Flock
Judge Rules Flock Surveillance Images Are Public Records That Can Be Requested By Anyone
A Washington judge said images taken by Flock cameras are "not exempt from disclosure" in public record requests.
News
The PS5’s $200 Pro-Controller Has a Major Problem With Its Grips
Grips on the PS5 DualSense Edge controller are peeling away after normal use, according to 404 Media's own experience and multiple people complaining online.
Adblock
YouTube Says New 5-Second Video Load Delay Is Supposed to Punish Ad Blockers, Not Firefox Users
Firefox users are reporting an 'artificial' load time on YouTube videos. YouTube says it's part of a plan to make people who use adblockers "experience suboptimal viewing, regardless of the browser they are using."
AI
New OpenAI CEO Was a Character in a Harry Potter Fanfic That's Wildly Popular With Effective Altruists
OpenAI interim CEO Emmett Shear says he believes there is a 5-50 percent chance of AI-induced apocalypse.
AI
Bing Generates Disney Logos, Definitely Won’t Incur Disney’s Wrath
Microsoft recently pledged to cover the legal costs of customers who infringe on copyright while using its AI-generated content services.
Behind The Blog
Behind the Blog: The TikTok Letter, Brand Safety, and AI Girlfriends Gone Offline
This week, we discuss the bin Laden TikTok controversy, how brand safety shapes the internet, and Instagram's enforcement of its own rules (or lack thereof).
Music
Has Anyone on the Internet Listened to Garth Brooks’ New Album Released Exclusively on CD Through Bass Pro Shops? An Investigation
The best-selling country music artist of all time released a new album called Time Traveler last week. It is possible to count by hand how many people have posted on the internet about it.
TikTok
TikTok Deletes 404 Media Video About The Guardian Deleting Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’
TikTok is moderating reporting and news about extremism in the exact same way that it moderates actual extremism.
News
Users Can't Speak to Viral AI Girlfriend CarynAI Because CEO Is in Jail for Arson
“CarynAI being down has really caused an uproar within my community,” Caryn Marjorie said.
advertising
Elon Musk Is Making His Advertising Crisis a Problem for Sex Workers
Adult content creators are seeing an influx of "sensitive content" labels on Twitter, which could be tied to the site's newly implemented sensitivity settings for advertisers.
News
Will Instagram Remove This AI Nazi Taylor Swift Image After I Post This Article?
An AI-generated image of Taylor Swift in a Nazi uniform pushing an Jewish person into an oven has been shared by an account with more than 150,000 followers. Time for an experiment.
News
Hackers Use Online Casinos to Gamble Mountains of Cash They Steal from Victims
Members of the wider digital underground, known as The Com, often funnel stolen Bitcoin into a variety of online casinos including Stake, material obtained by 404 Media shows.
Guardian
The Guardian Deletes Osama Bin Laden's 'Letter to America' Because It Went Viral on TikTok
“The transcript published on our website 20 years ago has been widely shared today on social media without its original context. Therefore we have decided to take it down."