Twitter Safety Work Results Update

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Twitter’s commitment to move faster to make the platform safer started in January. First, the company conducted research to understand the issues at a deeper level, then we made a range of product updates. Then they convened the Trust and Safety Council to gather feedback and help guide them as we they forward.

While there is still much work to be done, people are experiencing significantly less abuse on Twitter today than they were six months ago. What follows is some new data on the progress that they’ve made, what they’ve learned, and their plans to continue improving.


Increasing Action on Abusive Accounts
Twitter is now taking action on 10x the number of abusive accounts every day compared to the same time last year. The platform also now limits account functionality or place suspensions on thousands more abusive accounts each day. There are repeat offenders who create new accounts after being suspended for violations. The new systems, in the last four months alone, have removed twice the number of these types of accounts. Beyond the technology, Twitter teams are continuing to review content daily and improving how we enforce our policies.


Driving Change in Behavior

Communication about problematic Tweets, especially to the people who send them, is key. Accounts that demonstrate abusive behavior are now limited for a time, and told why. Accounts that are put into this period of limited functionality generate 25% fewer abuse reports, and approximately 65% of these accounts are in this state just once.


Providing Personalized Controls

Twitter has introduced new ways to customize people’s experience, including notification filters and muting keywords. The Quality Filter feature has led to fewer unwanted interactions: blocks after @mentions from people that they don’t follow is down 40%. These numbers will vary, but the approach is having a positive impact. Twitter has consistent harassment definitions and policies that apply to everyone. However, people define abuse differently, so using these new tools, every person has control of what they see and experience on Twitter.


What Happens Next

More improvement, transparency, and speed. Online safety is an issue best solved in partnership with others, so Twitter will continue to collaborate with the Trust & Safety Council, industry experts, and academics to solicit ongoing feedback. We are committed to making Twitter a safe place for free expression.

Automated Election System (AES) Technology Fair

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) will again utilize an automated election system for the next National and Local Elections (NLE) in 2019. Under the Republic Act No. 9369, the COMELEC Advisory Council (CAC) shall recommend to the COMELEC “the most appropriate, secure, applicable and cost-effective technology to be applied in the Automated Election System (AES).”

With this, the CAC will conduct the one-day Automated Election System (AES) Technology Fair on July 26, 2017, 8:30 AM, at the Novotel Hotel, Araneta Center to gather various technology providers to present and demonstrate the available local and international AES technologies.

Business Magnate Ramon Ang to Acquire the Philippine Daily Inquirer

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Rumors has it that the Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI) newspaper will be re-branded as "Ang Inquirer".

Ramon Ang confirms he has accepted the offer of the Prieto's to acquire Inquirer or PDI. "I have accepted the offer of the Prieto family to invest in the Inquirer Group" say Ramon Ang.

The Inquirer Group said the Prieto family "is confident that Mr. Ang will uphold the Inquirer Group's commitment to pursuing the highest standards of journalism."

The Prieto's have been running the PDI for 25 years, what motivated them to sell their brand?

The PDI sellout to Ramon Ang ensures full control of Big Business over local traditional mass media. Big Business is everywhere.

Changes will most probably now happen with PDI, my favorite independent-minded and crusading newspaper, now that Ramon Ang will take over
is taking over.

WINNING STATEMENT: "Never did we think we’d be sold off to a DUTERTE campaign donor at that."

Since there was a confirmation that all existing employees of PDI would still be retained, there is no fear of losing jobs.

Now that San Miguel Corporation's Ramon S. Ang has acquired the PDI, is this an impending information dissemination rivalry among Manny Pangilinan's Philippine Star and Business World. With businessmen in control of leading newspapers, there would surely be an influential force that would change the mindset of its readers.

But we all know that newspaper, and even magazine, readership has gone down so abruptly that there have been plenty of closures already. It seems it would be on the digital scene where "influence" would be strongly eminent.

I've been reading a lot from my social media timelines related to print media closing down and so I've tried my best to summarize and put everything substantial into the paragraphs below:

"A major publishing house is shutting down ALL its regular print magazines. Brands are shifting ad budget to digital. Circulation also down. So the two main revenue streams are drying up."

We were supposed to embrace digital spaces YEARS ago. Digital is a great new frontier. It is definitely effective. Nothing beats big data. Measurable, sortable, and shapeable. No bloated, bullshit "pass-on readership" numbers as well. The days of lying through the teeth about print runs and pass on readership are now over. Nothing beats an honest business.

Same with TV and radio. They bloat the numbers, and round 'em up to the next highest number. Figures that are untrackable and cannot be proven. Never as accurate and precise as digital. Dinosaurs don't like to be told they're going to be extinct.

Local print media ending their print runs was bound to happen. Most brands are pulling out support for print and putting everything in digital. People now believe digital is cool because it is easier to track, to trace, make data for and formulate conversions over amount of money spent..

But some are saying that "Print isn't dead, but needs to adapt. Digital is cool, but expectations need to be tempered." Would you agree to that statement?

"There needs to be more digital spaces that value and promote long form stories, meatier stuff that doesn't fit in 600 words or less." Since most of our attention span when it comes to online are short, articles are done as short as possible. The creativity is then reduced, or people are becoming more precise and straight to the point?

Well, there are still the fake news and those click-bait articles that seem to be more cunning in attracting readership. In this entertainment-centric world, if we stick with direct but boring headlines, people would tend to skip it if their curiosities are not actively triggered.

Even though Wazzup Pilipinas belongs to the digital or online world, we still value the prestige of traditional media, but is always happy to embrace an all digital world soon. We can't stop the inevitable.