The day’s top stories in social media and technology for 4/17 include crowdsourcing the Boston bombings investigation with Reddit and 4Chan, social media’s role in news (when news outlets get the news wrong), another celebrity SWATting, Anonymous hacktivists take on Westboro Baptist Church (and their next move), DDoS and botnets on steroids, a high profile billionaire’s cyberbullying lawsuit, court declines to rule in Wikileaks complaint, the Girl Scouts get a game development badge, and a sneak peek at Star Trek the video game.
Read below for these stories and more.
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Featured Story.
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The Reddit / 4Chan crowdsourcing phenomenon is drawing mixed feelings across the internet.
- Boston Marathon Reddit Threads Spark Debate Over Social Media Detectives
- Hey Reddit, Enough Boston Bombing Vigilantism
- Can Reddit Solve the Boston Bombing? Probably Not.
- Crowdsourcing or witch hunt? Reddit and 4chan users attempt to solve Boston bombing case
- Did 4chan find the Boston Marathon bomber?
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Social Media/Tech Trends, Happenings and Faux Pas.
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The “Guide to the Clusterf**k of misinformation during Wednesday afternoon’s Boston Marathon Bombings news coverage” chart says it all.
Anonymous TV Exec Whines About Twitter Snark After CNN SNAFU
With news outlets increasingly turning to social media, and vice-versa, this is certainly a valid issue.
Separating Social Media’s Fact From Fiction Amid Crisis
British blogger Eliot Higgins, aka Brown Moses, has spent the last year scouring video clips online to track weapons in Syria.
Blogger Who Traced Flow of Arms to Syria Through YouTube Seeks Crowdfunding
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Hoaxes, Harassment and Hacking.
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And the latest SWATting of the day…
‘American Pie’ Star – SWAT Team Swarms House, Alleged Knife Threat
Because sometimes it’s not necessary to hack.
Anonymous ‘brandjacks’ Westboro Baptist Church on Facebook
‘Will the hackers expose more targets in a deadly rape case? Or will they do what the victim’s mother asked, and end their vigilantism?’
Distributed Denial of Service attacks…on steroids.
Fueled by super botnets, DDoS attacks grow meaner and ever-more powerful
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Law and Order.
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Truth really is stranger than fiction.
Billionaire T. Boone Pickens Sues His Son, Alleging ‘Cyberbullying’
‘A military appeals court on Wednesday declined to rule on a lawsuit seeking greater access for journalists to court filings and proceedings in the criminal case against Pfc. Bradley Manning,’ citing lack of jurisdiction.
Court Declines to Rule in Wikileaks Complaint
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Gamer-land.
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Girl gamers in the making: ‘Aim is to get the scouts interested in engineering and software development…will be part of the Girl Scout’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) curriculum.’
Girl Scouts to award badge for video game development
Star Trek: The Video Game is available April 23, while “Star Trek Into Darkness” hits theaters on May 15.
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