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Welcome to Hillicon Valley, The Hill's newsletter detailing all you need to know about the tech and cyber news from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley. If you don’t already, be sure to sign up for our newsletter by clicking HERE.Welcome! Follow our cyber reporter, Maggie Miller (@magmill95), and tech team, Chris Mills Rodrigo (@chrisismills) and Rebecca Klar (@rebeccaklar_), for more coverage.Parler said it will be back in the Apple App Store this week with approved changes, but those updates may come with the risk of losing the platform’s base users over accusations of selling out to Big Tech and losing its pro-free speech model. Speaking of free speech, a high schooler’s Snapchat about failing to make the varsity cheerleading team is at the center of a crucial First Amendment Supreme Court case. And pressure is mounting for Google to take action in line with its public statements on race, with a civil rights organization calling on the company to conduct a racial equity audit. PARLER’S UNCERTAIN PATH FORWARD: Parler is returning to Apple’s App Store after making some changes demanded by the company, but the social media platform popular with conservatives is facing accusations of selling out to Big Tech and…

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Westside High School officials said Wednesday that they are looking into a Snapchat image posted by a student who said it was a re-enactment of George Floyd’s killing.In the image shared to a private Snapchat group, a Westside High student is shown kneeling on another student’s neck with text incentivizing sharing their “@” with — or tagging — the user.School officials said both students involved were willing participants who “made a very poor choice,” according to letters sent to students and families from Principal Jay Opperman and Robert Aranda, director of student services.“They did not have ill intent,” the letter states.Administrators also notified Omaha Police of the incident, according to the letter.Good morning,We want to make you aware of an investigation taking place at Westside High School involving a concerning and disturbing social media post. A picture shows a Westside High student, inside school, kneeling on another student’s neck. All have indicated they were willing participants and no one was hurt. From our discussions with these students, their intention was to reenact the George Floyd event after seeing something online, but they said that they did not have ill intent; they made a very poor choice…

On Wednesday, the company finally provided some details on how it's using WhatsApp to drive ad sales on its other platforms, Facebook (FB) and Instagram.Businesses that use WhatsApp to communicate with customers and conduct transactions — a group considered key to the app's future — have since 2017 been able to purchase ads on Facebook and Instagram that include a button allowing users to switch to WhatsApp and initiate a conversation with that business. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Wednesday there are now 1 million businesses using those "click to WhatsApp" ads. It's also launching a new feature: business users will now be able to start creating such advertisements directly from WhatsApp Business app, which wasn't possible before, making the ad buying process more seamless. Zuckerberg made the announcement on Facebook's earnings call for the first quarter of 2021. The company reported total quarterly advertising sales of $25.4 billion, up 46% from the same period in the prior year. It posted earnings per share of $3.30, up 93% year-over-year, on revenue of nearly $26.2 billion. Wall Street analysts had projected revenue of $23.7 billion. The strong results come despite a slew of issues Facebook faced during the quarter, including fallout from…

A woman who grilled passengers about their race on a train last week has had both her YouTube channel and employment as a property agent terminated. In a post on Facebook on Tuesday, Knight Frank Singapore said the woman's conduct was brought to its attention earlier this week and it has terminated her services. "One of Knight Frank's core values is to be a responsible business to people and the community," it said. "The company maintains zero tolerance for hate speech and racism that threaten the foundations on which Singapore is built." The woman, an associate with the company, has also been delisted from the Council for Estate Agencies' public register. In a statement to The Straits Times yesterday, YouTube said the woman's channel was removed due to violations of its harassment and cyber bullying policies. "We have strict policies that prohibit harassment on YouTube, including content that maliciously insults someone based on their race, gender expression, or sexual orientation," said its spokesman. "We quickly remove content that violates these policies when flagged." YouTube removed over 100,000 videos in Singapore between October and December last year, based on its Transparency Report. The channel that was removed had 29 video uploads,…

The Supreme Court is considering a case that could determine the extent of First Amendment rights for millions of students nationwide. The case stems from a lawsuit filed by the parents of a high school cheerleader who was punished by her school for a profanity-laced series of Snapchats in 2017. Justin Driver, a professor at Yale Law School and the author of "The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind," joins CBSN to discuss the impact this case could have.Video TranscriptTANYA RIVERO: The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments in a case that could determine the extent of First Amendment rights for roughly 50 million students nationwide. The case stems from a lawsuit filed by the parents of a high school cheerleader punished by her school for a profanity-laced series of Snapchat posts in 2017. Brandi Levy, who was 14 at the time, sent a picture on Snapchat to roughly 250 friends after failing to make the varsity cheer team.A fellow cheerleader took a screenshot of the messages, which are generally deleted after 24 hours. She showed them to one of the coaches, resulting in Levi's temporary removal from the junior…

Juan Joya Borja, also known as “El Risitas,” has died in Seville, Spain, according to ABC Seville. He was 65 years old. On Twitch, he was known as the face of the “KEKW” emote. He was also known for his signature laugh, which came from a 2007 interview in which he was sharing an anecdote. In the interview, Risitas tells a hilarious story about his first day working at a restaurant by the ocean. He spins a yarn about moldy pans being left for the salty ocean to clean. He tied the pans to a stick by the ocean, but when he got there to open in the morning, only one of the 20 pans remained. The tide had risen and swept the rest out to sea. His uproarious laughter and facial expressions sent the clip viral on Reddit in 2014. Eventually, the clip’s popularity and the parodies made of it led to his face being used for the “KEKW” emote, which is used in comedic moments. El Risitas was reportedly admitted to the Virgen del Rocío Hospital in Seville for an illness and passed away this afternoon. He had been in a hospital since September 2020 and allegedly suffered…

WASHINGTON — A wary Supreme Court on Wednesday weighed whether public schools can discipline students for things they say off campus, worrying about overly restricting speech on the one hand and leaving educators powerless to deal with bullying on the other. The justices, hearing arguments in the case of a 14-year-old high school freshman’s Snapchat F-bombs, struggled to fit the need to protect students’ political and religious expression with the ability of schools to get at disruptive, even potentially dangerous, speech that occurs outside the school setting. In one of many examples members of the court offered, Justice Elena Kagan described boys who keep a sexually charged online ranking of girls based on their looks. “You can’t put people in jail for commenting on people’s appearance, but shouldn’t a school be able to deal with it?” Kagan asked. The court tested out possible outcomes in the case of the student’s profanity-laced social media rant , which Justice Brett Kavanaugh described as her blowing off steam just like “millions of kids” do. Kavanaugh is one of several justices who have children in high school, or recently did. The court heard just under two hours of arguments by telephone because of the…

All of the channels associated with EDP445 and Chet Goldstein have been removed from YouTube. The Chet channel posted a video alleging that EDP445 had sexual conversations with a minor. Alex Rosen, who ran Chet Goldstein, has a history of controversial content. Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. YouTube has taken down the channels belonging to Bryan Moreland, known online as EDP445, and Alex Rosen, who ran the Chet Goldstein channel.The actions, which occurred at the same time, came after Rosen claimed in a video that Moreland had sent sexual messages and images to a decoy posing as a 13-year-old girl. On Monday, the Chet Goldstein channel posted an hour-long "sting" video where Rosen and fellow predator hunter Ghost, who runs the channel CC Unit, approached Moreland in Bakersfield, California. Rosen's video at least made it seem like Moreland thought he was going to meet up with a 13-year-old girl. That video went viral, pulling in over two million views.Moreland, who had built up an audience making videos and ranting about the Philadelphia Eagles, has disappeared from social media since the videos went viral. The Bakersfield Sheriff's Department told a local ABC affiliate news station on April 22 that the "video's…

This press release was orginally distributed by SBWireEdison, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/28/2021 -- Latest added Global Short Video Platforms Market research study by HTF MI offers detailed product outlook and elaborates market review 2021-2026. The market Study is segmented by key regions that is accelerating the marketization. At present, the market is sharping its presence and some of the key players in the study are Tencent (Weishi), Beijing Wei Ran Internet Technology, Doupai, Vimeo, Facebook (Instagram), Meipai, ByteDance (Toutiao), Kuaishou, YIXIA, SNOW( B612) & Snapchat etc. The study is a perfect mix of qualitative and quantitative Market data collected and validated majorly through primary data and secondary sources.Get Sample Pages PDF with Latest Figures @: https://www.htfmarketreport.com/sample-report/3244037-global-short-video-platforms-market-4This report studies the Global Short Video Platforms market size, industry status and forecast, competition landscape and growth opportunity. This research report categorizes the Global Short Video Platforms market by companies, region, type and end-use industry. Scroll down 100s of data Tables, charts and graphs spread through Pages and in-depth Table of Content on " Short Video Platforms Market by Type (Live and Video & Video), by End-Users/Application (Personal Entertainment, Public Performance & Others) and Region - Forecast to 2026". Early buyers will get…

“Live Streaming Pay-Per-View Market is growing at a 28.05% CAGR during the forecast period 2020-2026. The increasing interest of the individuals in this industry is that the major reason for the expansion of this market”. Live streaming pay-per-view is a video hosting service that allows broadcasters to upload and broadcast videos in real-time on a paid basis. In the last few years, the market has gained significant traction due to a rising number of companies focusing on collaboration strategies to expand their offerings in the market. As the competition is growing in the video streaming market, the companies are focusing on partnerships to expand to new markets. Live Streaming Pay-Per-View Market research report is the new statistical data source added by A2Z Market Research. Get the Sample PDF Copy (Including FULL TOC, Graphs and Tables) of this report: www.a2zmarketresearch.com/sample?reportId=386413 Note – In order to provide more accurate market forecast, all our reports will be updated before delivery by considering the impact of COVID-19. Live Streaming Pay-Per-View Market research is an intelligence report with meticulous efforts undertaken to study the right and valuable information. The data which has been looked upon is done considering both, the existing top players and the upcoming competitors. Business…