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Now THAT is how you join Instagram.

Bill Belichick, the longtime Patriots coach who famously never said anything interesting in public for like three decades, just joined Instagram — sorry, Instaface — in the absolute most chaotic way possible. The cuts! The dad jokes! The second slide!

Can’t help but notice Tom Brady hasn’t followed him yet.


Threads is getting ads sooner or later — here’s what they might look like.

Meta told TechCrunch it’s not actually testing ads in Threads yet, but it’s getting more underpinnings in place — now including this “Sponsored” badge that might appear next to an advertiser’s (or sponsored creator’s) username. It was spotted by developer Alessandro Paluzzi.

Threads boss Adam Mosseri confirmed in April that ads are coming; last we heard, it might not be till next year.


Spot the “Sponsored” label.
Spot the “Sponsored” label.
Image: Alessandro Paluzzi (Threads)
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Meta still has a drug problem.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Facebook and Instagram are still running ads that promote online marketplaces for illegal drugs — including cocaine, hallucinogens, and prescription opioids — months after the publication first noted that Meta was facing a federal investigation for doing so.

Meta says it will continue working with law enforcement, and will “invest resources and further improve our enforcement” to combat this type of activity.


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Teen sextortion.

Casey Newton shines a light on the increasingly common social media scam that primarily targets teen boys in his most recent Platformer newsletter:

But when a terrifying scam comes along that has led to at least 20 confirmed deaths in the past two years, a whole stack of investigations can’t seem to get a conversation going. [...] Perhaps the surgeon general, instead of his new ham-fisted campaign against every risk that social media presents, could warn parents about this one.


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Just how complicit is Mark Zuckerberg?

Because we often wonder how much a CEO actually knows about the goings on of their company—particularly when a large company like Meta has is being sued by dozens of Attorneys General over its policies around underage users.

It turns out Zuckerberg may have had a very direct hand in crafting policies that targeted children and exacerbated issues with body image on Meta’s platforms, at least according to a new report from the New York Times


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Where did the viral “All eyes on Rafah” image come from?

Two people from Malaysia both say they used Microsoft Image Creator to produce the graphic in support of Palestinians.

It’s been shared over 50 million times now, and now NPR has spoken to both of them: Zila Abka, who months ago posted the version found by 404 Media on Facebook, and Amirul Shah, who shared the now-viral Instagram template.


Composite image of two AI-generated images with the words “All Eyes on Rafah” surrounded by tents.
Image: Zila Abka (left), Amirul Shah (right)
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You may be able to opt into early Instagram features soon.

Meta’s platform is prepping a new settings menu item called “Early access to features” according to a screenshot posted by mobile developer Alessandro Paluzzio.


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If you are Mark Zuckerberg’s stylist please contact me immediately.

I’m at [email protected]. Thanks!


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Meta’s Oversight board is getting smaller.

An unknown number of “targeted cuts” are coming to staffers who support the 22-member board that polices the world’s largest social media network. Launched in 2019, Meta has contributed $280 million to keep the board operational through 2025... which is a lot for a company that just emerged from its “year of efficiency.


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The EU is preparing to investigate Meta’s handling of disinformation.

According to Financial Times, regulators are concerned that Meta isn’t doing enough to stifle disinformation being seeded by countries like Russia in order to undermine EU elections.

Officials reportedly also believe Meta’s process for flagging illegal content isn’t “user-friendly enough to comply with the EU Digital Services Act.” The probe would apparently begin today.