SOCIAL
Europe is cracking down on Big Tech. This is what will change when you sign on

LONDON (AP) — Starting Friday, Europeans will see their online life change.
People in the 27-nation European Union can alter some of what shows up when they search, scroll and share on the biggest social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Facebook and other tech giants like Google and Amazon.
That’s because Big Tech companies, most headquartered in the U.S., are now subject to a pioneering new set of EU digital regulations. The Digital Services Act aims to protect European users when it comes to privacy, transparency and removal of harmful or illegal content.
Here are five things that will change when you sign on:
YOU CAN TURN OFF AI-RECOMMENDED VIDEOS
Automated recommendation systems decide, based on people’s profiles, what they see in their feeds. Those can be switched off.
Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, said users can opt out of its artificial intelligence ranking and recommendation systems that determine which Instagram Reels, Facebook Stories and search results to show. Instead, people can choose to view content only from people they follow, starting with the newest posts.
Search results will be based only on the words they type, not personalized based on a user’s previous activity and interests, Meta President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg said in a blog post.
On TikTok, instead of being shown videos based on what users previously viewed, the “For You” feed will serve up popular videos from their area and around the world.
Turning off recommender systems also means the video-sharing platform’s “Following” and “Friends” feeds will show posts from accounts users follow in chronological order.
Those on Snapchat “can opt out of a personalised content experience.”
Algorithmic recommendation systems based on user profiles have been blamed for creating so-called filter bubbles and pushing social media users to increasingly extreme posts. The European Commission wants users to have at least one other option for content recommendations that’s not based on profiling.
IT’S EASIER TO FLAG HARMFUL CONTENT
Users should find it easier to report a post, video or comment that breaks the law or violates a platform’s rules so that it can be reviewed and taken down if required.
TikTok has started giving users an “additional reporting option” for content, including advertising, that they believe is illegal. To pinpoint the problem, people can choose from categories such as hate speech and harassment, suicide and self-harm, misinformation or frauds and scams.
The app by Chinese parent company ByteDance has added a new team of moderators and legal specialists to review videos flagged by users, alongside automated systems and existing moderation teams that already work to identify such material.
Facebook and Instagram’s existing tools for reporting content are “easier for people to access,” said Meta’s Clegg, without providing more details.
YOU’LL KNOW WHY YOUR POST WAS TAKEN DOWN
The EU wants platforms to be more transparent about how they operate.
So, TikTok says European users will get more information “about a broader range of content moderation decisions.”
“For example, if we decide a video is ineligible for recommendation because it contains unverified claims about an election that is still unfolding, we will let users know,” TikTok said. “We will also share more detail about these decisions, including whether the action was taken by automated technology, and we will explain how both content creators and those who file a report can appeal a decision.”
Google said it’s “expanding the scope” of its transparency reports by giving more information about how it handles content moderation for more of its services, including Search, Maps, Shopping and Play Store, without providing more details.
YOU CAN REPORT FAKE PRODUCTS
The DSA is not just about policing content. It’s also aimed at stopping the flow of counterfeit Gucci handbags, pirated Nike sneakers and other dodgy goods.
Amazon says it has set up a new channel for reporting suspected illegal products and content and also is providing more publicly available information about third-party merchants.
The online retail giant said it invests “significantly in protecting our store from bad actors, illegal content and in creating a trustworthy shopping experience. We have built on this strong foundation for DSA compliance.”
Online fashion marketplace Zalando is setting up flagging systems, though it downplays the threat posed by its highly curated collection of designer clothes, bags and shoes.
“Customers only see content produced or screened by Zalando,” the German company said. “As a result, we have close to zero risk of illegal content and are therefore in a better position than many other companies when it comes to implementing the DSA changes.”
YOUR KIDS WON’T BE TARGETED WITH DIGITAL ADS
Brussels wants to crack down on digital ads aimed at children over concerns about privacy and manipulation. Some platforms already started tightening up ahead of Friday’s deadline, even beyond Europe.
TikTok said in July that it was restricting the types of data used to show ads to teens. Users who are 13 to 17 in the EU, plus Britain, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein no longer see ads “based on their activities on or off TikTok.”
It’s doing the same in the U.S. for 13- to 15-year-olds.
Snapchat is restricting personalized and targeted advertising to users under 18.
Meta in February stopped showing Facebook and Instagram users who are 13 to 17 ads based on their activity, such as following certain Instagram posts or Facebook pages. Now, age and location are the only data points advertisers can use to show ads to teens.
SOCIAL
Gaza and Instagram make an explosive mix in Hollywood

Gal Gadot regularly posts demands for the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza – Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File Drew Angerer
Audrey Pilon-Topkara
Hollywood celebrities are paying the price for taking sides in the Gaza war — plastering their social media accounts with slogans such as “Free Palestine” or “I stand with Israel”.
Israeli actress Gal Gadot, best known for starring in “Wonder Woman”, has expressed unyielding support for her country since October 7, when Hamas fighters burst out of Gaza, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 240 hostage, according to Israeli officials.
“I stand with Israel, you should too,” she declared to her 109 million Instagram followers.
She has continued to regularly publish or share posts demanding that Hamas release the civilians it is holding — earning her both approval and criticism.
“While you’re at it, can you use your platform to share all the missing and killed innocent Palestinians too?” a user on X, formerly Twitter, wrote in response to one of her posts.
In reprisal for the October 7 attacks, Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip and launched a ground invasion, killing more than 17,000 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Hamas government.
The Instagram account of American model Gigi Hadid, who is of Palestinian descent and followed by 79 million, has spent less attention on fashion in recent weeks.
She cited the “systemic mistreatment of the Palestinian people by the government of Israel”.
“Stop spreading lies. You and your sisters are antisemitic,” said one comment, with many others expressing similar views.
Famous stars can generate equally strong admiration and repulsion from the public, especially if they comment on divisive issues.
Well before social media, boxer Muhammad Ali, the actor Jane Fonda and singer Bob Dylan were adored or hated over their opposition to the Vietnam War.
More recently the actors Ben Stiller, Angelina Jolie and Sean Penn showed their support for Ukraine by visiting the country, in moves that were approved by most of their Western fans.
– Insults –
But the Israel-Palestinian issue is more divisive than most, exposing celebrities to even fiercer backlashes.
Kylie Jenner, the half-sister of socialite Kim Kardashian, shared a pro-Israeli post with her 399 million Instagram followers shortly after October 7, which according to US media she deleted an hour later after being hit with insults.
The Oscar-winning actor Susan Sarandon was dropped by her talent agency in November for comments she made at a pro-Palestinian rally, for which she later apologised.
Melissa Barrera, star of the fifth and sixth instalments of the “Scream” franchise, was cut from the cast of the seventh by the producers, who said they had “zero tolerance for anti-Semitism and incitement to hatred”.
The Mexican had denounced what she called “ethnic cleansing” in Gaza.
Celebrities who take sides in the conflict have “a lot to lose and little to gain”, said Nicolas Vanderbiest, founder of the public relations firm Saper Vedere in Brussels.
Producers and sponsors have little appetite for mixing geopolitics and business, he said.
In this issue, two “extremely organised” communities are on the lookout, creating a “herd affect”, Vanderbiest added.
Tom Cruise prevented his own agent from losing her job after she had referred to “genocide” on her Instagram account, according to the cinema trade press.
Celebrities could just stay quiet, but with this conflict there is “pressure to pronounce” and no immunity from criticism, said Jamil Jean-Marc Dakhlia, a professor of information and communication at Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris.
“Silence is seen as taking a position,” Dakhlia said. “So we are in a situation where you are forced to take sides, and not necessarily with much nuance.”
American singer and actor Selena Gomez, with 429 million Instagram followers, has been criticised for not taking a stronger stance on the issue.
Along with hundreds of others, including Hadid, singer Jennifer Lopez and actor Joaquin Phoenix, she took a middle road, signing a petition calling for a ceasefire and the safe release of hostages.
Earlier, hundreds of celebrities, including Gadot, had signed an open letter thanking US President Joe Biden for supporting “the Jewish people” and calling for the release of all hostages held by Hamas.
Very few signed both.
SOCIAL
More than 10 million people have signed up for X in December, CEO says By Reuters

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: ‘X’ logo is seen on the top of the headquarters of the messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, in downtown San Francisco, California, U.S., July 30, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
(Reuters) – More than 10 million people have signed up for X in December, X CEO Linda Yaccarino said in a post on the social media platform on Thursday.
This comes as the company, formerly known as Twitter, risks losing as much $75 million in advertising revenue by the end of the year as major brands pause their marketing campaigns on the platform, according to the New York Times.
X, which does not regularly release user data, could not immediately be reached for comment on how the December sign-ups compared to average or why Yaccarino disclosed the figure. Billionaire owner Elon Musk said in July the site had 540 million monthly users.
Several companies, including Apple (NASDAQ:), Disney, Warner Bros Discovery , Comcast (NASDAQ:), Lions Gate Entertainment , Paramount Global, and IBM (NYSE:) said in November they were pausing their advertisements on X.
Musk cursed advertisers that fled the platform after he agreed with a user who falsely claimed Jewish people were stoking hatred against white people.
A report from watchdog group Media Matters found ads from major companies next to X posts that supported Nazism. The platform filed a lawsuit in late November against Media Matters accusing it of defamation.
SOCIAL
New Guide Highlights Key Considerations for Effective TikTok Ads

Looking to make TikTok a bigger focus of your marketing effort in 2024?
This will help. TikTok recently partnered with creator intelligence platform CreatorIQ to conduct an analysis of the key factors that make for a resonant TikTok promotion, culminating in a 26-page report which covers a range of key notes and tips for your planning.
You can download CreatorIQ’s full TikTok ads guide here, but in this post, we’ll look at some of the key notes.
The report is broken up into five key pillars of TikTok ads creation, which echo much of the best advice that’s been shared for the platform over time.
CreatorIQ’s five key TikTok marketing notes are:
- Grab attention from the start
- Foster a personal connection
- Show your product in action
- Use high-impact creative elements
- Close with a clear call to action
For each of these elements, the guide digs deeper into how to enact them, and the critical considerations of each, including stats on effectiveness:
Tips on TikTok-specific trends and tools:

As well as case study examples to underline each point:

It’s a handy overview, with a range of valuable notes, though the main finding, above all of the creative pointers and advice, is that established creators perform better for TikTok promotions.
As per CreatorIQ:
“The report found that creators overwhelmingly make the best-performing TikTok ads, with recommendations carrying more weight than traditional brand advertisements and celebrity spokespeople. In fact, after watching a creator-driven Spark Ad, 57% of TikTok community members say the creator is trustworthy, 56% say they can trust the brand because the creator shared it, and 71% say creator authenticity led them to buy a product.”
So while there are a heap of practical notes and pointers for increasing the resonance of your in-app promotions – like this:

The key point of emphasis is that creators make better TikToks, and thus, better ads, so partnering with relevant influencers in your niche is still likely a better way to go.
Some good considerations, and some valuable, data-backed tips, which could help to get your TikTok promotion plan on the right track in the new year.
You can download CreatorIQ’s full TikTok marketing report here.
-
SEO7 days ago
GPT Store Set To Launch In 2024 After ‘Unexpected’ Delays
-
SEARCHENGINES7 days ago
Google Core Update Done Followed By Intense Search Volatility, New Structured Data, Google Ads Head Steps Down & 20 Years Covering Search
-
MARKETING7 days ago
The Complete Guide to Becoming an Authentic Thought Leader
-
PPC7 days ago
How to Get Clients for Your Agency (That You’ll Love Working With)
-
SEARCHENGINES6 days ago
Google Discover Showing Older Content Since Follow Feature Arrived
-
WORDPRESS2 days ago
8 Best Zapier Alternatives to Automate Your Website
-
MARKETING6 days ago
OpenAI’s Drama Should Teach Marketers These 2 Lessons
-
MARKETING5 days ago
How Does Success of Your Business Depend on Choosing Type of Native Advertising?