Social Media Saturday: Facebook's Search History, Reddit's Breaking News, and Instagram Gets the Dalai Lama

This week, Tumblr began reaching out to entertainment marketers, Facebook made everyone cringe by making search history available for perusal, and Reddit is trying to become the future of reporting by adding a live reporting function. All that, and the world religious figure that just joined Instagram: it's time for Social Media Saturday!

Google Donates $6.8 M to San Francisco Low-Income Youth Busing After Protests

The technology industry, and Google in particular, has been the target of community rage in the San Francisco area resulting from the economic and culture clash between well-moneyed tech workers and average, long-term residents. Google is seeking to lessen the strain - and perhaps the hard feelings - by recently donating millions to provide low-income youth in the area free transportation.

Top New Smartphones at Mobile World Congress 2014

The largest mobile showcase in the world, the Mobile World Congress, wrapped up in Barcelona, Spain this week. There were a lot of new gadgets and gizmos introduced during the expo, so here's a rundown of the most buzz-worthy new devices.

Bitcoin Crash Fuels Skeptics, Calls for Regulation

"Bitcoin" may still be an unfamiliar term for most everyday people, but online, the cryptocurrency is one of the biggest, and most worrisome, phenomena to emerge from the dark corners of the internet in years.

Four Great New Netflix Features That Will Probably Never Arrive in Your Living Room

Heavy Netflix users are very attached to their streaming service, and at Netflix's internal hackathon, the company is looking for new ways to literally attach its addictive video platform to users. Out of this year's Hack Day competition comes several exciting new ideas that nevertheless may never make it to your living room.

Google Moves Forward with Project Ara Modular Smartphone Development

Motorola's former Project Ara is still in Google's hands after it sold the hardware division to Lenovo, and Google is apparently serious about the experimental 3D-printed, modular smartphone.

Hispanic Chamber of E-Commerce Announces Growth Milestone, Four Months In

The Hispanic Chamber of E-Commerce, which launched a business network last year to support Latino entrepreneurs, has announced that the Hispanic social business network has grown quite a bit in just a few months.

Boeing Black: An NSA-Proof Phone That's Actually Geared More For NSA Use

The year 2013 will probably be remembered as the year when the general public learned that there are no guarantees of security and privacy in cyberspace. Aerospace manufacturer Boeing took a stab at a perfectly secure device, as it unveiled the "Boeing Black" this week, entering the race to make a smartphone that keeps its data safe.

The Most Private of Privacy Invasions: UK Spies May Posses Naked Photos Of You

Britain's version of the National Security Agency, the GHCQ, has reportedly captured images from the webcam chats of millions of Yahoo users. And Yahoo is not happy about it, to say the least.

President Obama Announces "My Brother's Keeper" Initiative in a Personal Way

While his presidency has often been described as post-racial, events have sometimes occurred that forced President Barack Obama to speak directly on race, with varying degrees of elegance and success. On Thursday, however, Obama purposefully announced an intensely personal initiative he called "My Brother's Keeper."

The Web at 25: Pew Study Finds the Internet More Essential Than Ever

With the World Wide Web turning 25 this year, the Pew Research Internet Project unveiled a massive study (with more to come) looking at how Americans' lives and attitudes have changed over the course of the Web's life.

Young Latinos Take a Look at High Tech Futures in STEM With AT&T's HACEMOS and National High Technology Day

AT&T's HACEMOS, a Hispanic/Latino Association hosted its annual National High Technology Day across the U.S. on Thursday to help get Latino and other minority high school students excited about careers in high-tech fields.

WhatsApp To Add Voice Calls, While Text Feature Puts Pressure on Telecoms

WhatsApp will add voice calling later this year, putting even more pressure on big telecommunications companies, after Facebook recently acquired the insurgent company for $19 billion.

"El Chapo" Guzman's Advanced Tech Helped Him Evade the Law: Also His Downfall

Joaquin Guzmán, Mexico's most powerful drug lord also known as "El Chapo," used high-tech methods to evade international authorities for more than a decade, according to a new report. Those high-tech tools, however, also led to his downfall.

A Call To Arms, After a Dismal Year for Cyber Security

While thousands of tech companies and organizations, big and small, and many more concerned citizens got out and protested mass internet surveillance earlier this month, one senior VP at a security firm told attendees at this week's RSA Conference on cyber security that they aren't mad enough.

Is Net Neutrality's Death Responsible for Slowing Netflix Streaming?

In recent weeks, Netflix subscribers have noticed that their instant streaming service has increasingly degraded in quality and load time, even some with hefty broadband connections. The big question on everyone's minds is: does the slow-down have to do with the recent suspension of Net Neutrality, or something else?

Venezuela Blacks Out Internet, Censors Apps as Ongoing Clashes Hit Cyberspace

With battles on the Venezuelan streets between protestors and security forces ongoing, new reports indicate the Venezuelan government is expanding its actions in the online clash on social media and the internet. While Venezuela's censorship of images on Twitter was widely reported last week, a new report from the Associated Press states that authorities have been cutting off mobile internet service to certain parts of the country this week as well.

Google Adds Some Latino-Heavy Cities to Possible Fiber List: If They Make the Cut

Google announced recently it was considering some new cities for its Google Fiber internet service, including some heavily Latino cities. But can they make the cut?

National Latino Groups Respond to Comcast Merger, FCC Plans with Optimism, Skepticism

With the Federal Communications Commission going back to the drawing board on Net Neutrality and Comcast recently announcing its proposed take-over of Time Warner Cable, the internet landscape as we know it is changing. National Latino organizations are reacting - with what could be described as "skeptical optimism."

Why Facebook is Buying WhatsApp for $19 Billion: Mobile and Emerging Markets

Facebook has decided to make its largest purchase ever with the acquisition of popular messaging service WhatsApp. Why did this messaging app fetch one of the largest sums in the web industry's recent history? Here are a few reasons.

FCC Announces Plans to Resurrect Net Neutrality, But Challenges Remain Ahead

The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission announced on Wednesday that the FCC would resurrect its Open Internet (i.e., Net Neutrality) rules. But the devil is in the details.

Candy Crush Saga Maker King Announces IPO Plans, But Is It Another Zynga?

The makers of Candy Crush Saga, King, want to cash in for an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, according to a filing the company recently submitted. But despite having a blockbuster hit game, King has a long saga ahead of it, if it doesn't want to get crushed in the market.

Google's Moving Into Latino-Heavy Mission District, SF

The presence of Google (and other tech giants) in the San Francisco Bay Area has already sparked local protests against corporate bussing, gentrification, and rising housing prices - as well as a paranoid anti-tech underground - but Google's latest plans may turn up the heat even more. Google is planning on moving some of its operations into the Latino and immigrant-heavy Mission District.

Bioshock Company Irrational Games Shutting Down: Creator Ken Levine

The company behind Bioshock and Bioshock: Infinite - two of the most critically acclaimed games in a generation - is abruptly closing up shop. Ken Levine, the creative force behind Irrational Games, announced on the company's website on Tuesday that he and a small team from the company are moving on to new projects.

Comcast To Buy Time Warner Cable, Sparking Regulatory and Net Neutrality Concerns

Cable TV and internet giant Comcast has reached a deal to buy cable TV and internet giant Time Warner Cable for around $45.2 billion. The merger, which was announced Thursday but broke late Wednesday, would create a television and internet behemoth the likes of which we've never seen - if it's approved.
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