Catchword Branding’s Post

Such a pleasure being a panellist with brilliant scholars Dr. Shyam Krishna and Abdullah Safir at the Data Colonialism Dialogues Conference organised by wonderful colleagues at the University of Cambridge, Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, and O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU): Kerry McInerney, PhD, Sagnik Dutta, @SurushiMazumdar and @RuchiraSen. My presentation was titled “De/ceiving Algorithms: Resis-ting Social Media Cen/sorship in Arabic-Speaking Communities.” It explored the linguistic resist-ance tactics practised by Arab users and activists to evade censorship imposed by Facebook on Arabic content. This presentation is based on a paper co-authored with Mohamed A. Nasef. Web Scraping was used to scrap approximately three and a half million Facebook posts containing words believed by their writers to be banned by Facebook (resist/ance words). Users altered the usual linguistic format of these words using various methods. The results of this scraping revealed that Arab users employed seven basic techniques (resist-ance techniques) to dec/eive Facebook algorithms, the most interesting of which is the technique of removing dots from letters (Dotlessness), returning to the old form of Arabic script before dots and diacritics were added in later periods. The results also revealed that the most commonly used resist/ance word is  “fl/oo/d." طوfان My presentation is available here: https://lnkd.in/dG3eWmBN Credits: This presentation was recorded by the conference organizers. The livestreaming is available here: https://lnkd.in/dDM5te5b #AI #datacolonialism #Arabic #naturallanguageprocessing #Socialmedia #Resistance #digitalcolonialism #censorship #Arabicalphabet #Arabiccontent

'Brain Rot' is the word of the year 2024 named as such by the Oxford University Press. The term was first used by Henry David Thoreau in 1854, but now refers to low-quality, low-value content found on social media and its effect. How befitting this description is especially for Pakistani nation of today? Read the details in this article https://lnkd.in/dSa3x-NH

📱Breaking the Algorithm: The Rise of 'Algospeak' 🔍 In today’s information overload, important global issues often get overlooked because of algorithmic bias. To navigate this, people are creating a new coded language called algospeak to avoid censorship on social media. 🌍 From clever phrases to creative hashtags, this language helps keep conversations about human rights active. 🔗Want to learn more about how algospeak is changing how we discuss important topics? Read the full blog post here:

Why is #FakeNews seemingly everywhere? This brief scientific journal discusses how social media comments distort societies’ perception. Explore how and why polarization, intergroup hostility, science denial, and more are more prevalent than neutral and nuanced perspectives.

Old School Wisdom: Do good and dump it in the ocean. Modern AI Twist: Do good, snap a selfie, and post it on LinkedIn!" Or "Classic Virtue: Do good deeds without seeking fame. Social Media Remix: Do good, share it on LinkedIn, and get 1000 likes!" Your words cleverly highlight the contrast between humble, genuine kindness and today's social media-driven culture.

Language didn’t just let us talk; it made us human. With it, we could scale social bonds, share knowledge, and build trust. This “social glue” unlocked human progress, paving the way for communities, cultures, and civilizations. Fast-forward to today: we’re drowning in connections and constant communication, yet feel more isolated than ever. Why? Our brains are still wired for Dunbar’s Number - 148 meaningful relationships. Digital platforms sell us on endless “friends” and followers, but they can’t scale the depth of real connections. The next frontier? Figuring out how to use tech to do what language did in the first place: build connections that stick. If we want social media to be more than a dopamine slot machine, we need quality over quantity. Maybe then, we can use technology not to drown each other out, but to reconnect with what language was meant for: understanding and belonging. #HumanConnection #DigitalTransformation #LanguageAndCulture #DunbarsNumber #TechnologyAndSociety

Exploring the Impact of Social Media on Antisemitism: Our Project Journey 📈 Our most recent project explored the complex influence of social media on antisemitism. The topic resonates deeply with us as Israelis, as we have experienced how quickly hateful rhetoric that is so personal to our culture can spread online.  To identify antisemitic tweets, we applied LSTM models to binary-classified posts. Our main focus is improving the accuracy of our model, but thinking about future developments, such as an online model that could collect and analyze data in real-time to address these problems, would be very exciting to us. Lior Aftabi, Rotem Amir, Noa Yeshayahu

Knowing where your content is coming from is key in making informed choices on what to believe. Our universal bio tool shows who the author of the content is within seconds of it appearing online. Every social media user should have access to this information to help them make better choices on the content they interact with. It's even more important around election times when disinformation can do so much damage. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/e8gpeBFT #disinformation #verification #authentication #journalism

🧠 Today feels like a good day to share this. For those who don’t know, I’m a fan of etymology. One of my favorite early classes at the University of Michigan is still with me today. Sure, it’s a bit niche, but etymology is like a window into philosophy, culture, and understanding—a standout discipline that ties directly to the present milieu, no matter the era. 🚨 Word of the Year: #BrainRot (technically two words) Most serious cultural critics hate lists—especially year-end ones. But hey, we all know they draw clicks. 🤷♂️ So, it’s a little ironic that the Oxford folks picked Brain Rot as their Word of the Year to fuel shares, posts, and engagements... kinda like this one. 📚 Why We Love Lists (and Maybe Brain Rot, Too) It’s no secret that many of us (ahem 👀) are drawn to year-end trends and lists. 👉 Side rec: High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. If you know, you know. As the NYT article pointed out, Thoreau first used Brain Rot in Walden. Feels fitting for today’s vibe. On the flip side, it doesn’t feel all that different from when my parents lamented my “wasted” time in front of the "idiot box" — after-school specials, Saturday morning cartoons, early MTV... sigh. 😅 🤔 A Few Thoughts to Chew On: * Has #media turned into a list-mongering machine? 🗂️. My X-feed says so. * Is #BrainRot real? Is it from #doomscrolling or insert your favorite Reality TV show here? 📺 * From a #neuro perspective, why do we crave #brainrot content if it’s supposedly rotting our brains? Seems like a pretty big contrast to basic survival instincts. 🧠 NewsWhip #media #mrxjobs #bsci https://lnkd.in/ebNrWYFN

In 2024, the term ‘brain rot’ has gone from being a quirky social media buzzword to something we’re seeing in mainstream journalism—because, let’s face it, even the news loves a trendy label. Originally a REALS favorite among Gen Z and Gen Alpha (a.k.a. the pros at doom-scrolling and meme-sharing), brain rot now feels like a perfect term for what happens when you spend too much time consuming cat videos, conspiracy theories, and “life hacks” that require 37 steps to peel an orange. It’s a double whammy: the term covers both the junk food content itself (think: endless reaction videos) and the mental hangover it leaves behind. Whether it’s your attention span shriveling up or your productivity running away faster than you after hearing “We need to circle back,” brain rot is basically the junk drawer of the internet’s side effects. Let’s admit it, we’ve all been there—watching one too many “funny fails” until our brains decide to fail us too. It’s like a cheat day for your mind, except instead of ice cream, you’ve consumed 12 hours of low-value content. The digital age is wild, isn’t it? #BrainRot #DigitalDetox #SocialMediaOverload #MindfulScrolling #ContentOverload #DigitalWellness #StayFocused #AttentionEconomy #QualityOverQuantity #HumorInTheHustle #madhurdubey https://lnkd.in/ge9fyQDR