The tumult began in early January 2021 for social media companies. The attack on the U.S. Capitol led Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to kick off then-President Donald Trump. Throughout the year, they were challenged to stop the spread of baseless claims about the 2020 presidential election, as well as harmful vaccine misinformation.
Facebook had to respond to a whistleblower's revelations, just when it wanted to turn everyone's attention to the "metaverse." Twitter's eccentric CEO abruptly left, handing the company, as well as its ambitions to create a new version of social media, over to a little-known deputy. The Trump administration's attempt to ban TikTok over national security concerns fizzled, allowing the Chinese-owned app to cement its hold as the defining driver of youth culture.
It's fair to say social media apps were at the center of politics and society in 2021, and not always for the better. And yet, many thrived financially, reporting record profits.
So what will 2022 bring? Here are four areas to watch this year.
If members of Congress agree on one thing, it's that the tech giants are too big and too powerful. (On Monday, Apple became the first publicly traded company to be worth $3 trillion.)
But the agreement stops there. Democrats want laws that force tech companies to take down more harmful content. Republicans say the platforms censor conservative views, despite...
; ; ; agreed to pay $17.07 million to settle federal allegations of illegal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) hiring practices on Friday, marking the Justice Department's first resolution unde...