Mediaboss Marketing

Stuck at home during the coronavirus pandemic, with movie theaters closed and no restaurants to dine in, Americans have been spending more of their lives online.

But a New York Times analysis of internet usage in the United States from SimilarWeb and Apptopia, two online data providers, reveals that our behaviors shifted, sometimes starkly, as the virus spread and pushed us to our devices for work, play and connecting.

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

With nearly all public gatherings called off, Americans are seeking out entertainment on streaming services like Netflix and YouTube, and looking to connect with one another on social media outlets like Facebook.

In the past few years, users of these services were increasingly moving to their smartphones, creating an industrywide focus on mobile. Now that we are spending our days at home, with computers close at hand, Americans appear to be remembering how unpleasant it can be to squint at those little phone screens.

Facebook, Netflix and YouTube have all seen user numbers on their phone apps stagnate or fall off as their websites have grown, the data from SimilarWeb and Apptopia indicates. SimilarWeb and Apptopia both draw their traffic numbers from several independent sources to create data that can be compared across the internet.

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Percent change is from the average on Jan. 21 to the average on March 24. App daily traffic is measured in daily sessions. Sources: SimilarWeb, Apptopia

While traditional social media sites have been growing, it seems that we want to do more than just connect through messaging and text we want to see one another. This has given a big boost to apps that used to linger in relative obscurity, like Googles video chatting application, Duo, and Houseparty, which allows groups of friends to join a single video chat and play games together.

We have also grown much more interested in our immediate environment, and how it is changing and responding to the virus and the quarantine measures. This has led to a renewed interest in Nextdoor, the social media site focused on connecting local neighborhoods.

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

VPN Super

Unlimited Proxy

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

VPN Super Unlimited Proxy

App popularity according to iOS App Store rankings on March 16-18. Source: Apptopia

The offices and schools of America have all moved into our basements and living rooms. Nothing is having a more profound impact on online activity than this change. School assignments are being handed out on Google Classroom. Meetings are happening on Zoom, Google Hangouts and Microsoft Teams. The rush to these services, however, has brought new scrutiny on privacy practices.

Large Media Organizations

Large Media Organizations

March averages are through the 24th. Source: SimilarWeb

Amid the uncertainty about how bad the outbreak could get there are now hundreds of thousands of cases in the United States, with the number of dead multiplying by the day Americans appear to want few things more than the latest news on the coronavirus.

Among the biggest beneficiaries are local news sites, with huge jumps in traffic as people try to learn how the pandemic is affecting their hometowns.

Americans have also been seeking out more established media brands for information on the public health crisis and its economic consequences. CNBC, the business news site, has seen readership skyrocket. The websites for The New York Times and The Washington Post have both grown traffic more than 50 percent over the last month, according to SimilarWeb.

The desire for the latest facts on the virus appears to be curbing interest in the more opinionated takes from partisan sites, which have defined the media landscape in recent years. Publications like The Daily Caller, on the right, and Truthdig on the left, have recorded stagnant or falling numbers. Even Fox News has seen disappointing numbers compared to other large outlets.

Beating all of the news sites, in terms of increased popularity, is the home page for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has been attracting millions of readers after previously having almost none. Over time, readers have also looked to more ambitious efforts to quantify the spread of the virus, like the one produced by the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb. 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Averages are over the previous seven days. Source: SimilarWeb

The single-minded focus on the virus has crowded out the broad curiosity that draws people to sites like Wikipedia, which had declining numbers before a recent uptick, data from SimilarWeb shows.

Feb 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Feb 29

First U.S. Covid-19 death

Percent change is from the average on Jan. 21 to the average on March 24. One user can have multiple sessions in a day. Sources: SimilarWeb, Apptopia

With all major-league games called off, there hasnt been much sports to consume beyond marble racing and an occasional Belarusian soccer match. Use of ESPNs website has fallen sharply since late January, according to SimilarWeb.

At the same time, several video game sites have had surges in traffic, as have sites that let you watch other people play. Twitch, the leading site for streaming game play, has had traffic shoot up 20 percent.

TikTok, the mobile app filled with short clips of pranks and lip-syncing, was taking off before the coronavirus outbreak and it has continued its steady ascent ever since. It can be nice to see that at least some things remain unchanged by the crisis.

More here:
The Virus Changed the Way We Internet - The New York Times

On March 24, Cardano (ADA) founder, Charles Hoskinson, streamed a YouTube video titled On Wikipedia, in which he berated Wikipedia for applying arbitrary commercial censorship against Cardano.

Censorship of cryptocurrency projects is as old as the industry itself. Back in 2010, even Satoshi Nakamoto was frustrated with Wikipedias editors for removing Bitcoins wiki entry several times.

After PayPal severed ties with WikiLeaks, one of Bitcoins supporters suggested that becoming the site's new source of donations would generate enough publicity to gain entry into Wikipedia. Satoshi strongly opposed WikiLeaks adoption of the cryptocurrency, but it was too late:

No, don't "bring it on". The project needs to grow gradually so the software can be strengthened along the way. I make this appeal to WikiLeaks not to try to use Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a small beta community in its infancy. You would not stand to get more than pocket change, and the heat you would bring would likely destroy us at this stage.

Hoskinson states that he does not know the rationale behind Wikipedias hostility towards his project, despite it being the most cited of all of the peer reviewed coins:

We don't know why there's hostility where coins like SpankChain can have an article on Wikipedia. A lot of other cryptocurrencies and top 15, top 20 apparently have articles and that's perfectly fine. But then we're not allowed to have an article for some reason, even though we've been mentioned by the U.S. Congress.

Cointelegraph could not find a Wikipedia article for SpankChain (SPANK). Other projects like Dogecoin (DOGE), GridCoin (GRC), and PotCoin (POT) do have one, however. Most of the top ten projects, including Bitcoin Cash (BCH), have one too.

Source: Cointelegraph

Hoskinson confirmed to Cointelegraph that the censorship comes exclusively from Wikipedias English language editors, noting that there are Cardano wiki entries in German, Estonian, Italian, Japanese, Dutch, Portuguese, Romanian and Russian.

Crypto censorship has recently been on the rise. In Wikipedias case, it is an especially surprising move, considering that the site accepts Bitcoin to help fund its mission of providing a free online encyclopedia, created and edited by volunteers around the world

Read the original here:
Just Like Bitcoin Before It, Cardano Is Banned From Wikipedia - Cointelegraph

Charles Hoskinson, the founder of 14the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, that has lost 98% of its value since its ATH in January 2018, took to YouTube to complain about getting a fair representation on Wikipedia.

In his video, he talks about the community members having issues with editing the proof-of-stake (PoS) articles on the online encyclopedia. Hoskinson said,

Cardano, in particular, has been having a tremendously difficult time getting a fair representation on Wikipedia. Anything we do whether it be Plutus, the extended UT XL model, Oroboros the Cardano project itself or people affiliated with the project there is broad-scale commercial censorship occurring by the editors at Wikipedia.

Currently, the Wikipedia page says, The article Proof of stake, along with other articles relating to blockchains and cryptocurrencies, is currently subject to active community-authorized general sanctions.

Hoskinson, who also co-founded the second largest network Ethereum, said it is just another example of existential danger to an industry, which is controlled by a few people who are incredibly biased and not accountable to anyone else.

He has been referring here to David Gerard specifically whose anti-crypto behavior Hoskinson said is going on for years, since the Ethereum days.

Hoskinson might be the latest one to complain about the non-coiner but not the only one, as in the past Decred had a similar issue.

Hoskinson says its unfair when they have been mentioned by the US Congress, as the most cited of all the peer views, and historically have had a market cap larger than SpaceX.

While replying to a Twitter user, Hoskinson argues that Cardanos competitors that are much smaller in size, have pages while they are not allowed to have is censorship.

He further said Wikipedia won't explain the standard, but Gerard refuted these claims by saying, The problem is not that nobody told you, it's that you didn't like the answer.

These are comments directly from a Wikipedia editor commercially censoring us. He also wrote an anti-crypto book. But I'm sure he's being fair and balanced about Cardano content, pointed out Hoskinson on Gerards comment that the (crypto) space would best be advanced by not existing, and as such he is warning others about the ridiculous steaming shitpile.

Meanwhile, Wikipedia highlights that individuals with a conflict of interest are strongly advised not to directly edit the article.

View post:
Cardanos Hoskinson Warns About The Unfair Representation on Wikipedia From An Editor - Bitcoin Exchange Guide

A Christchurch man's campaign for Wikipedia to officially adopt the use of macrons in Mori words has been a success.

Axel Wilke proposed Wikipedia change its New Zealand naming conventions, saying the website is "one of the last bastions of macron resistance for place names".

Debates and editing battles have long raged on the popular site for years, with various editors repeatedly adding and removing macrons from words.

Christchurch man Axel Wilke (left) and museum curator Mike Dickison have led the campaign to make the use of macrons official on Wikipedia. Photo / Supplied

"Macrons have been used in Wikipedia for some time: every use of the word "Mori" has its macron, and articles are increasingly adopting macrons in their names . . . But place names have always been a sticking point. For some reason, people feel especially attached to towns and rivers, and resist changing their spelling," Wilke said.

"Wikipedia rules have, for years, stated that place names were 'under discussion', and macrons have not been used in the meantime for place names," Wilke said.

Wikipedia is written by volunteers, with naming conventions discussed and decided on by contributors.

He suggested the naming conventions be amended to include macrons in cases where the New Zealand Geographic Board has adopted them.

Wilke said the decision was finally made by a user in England.

"It may be surprising to some people that I, a non-New Zealander, appear to be deciding this matter," the user wrote.

"This is a red herring. As a discussion closer, my role is not to decide, but to determine what the community has decided in the discussion below.

"I determine this in the way set out at Wikipedia:Closing discussions, and my role is to evaluate what we call the 'consensus', which on Wikipedia is not unanimity but 'rough consensus'."

In the end, 33 editors voted for the adoption of the new guideline, with five against.

"This marks a big change for Wikipedia. The idea was first raised on Wikipedia discussion pages in 2007 with no clear consensus," Wilke said.

In 2018, volunteersengaged in a battleover whether the Kpiti town of Paekkriki should have macrons in its name, with editors repeatedly removing and replacing the macrons from the page.

"It's gratifying to see that after a well-researched proposal was put forward, agreement on macron use for place names has now been achieved."

Originally posted here:
Battle of the macrons: Debate about Mori words on Wikipedia ends - Newstalk ZB

By: Tech Desk | New Delhi | Updated: March 27, 2020 2:32:09 pm Coronavirus related information now available in 9 Indian languages on Wikipedia

Cases of COVID-19 are rising significantly in India with every passing day. In just a week it has crossed the 700 mark and this is worrying the Indian government as well as the citizens. While India is under 21 days lockdown until April 14 people are stuck at home and are completely dependent on the internet, social media and television for information related to coronavirus pandemic.

Sadly, given the current state the internet is flooded with unverified information, fake news, and rumours and finding authentic information is difficult. This is were Wikipedia is playing a big role by informing people with verified information related to coronavirus pandemic. Wikipedia is providing COVID-19 related information in 9 Indian languages including Bangla, Bhojpuri, Hindi, Kannada, Arabic, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned against an infodemic of inaccurate information that makes it hard for people to find trustworthy sources and reliable guidance when they need it. This is a monumental challenge that a group of Wikipedia editors is tackling as they add, review, and improve COVID-19 information in English as well as 9 Indian languages.

ALSO READ: This app lets you report coronavirus suspect, find testing labs nearby and more

Given Wikipedia follow an open editing model designed to prevent bias it has partnered with SWASTHA, a branch of another much larger Wikipedia group WikiProject Medicine which includes doctors and experts from around the globe.WikiProject Medicine has so far produced more than 35,000 medical articles across different languages that are monitored by more than 150 editors. With this partnership, Wikipedia aims to make critical coronavirus health information freely accessible to all Indians.

Verifying what is a coronavirus fact versus fiction is a huge job, and we are calling on local universities to help as we increase efforts to translate and review local Indic content about the pandemic, said Abhishek Suryawanshi whos a part of the newly-formed Wikipedia group. Indias volunteer editors have created multiple articles such as Wikipedia article about the coronavirus pandemic in India, across multiple Indian languages. The English Wikipedia article alone has been edited 1,400 times by more than 100 editors.

ALSO READ: Cybersecurity experts come together to fight coronavirus-related hacking

SWASTHA works with Indias National Health Authority and Ministry of Health as well as with international pandemic control experts from Johns Hopkins University in the United States and the World Health Organisation in Switzerland. To produce better results SWASTHA said it requires more help from local partners as the pandemic grew to help them reach local communities.

The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Technology News, download Indian Express App.

IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd

Excerpt from:
Coronavirus updates in Hindi, Bangla, Tamil and 6 more Indian languages on Wikipedia - The Indian Express