are multiple reasons for that, and multiple ways to do it well, which we'll explore below.

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The social network ended the third quarter with 2.27 billion monthly active users, up slightly from the 2.23 billion it had last quarter.
As problems persist for Facebook over its handling of user data, the social networking giant revealed that user growth continued to slow during its third-quarter earnings report on Monday.

Facebook had 2.27 billion monthly active users (MAUs) during the quarter, up 10 percent year-over-year but only up slightly from the 2.23 billion it reported at the end of the second quarter. In the U.S., Facebook added just 1 million MAUs. Meanwhile, it lost 1 million MAUs in the Europe. Most of the company's growth came from Asia-Pacific and the rest of the world.

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I have been hearing a lot of marketers talk about social commerce, which is exactly what it sounds like: using social media networks to help sell products online. This may sound like a relatively new idea, but when you take a deeper look, social commerce was actually introduced by Yahoo in late 2005. At the time, things like product reviews and sharing wish lists were cutting edge, but that was one of the early examples of combining social networking with online commerce. Technology has since evolved, but the idea remains the same. To understand how to succeed in social commerce, here are five tips for using social networks to sell products online.

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Social media is a crucial component of any small business marketing efforts. When done well, a strong social strategy helps you connect directly with your customers, and can even create some free publicity along the way.

For all of social media's advantages, there are pitfalls as well. The internet can look like a cavalier place when it comes to copyright rules, but there are plenty of no-nos that you need to follow if you want to stay out of legal trouble.

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Wish you could follow a couple of Twitter or Instagram users, without setting up an account? Create an RSS feed for them.

RSS Hub is an open source project that creates RSS feeds from a wide variety of websites, including social media pages. You can install this on your own server, but it’s not necessary for most users.

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Those viral videos really are giving you all the feels.

New research from the Netherlands suggests that we mirror the emotions of those we see in videos.

Tilburg University researchers studied more than 2,000 video blogs (aka vlogs) on YouTube, focusing on the more popular channels with at least 10,000 subscribers. They analyzed the words and emotions being expressed by the vloggers in their clips, as well as the emotional language of the online comments left by people who viewed the videos. And they found that when a YouTuber posted a positive video, the audience responded with more heightened positive emotions; but if the video broadcast negative emotions, the audience responded in kind.

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If you opened up Instagram today and found that your timeline orientation was totally switched, you were not alone. It appears that quite a few users had a timeline that moved left to right, where posts could be tapped through as they can be in stories.

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Social media can be intimidating, especially for more private individuals. But if your business does not have a social presence, it can actually hurt your reputation and hinder your growth.

While you must manage them carefully, your social media accounts give you the power to engage directly with customers and build your personal brand while promoting your business. Below, 10 members of Young Entrepreneur Council share their social media suggestions for introverted business owners.

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For many consumers, spending too much time on social media often happens subconsciously. We pick up our phones, and before long, hours have passed.

While many of us think nothing of the extra time spent scrolling on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, a new study conducted by researchers from Michigan State University found that too much time on social media can lead to bad decision-making.

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Excessive social media use has negative consequences that include the kind of risky decision-making associated with drug and gambling addicts, new research shows.  

Researchers at Michigan State University had 71 study participants take a survey gauging their Facebook dependence; it included questions about users feelings when unable to access the website, the influence Facebook has had on a users job or education, and attempts to quit.  

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How do you spot a fake?

When users of Microsofts Edge mobile browser visit a news website with a dubious reputation, they will now get a warning to proceed with caution.

As spotted by The Guardian, Microsoft has partnered with the news watchdog organization NewsGuard to provide Edge users with more information about the news veracity of the site they are visiting.

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A long-running feud was thrust back into the spotlight today with a contentious report claiming that over half of Facebooks monthly active users are actually fake.  

The report, written by Facebook critic Aaron Greenspan, alleges that the social media giant has no way to accurately measure its true user base — or in other words, accounts that are matched up to real people — and that Facebooks reported metrics substantially overestimate the number of real monthly active users.

Notably, Greenspan is a former Harvard classmate of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. I

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I am blessed to say that I get to wake up and live out my dreams each day, says social media influencer, comedian and actress Lala Milan. She creates content for many platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, as well as various apps, doing almost all of the writing, filming, directing, and editing herself. This career has enabled her to generate a six-figure annual income and secured her celebrity bookings at events. Recently, it landed her a role on Boomerang, a TV series coming to BET in February 2019.

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Just because you are not on Facebook or Twitter does not mean your data is safe from the social media giants or their prying algorithms. A study from the University of Vermont adds yet more evidence to the argument that your privacy is no longer in your hands, even if you abstain from social media.

Researchers from UVM's Department of Mathematics and Statistics published a paper in this week’s issue of the journal Nature Human Behaviour demonstrating that social media users not only generate substantial behavioral data about themselves but also about members of their social circle.

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Amazon is now letting anyone create and publish Alexa skills into the Alexa skills store. Amazon first made it easy to create custom skills last year with its Alexa Skill Blueprints program, and it’s taking those custom responses and allowing them to be published in the store for everyone to download and use. There are currently more than 80,000 existing Alexa skills in the store, but todays announcement means the store will be growing significantly with user-generated custom skills.

Amazon is primarily aiming this new functionality at content creators, businesses, brands, and other organizations. Publications, local sports teams, YouTubers, and others will all be able to broadcast their latest updates by simply adding a recorded audio feed URL to a blueprint skill directly and then publishing it on the store.

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In many ways, content on the internet is beautifully linked together and accessible, but despite the interconnectivity of it all we still frequently find ourselves visiting this site, then that site, then another site, all in an effort to check for updates and get the content we want. Thats not particular efficient and theres a much better way to go about it.

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It happens here and there - Facebook goes down, Instagram goes down, then everyone runs to Twitter to figure out what the heck is going on. Last week, we experienced this again, with both Instagram and Facebook going down for 10+ hours, and sparking panic among many brands and influencers who now rely on these platforms to generate income.

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Businesses have spent years diligently amassing followings and figuring out the best way to connect with users.

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Fiery Feeds Adds iCloud Accounts, Three-Pane iPad View, New Customization Tools, and More..

Fiery Feeds, the modern, flexible RSS client for iOS, was updated today with a variety of new features that take the app to new heights: enabling iCloud-based accounts for RSS and Read Later so you don’t need third-party services, adding a three-pane layout on iPad, offering new, configurable methods for navigation, and a lot more. There is something for everyone, from users who may be new to RSS to Fiery Feeds veterans who will appreciate the additional power offered here.

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Wish you could follow a couple of Twitter or Instagram users, without setting up an account? Create an RSS feed for them.

RSS Hub is an open source project that creates RSS feeds from a wide variety of websites, including social media pages. You can install this on your own server, but it is not necessary for most users.

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With an undoubtedly scrappy beginning, content is now a serious player in a variety of brand communications, ranging from demand generation to PR, and on to sales enablement. Especially as search becomes more competitive, it’s important to look beyond a single point of activation in order to make the most of your content. Integrating social media publishing with your larger content marketing vision can help you do that, engaging your audience and maximizing your content marketing ROI.

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According to a 2014 survey by the United States Office of Minority Health, only 9.4% of non-Hispanic black adults received mental health treatment or counseling, compared to 18.8% of non-Hispanic white adults.

Clemons explained that one of the many reasons there is a stigma around mental health in the black community is that if someone can not deal with issues in church then the thought is that you don't have enough faith or you are not giving it over to the church enough.

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In  the summer of 2016, I gave a talk at a small tedx conference in northern Virginia. I began by admitting that I have never had a social-media account; I then outlined arguments for why other people should consider eliminating social media from their lives. The event organizers uploaded the video of my talk to YouTube, where it languished for a few months. Then, for unknowable reasons, it entered the viral slipstream. It was shared repeatedly on Facebook and Instagram and, eventually, viewed more than five million times. I was both pleased and chagrined by the irony of the fact that my anti-social-media talk had found such a large audience on social media.

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The Facebook Cambridge Analytica revelations changed the way people in the US think about online privacy. And it should come as no surprise that many have grown wary over the mishandling of personal information.

Nearly a year later, a majority of US internet users said that Facebook sharing data with Cambridge Analytica raised some level of concern over how their information is used online, per survey findings from text message marketing company SlickText.

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The way young people use social networks is changing rapidly, partly in response to networks that threaten to take over their lives, that they see as fake, the opposite of social. A while back, it looked like they were abandoning Facebook because it had been taken over by the old folks, but it now turns out they’re just leaving anyway, and not just Facebook, but the whole social media concept.

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Australia. Parliament. Senate. Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee, author, issuing body

Australia. Parliament. Senate. Procedure Committee, author, issuing body

Australia

Australia

Australian National Audit Office, author

Australia. Parliament. Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit, author, issuing body