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This weekly blog is to explore the news around the larger issues around Digital Health, data security, data privacy, AI / ML. technology, social media and related matters.
I will also try to highlight ADHA Propaganda when I come upon it.
Just so we keep count, the latest Notes from the ADHA Board were dated 6 December, 2018 and we have seen none since! Its pretty sad!
Note: Appearance here is not to suggest I see any credibility or value in what follows. I will leave it to the reader to decide what is worthwhile and what is not! The point is to let people know what is being said / published that I have come upon.
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Google, Facebook to fight media bargaining code in Senate
6:33AM January 16, 2021
Executives from Google and Facebook are set to front a Senate committee hearing on Friday, as debate around the contentious mandatory media bargaining code reaches fever pitch.
Google this week said it was burying links from traditional media outlets in some search results, in an escalation of the dispute between mainstream publishers and the tech giant. The company has described the actions as an “experiment”, and just one of tens of thousands it conducted every year.
World-first media bargaining legislation was introduced to parliament late last year, which would force the tech giants into mediation with publishers over the value of their news, and hit them with fines of up to $10m if they fail to comply.
The code has widespread support across the political spectrum and Google’s “experiment’’ has attracted strong political criticism. The Greens slammed Google’s hiding Australian news content in its search engine for some users as a “scaremongering tactic” while Opposition communications spokesman Tim Watts said his party would support a “workable code”.
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'Too angry, too political, too commercial': social media at tipping point
CBD columnist
January 17, 2021 — 12.00am
My second most significant lesson about social media came courtesy of an old friend who has travelled to 85 countries and was driving along the Chuyskiy Tract in Siberia to the mausoleum of the ice maiden of Ukok, along the way Instagramming photos of such extraordinary beauty as to make the editor of National Geographic weep. Then came his blunt direct message: “Don’t believe the photos. This holiday is shit.” The food was terrible, the accommodation rudimentary and the locals bemusing, to say the least.
But my most significant social media lesson came via lunch with an old university friend, who casually dropped reference to an anonymous Twitter account that was subjecting me to some low-level trolling. Turns out, the account was his. The online attacks were at the mild end of snark (having worked for Rupert Murdoch, I've had worse) and he thought it all a bit of amusing fun. I was astonished, wounded and later angry. Why put up with such crap from a senior Sydney commercial lawyer leading a double life as a Rupert-hating keyboard warrior, if you don’t have to?
It might be that your reaction to President Trump’s incitement of insurrection that led to the storming of the Capitol has brought up issues around your experience of social media and reminded you of its peerless ability to alter your mood, or make you feel inadequate, or jealous, or aggressive. Truth is, those same issues have been unresolved since 1997, when US entrepreneur Andrew Weinrich created the first social media site, Six Degrees.
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https://digitalhealth.org.au/blog/expecting-a-baby-in-2021/
Expecting a baby in 2021?
Where will you find trusted, safe & qualified advice online?
Expectant mothers, fathers and families are invited to hear from the experts in the emerging world of digitally enabled maternal care. Join this Australasian Institute of Digital Health seminar on Tuesday 23 February from 12:30pm – 6:00pm.
- Maternity apps for 24/7 support and trusted information
- Antenatal classes
- Accessible communities you can be part of
- Educational and online resources
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Over 50 Aussie MPs form group aimed at holding social media companies accountable
Former Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has said the internet has proven to be a magnet for drawing together 'idiots and conspiracists' who otherwise would never meet each other.
By Asha Barbaschow | January 12, 2021 -- 03:08 GMT (14:08 AEDT) | Topic: Security
Over 50 Australian MPs have joined a new parliamentary group that aims to hold technology giants accountable for the information they allow on their platforms.
The Parliamentary Friends of Making Social Media Safe group is explained as providing a non-partisan forum for MPs to meet and highlight the environment of social media and the risks associated.
The group will also consider how platforms can be held accountable for the material published on their sites, and what policy measures can be considered by governments to keep social media platforms safe.
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James Murdoch condemns 'profound damage' wreaked by US news media
January 16, 2021 — 8.55am
Rupert Murdoch's son James has condemned American media outlets for unleashing "profound damage" on the United States and being complicit in the events that led to the pro-Trump insurgency in Washington earlier this month.
The junior Murdoch, who left his father's News Corporation last year citing disagreements over editorial content, said the storming of the Capitol was "proof positive that what we thought was dangerous is indeed very, very much so".
"Those outlets that propagate lies to their audience have unleashed insidious and uncontrollable forces that will be with us for years," he told London's Financial Times newspaper. "I hope that those people who didn't think it was that dangerous now understand, and that they stop."
He did not directly mention News Corporation or Fox News, the company's vociferous cable news channel now run by brother Lachlan Murdoch as chief executive and executive chairman.
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Pay for news, don't bury it: Frydenberg to Google
Miranda Ward Reporter
Jan 14, 2021 – 5.17pm
Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has slammed Google for burying the content of local media publishers, saying the search behemoth should be focused on making deals with news outlets.
"The digital giants should focus on paying for original content, not blocking it," he said in an intervention in the quarrel between the technology giant and media companies.
"That’s my message to those digital giants. As you know we have introduced legislation which is now before a Senate committee to put in place a world-leading mandatory code to see those digital giants pay traditional news media businesses a fair sum of money for those news media businesses generating original content.”
Google confirmed it is changing its search and news algorithm as part of an "experiment" to "measure the impacts of news businesses and Google search on each other".
As revealed by The Australian Financial Review, the search engine is experimenting with its algorithm to remove stories from Australian news publishers from its search results.
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https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/clinical/medical-misinformation-threatens-to-derail-covid-h
Medical misinformation threatens to derail COVID health response
But would censoring high profile spreaders of non-evidence-based content do more harm than good?
Matt Woodley
13 Jan 2021
Debates
over misinformation,
censorship and free speech have dominated the recent news cycle, with
Australia’s acting Prime Minister Michael McCormack questioning the decision of
social media platforms to ban outgoing US President Donald Trump from posting
content.
The perma-ban stemmed from President Trump’s comments before, during and after
the assault on the Capitol by his supporters, in which he falsely maintained
the election had been stolen from him, and was accused of inciting
violence.
But prior to last week, he had also had coronavirus-related posts
deleted for suggesting it is ‘less lethal than the flu’, and been identified
as the ‘single
largest driver’ of the COVID
misinformation ‘infodemic’.
Despite this, Acting Prime Minister McCormack has defended President Trump’s
right to post on the grounds of ‘free
speech’, and also applied the same argument to support Coalition colleague
Craig Kelly – a former furniture salesman – who has been singled
out for repeatedly
spreading COVID misinformation.
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https://www.ausdocjobs.com.au/article-details/21/9-tips-to-help-you-prepare-for-video-interviews/
AusDoc.JOBS | 9 tips to help you prepare for video interviews
Written by
Clifford Fram
Published
17 Sep 2020
We did some research to help you put your best foot forward when you virtually walk into the room for a video interview. Here are 9 tips to help you make a good impression:
- Do your research: Don't forget the basics. Apart from shaking hands, everything you know about traditional interviews is relevant. That means you should Google the practice to get a feel for its style, learn about the demographics of the area, check if your interviewer has a LinkedIn profile, have a chat with one or two doctors who work at the practice and generally do your homework.
- Decide on your equipment: Avoid using a mobile phone or tablet camera if you can. Preferably use a laptop with a built-in camera or a desktop with a tried and tested camera set up. Try out different sound scenarios. Many people achieve better results with the computer's speaker and microphone than with headphones. Remember that each additional piece of equipment is an extra point of potential failure during the interview. Tips: Check that your laptop is fully charged or connected to a power outlet and turn off notifications during the interview.
- Choose a setting: The rule of thumb is that your interview station should be quiet, bright and private. You don't want distractions like a pet walking into shot or a child asking for a snack. It's best to keep your background as plain as possible. A blank wall is excellent, but a neat bookshelf is also OK, as are tasteful pictures on the wall. Some video programs allow you to insert a virtual background to protect your privacy but resist the temptation to show off your individuality.
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Treasurer Josh Frydenberg warns Google over blocking Aussies from news sites
The Treasurer has warned Google to pay up for content after the tech giant admitted blocking Australians from accessing news sites.
Finn McHugh
NCA NewsWire
January 14, 202112:47pm
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has demanded Google pay up for original content rather than blocking it after revelations the tech giant had prevented Australian users from accessing news websites.
Google confirmed it had sporadically hidden news sites from a small number of Australian users as part of an “experiment … to measure the impacts of news businesses and Google Search on each other”.
The test, which used algorithms to bury news content, affected around one per cent of users and would end early next month, it said.
The federal government is locked in a battle with tech giants after proposing world-leading regulation that would force digital giants Google and Facebook to pay for original news content.
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Google admits to removing local news content in 'experiment'
By Stephen Brook and Nick Bonyhady
January 13, 2021 — 5.14pm
Internet search giant Google has admitted that it has been intermittently blocking some Australian news sites from search users.
In recent days internet users have reported Australian news sites disappearing from Google's search function, with old content and links being displayed.
The multinational technology giant said on Wednesday it had been running "experiments” on searches for newspaper websites including The Sydney Morning Herald that had affected only a tiny number of users.
"We're currently running a few experiments that will each reach about 1 per cent of Google Search users in Australia to measure the impacts of news businesses and Google Search on each other,” a spokesman said.
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ACCC goes into battle against Facebook, Apple and Google
Patrick Durkin BOSS Deputy editor
Jan 14, 2021 – 12.00am
The head of the competition watchdog is vowing to launch a regulatory war against Facebook, Apple and Google this year including investigations across the digital advertising and app markets, warning the tech giants' dominance poses a danger to consumers and the competition landscape.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims said public outrage against News Corp led by former prime minister Kevin Rudd was disproportionate to the Rupert Murdoch-controlled company's size, yet the public seemed largely apathetic or ignorant to the danger of Google and Facebook's influence over the public consumption of news.
Big tech's influence over the control of information has come further into focus in the wake of the move by Twitter and Facebook to ban US President Donald Trump.
"These are trillion-dollar companies, they control the content and of course, they have all the data," Mr Sims told The Australian Financial Review during an interview outlining his priorities for this year.
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Wednesday, 13 January 2021 10:47
Reset takes aim at ‘big tech’ and proposed voluntary disinformation code
Decisions about closing someone's social media account should be transparent and there should be avenues to appeal, according to Reset Australia, which claims that ultimately the real harm from Big Tech's “unchecked algorithms and data usage” can't be solved by a voluntary code.
According to Chris Cooper, Reset Australia executive director, the Australian affiliate of Reset, a global initiative working to “strengthen democracy and counter digital threats to democracy”, "voluntary codes and self regulation will not work when it comes to reigning in Big Tech."
Cooper’s latest comments follow concerns he expressed last month - as reported by iTWire - that Google and Facebook’s voluntary disinformation code “doesn’t offer Australians any real protections from the effects of “dangerous and false information” online”.
In a statement today, Cooper said, "We've seen in Europe that voluntary codes have largely been ignored by the platforms. In Australia the digital platforms offered ACMA a very weak disinformation code, based on a failed EU version."
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Donald Trump ban debate flags need to better police Big Tech
The decision by Twitter to suspend Donald Trump’s account in recent days has triggered a vigorous debate about content on social media, and how it is regulated and controlled. These are issues governments have been grappling with since the internet began to be widely used by consumers. Should there be limits to free speech online? If so, how should limits be set and enforced?
Australia has been at the forefront globally in establishing effective regulatory frameworks that apply to what is posted on social media. In 2015, we legislated to establish the eSafety Commissioner, a world-first government office where people can go for help if they have been the victim of online harm. In addition to removing illegal content online, such as abhorrent violent material, the commissioner has the power to order platforms to remove a range of harmful materials, including, for example, cyber-bullying directed at a child and unauthorised distribution of intimate images. It has been a practical, effective mechanism to help keep Australians safe online, with thousands of children having cyber-bullying content removed.
Last month, the government released an exposure draft of a new Online Safety Act, designed to strengthen and expand the eSafety Commissioner’s powers. Under the new Act, the commissioner would have the power to deal with serious cyber abuse directed at an Australian adult, including to direct that such content be removed if the platform did not take appropriate action after a complaint from a user. The definition of cyber abuse has been set at a higher level for adults, recognising they are more resilient than children and also to properly balance freedom of speech considerations.
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AMA calls for social media campaign to counter COVID conspiracy theories
January 12, 2021 — 10.50pm
The Australian Medical Association has called on the government to invest in long-term internet advertising to counter medical misinformation peddled online, including COVID-19 conspiracy theories.
In a statement on Tuesday, AMA president Dr Omar Khorshid said people are increasingly turning to social media to learn about healthy choices, but the internet has the potential to "significantly magnify health misinformation campaigns".
"People can easily absorb misinformation delivered directly to them through advertising, celebrity influencers, and people in positions of power," Dr Khorshid said.
"We have seen this with the anti-vaccination movement, and the countless conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic that circulate constantly on the internet.
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An update following the riots in Washington, DC
Tuesday, 12 January 2021
Following the horrific events in Washington, DC, last week, here are some of the steps we’ve taken to protect the conversation on our service from attempts to incite violence, organize attacks, and share deliberately misleading information about the election outcome. It’s important to be transparent about all of this work as the US Presidential Inauguration on January 20, 2021, approaches.
Updated our coordinated harmful activity policy
We’ve been clear that we will take strong enforcement action on behavior that has the potential to lead to offline harm. Given the violent events in Washington, DC, and increased risk of harm, we began permanently suspending thousands of accounts that were primarily dedicated to sharing QAnon content on Friday afternoon.
Many of the individuals impacted by this updated enforcement action held multiple accounts, driving up the total number of accounts impacted. Since Friday, more than 70,000 accounts have been suspended as a result of our efforts, with many instances of a single individual operating numerous accounts. These accounts were engaged in sharing harmful QAnon-associated content at scale and were primarily dedicated to the propagation of this conspiracy theory across the service.
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'We need boundaries': MPs want consistent free speech rules for tech giants
By Nick Bonyhady and David Crowe
January 12, 2021 — 5.00am
Technology Minister Karen Andrews has demanded social media companies adopt consistent and transparent rules to protect Australians from "vile" hate speech on Facebook and Twitter as more than 50 MPs joined a new parliamentary group dedicated to reining in the technology giants.
The tech behemoths face pressure from some Coalition MPs angry that Facebook, Instagram and Twitter suspended US President Donald Trump's accounts and others who applauded the "deplatforming" but see a double standard between the action against Mr Trump but not other users whose posts are abusive.
In a sign of growing anger at the technology giants in Australia, MPs from across the political spectrum have joined the group parliamentary friends of making social media safe that Victorian Nationals MP Anne Webster and NSW Labor MP Sharon Claydon are preparing to launch.
Among numerous sets of sometimes conflicting concerns with the social platforms, one factor uniting the critics of Facebook (which also owns Instagram), Twitter and Google (which owns Youtube) is the belief the companies are opaque and inconsistent in how they decide what to ban.
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Coalition MPs, regulators call for new social media rules after Trump turn-off
By Jennifer Duke and Nick Bonyhady
January 10, 2021 — 11.59pm
The competition regulator wants new rules to determine when social media behemoths can close accounts after Donald Trump was suspended from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, sparking warnings by some Coalition MPs that unclear self-regulation by the technology giants could limit freedom of speech.
The technology behemoths blocked the US President from using their websites last week after he posted messages that the companies said could encourage violence, following a riot by a mob of his supporters at the US Capitol on January 7. The online banishment has sparked renewed global debate over whether Facebook and Twitter are publishers or "neutral" platforms and focused attention on how social media has spread fake news and other forms of political misinformation since Mr Trump lost the presidential election in November.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims said there needed to be additional oversight of how decisions were made about the content allowed to circulate on these websites.
"Clearly, the digital platforms do have some control over what we see and read," said Mr Sims, who led a world-first inquiry into Facebook (which owns Instagram) and Google (which owns YouTube). "How much we can leave it up to the digital platforms ... is one of the defining questions we have to face. We definitely need the government to get to grips with this; we can’t just leave it with the digital platforms."
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Twitter’s Trump block could be a slippery slope
Twitter’s decision to ban President Trump from its platform, while welcome, holds dangers in the glee with which regulators have jumped to extend their powers.
The risk is that in the rush to support the welcome show accountability from the platform, regulators want to impose rules on just how and when decisions are made.
Controls on the platforms could quickly be applied to mainstream media, despite its long track record in both accountability and responsibility for what is published.
More regulation is not needed just better enforcement of the existing rules.
That is happening, as seen by the string of regulatory litigation against the platforms for abuse of market power, unfair trade and privacy breaches in Australia, the US and Europe.
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Censorship a weapon that must be taken out of Big Tech’s hands
Tech platforms have unleashed powers that are beyond the control of their masters. It is time for era of unregulated monopolistic digital platforms to come to a close.
January 10, 2021
On January 6, a violent mob inspired by US President Donald Trump and his claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him stormed the US Capitol, smashing windows, pummelling police and chanting “Hang Mike Pence”.
More than 50 police officers were hurt and one was killed in the storming. One officer fatally shot an unarmed female member of the mob.
In the wake of the riot, Big Tech companies including Twitter, Facebook, Amazon and Apple have mobilised to quash insurrectionist activity on their platforms. For breaching Twitter’s “Glorification of Violence” policy, Trump has been given a permanent suspension from its service.
The two incriminating tweets that led to the suspension include the following, on January 8, 2021:
“The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!”
And: “To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th.”
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Trump's de-platforming could reshape the internet
Senior business columnist
January 11, 2021 — 11.47am
The “de-platforming” of Donald Trump has sparked a debate in the US that could reshape the internet.
In the wake of the storming of the Capitol by supporters last week Trump has been banned permanently by Twitter and indefinitely by Facebook.
As Trump and his supporters tried to migrate to Parler, a small social network that boasts its lack of regulation, its apps were removed from Apple and Google app stores and Amazon announced it would eject it from its web-hosting service. With Apple and Google providing the operating systems for almost all smartphones, Parler, if it survives, faces a much-diminished future.
The actions of the social media giants were an understandable response to the pressure from Democrat and Republican politicians and the broader communities in the US to avoid any repeat of their perceived role in facilitating the inciting and organising of the assault on the Capitol building.
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Splinternet: Twitter's ban on Trump will open a fissure in the internet
By James Titcomb
January 11, 2021 — 9.28am
San Francisco: Were it not for the rest of last week's startling events in Washington, the actions taken by a few technology companies to muzzle the US President would have seemed even more dramatic.
The day after Donald Trump's supporters stormed the US Capitol, Facebook said it would suspend his account until he leaves office, and potentially for longer. Twitter, the pulpit that the President has used to great effect throughout his term, went one better, banning him completely. A host of other platforms, from Snapchat to YouTube, took some form of action.
In a few days, the online megaphone that Trump so prizes has vanished.
Given the potential for Trump to incite further violence through his smartphone, there is a strong argument for the restrictions. No law prevents Facebook and Twitter from enacting them. But the significance of Twitter and Facebook's decisions merit discussion.
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Big Tech turns up the heat on Trump followers with Parler suspension
By Ismail Shakil, Bhargav Acharya, Stephen Nellis and Ken Li
January 10, 2021 — 3.25pm
Apple and Amazon.com have suspended Parler from their respective App Store and web hosting service, saying the social networking service that many right-leaning social media users have flocked to has not taken adequate measures to prevent the spread of posts inciting violence.
The action by Apple and Amazon follows a similar move by Alphabet Inc's Google on Friday. Parler is favoured by many supporters of US President Donald Trump, who was permanently suspended from Twitter on Friday, and it is seen as a haven for people expelled from Twitter.
"We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues," Apple said in a statement Saturday.
Apple had given Parler 24 hours to submit a detailed moderation plan, pointing to participants' using the service to coordinate Wednesday's siege of the US Capitol.
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'We've got nowhere to go': Fox News ponders life after Trump
By Michael M. Grynbaum
January 10, 2021 — 11.30am
His president reeling, his cable network at a crossroads, Tucker Carlson began his show Thursday night asking a question that has echoed for weeks among anchors and producers at Fox News: "What is life going to be like for us on January 21?"
"Who has got your concerns top of mind? Who wakes up in the middle of the night worried about your family?" Carlson asked his flock, acknowledging that President Donald Trump would be gone in two weeks "and we cannot change it."
"The rest of us — and this is the key — will still be here," he continued. "We've got nowhere to go."
The imminent end of the Trump presidency has presented a challenge to the enormously popular, enormously profitable Fox News — the crown jewel of Rupert Murdoch's US empire — whose right-wing stars yoked themselves to Trump more tightly than any other mainstream pundits over the past four years.
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Comments more than welcome!
David.
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