The indictment of 13 Russians for interfering with the Presidential election has intensified the pressure put on Facebook, which uncovered about three-thousand Russian-linked ads on its platforms before and after November 2016. Cheddar Senior Reporter, Alex Heath, breaks down the the latest developments.
Facebook's Vice President for ads, Rob Goldman, tweeted about Russia's disinformation effort. President Trump then cited him. Facebook did not intend for Goldman’s tweets to be quoted by Trump. They thought the tweets would only be seen by a contextually-aware audience of techies and media types who follow Goldman.
Heath believes that the tweeting from Goldman and other execs is part of a carefully orchestrated PR campaign by Facebook to make itself appear more transparent and relate-able through engaged spokespeople on Twitter.
Rather than making the difficult decision to delete offensive tweets, the social media platform is tweaking its algorithm to suppress negative tweets based on how often the account has been flagged or muted by other users. Digiday's Kerry Flynn says the move plays into the company's strategy to promote "healthy" conversations.
The company, which is known for creating streaming hardware devices, has shifted gears to focus on growing its streaming services business. That unit, which generated more revenue than hardware for the first time in the latest quarter, now has 21 million active accounts.
More companies are offering TV streaming options, known as over-the-top (OTT), as viewership and ad dollars shift away from traditional cable TV. "There are just different audiences who want to interact with video and entertainment in different ways," said Richard Au, U.S. director of Amazon's over-the-top TV service.
The cryptocurrency trading platform launched four new products Tuesday, including a secure storage space for crypto assets. Eric Scro, Coinbase's vice president of finance, told Cheddar what was behind the launch.
The Seattle City Council passed a new law that will require companies making more than $20 million a year to pay a 'head tax.' Amazon and other Seattle-based companies will pay a tax of 14 cents per employee per hour worked, which comes out to roughly $275 per employee each year. The tax will raise money for affordable housing since home prices have risen recently in Seattle. In response, Amazon's vice president said this move "forces us to question our growth here." A Starbucks exec criticized the city for spending "without reforming and fail[ing] without accountability."
A number of top Tesla executives have left the company in the past few months. Aaron Cole, managing editor at Motor Authority, joins us to discuss whether investors should be worried that this 'drain brain' will have negative consequences for the electric carmaker. The company is ramping up production to meet its ambitious Model 3 targets.
Cheddar's Brad Smith speaks with Joe Gibbs, Pro Football Hall of Famer and owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, at a special event outside the New York Stock Exchange celebrating Stanley Black & Decker's 175th anniversary. Gibbs talks about how NASCAR is focusing on expanding its digital outreach to reach a younger audience. He also weighs in on the Supreme Court's decision to reverse a ban on sports gambling.
Facebook could use blockchain technology to flip its business model, giving its users control of how their data is used, says Joseph Lubin, the founder of Ethereum. Facebook announced earlier this month that it will explore blockchain technology, and Cheddar reported the social media company may create its own cryptocurrency.
Rideshare companies won't switch to autonomous cars for "some time to come," because it could lower the price of a ride, which could actually increase demand, says Harry Campbell, a longtime Uber and Lyft driver who is better known as The Rideshare Guy.
The decentralized ledger, which powers cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, is being "oversold," says Jimmy Song, Bitcoin developer and entrepreneur. The technology is often touted as a silver bullet that will upgrade several industries, but that "hype and promise" has yet to be proven. On the flip side, Song is bullish on Bitcoin, which he says has stood the test of time.
The company wants developers and entrepreneurs to build products that use its XRP cryptocurrency and digital ledger. As Ripple is working on ways to facilitate international transactions, "there's lots of other stuff you can do with XRP, and we want to help other people do that," says Cory Johnson, the chief market strategist at Ripple.
The social media site, once seen as the anti-LinkedIn, now wants to help its users share skills and job pitches with hiring managers, says Francesca de Quesada Covey, Facebook's head of jobs and service partnerships.
