• Meta apologized for graphic and violent content recommended on Instagram Reels on Wednesday.
• Meta replaced US fact-checkers with a community notes model in January.
• Meta's content moderation has faced criticism and controversy for years.

Meta apologized for an "error" after Instagram users reported a flood of graphic and disturbing content recommended on their feeds.

"We have fixed an error that caused some users to see content in their Instagram Reels feed that should not have been recommended," a Meta spokesperson said in a statement to Business Insider on Wednesday.

Instagram users worldwide reported seeing a flood of short-form videos showing gore and violence, including killings and cartel violence, on Wednesday. These videos were marked with the "sensitive content" label but were being recommended to users back-to-back.

Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, says it removes "particularly violent or graphic" content and adds warning levels to others. It also restricts users under 18 from viewing such content.

In the first week of January, Meta replaced third-party fact-checkers on its US platforms with a community notes flagging model.

The company also planned to "simplify" its content policies, said Joel Kaplan, the chief global-affairs officer, at the time. Meta would "get rid of a bunch of restrictions on topics like immigration and gender that are just out of touch with mainstream discourse."

In January, Business Insider reported that the tech giant would officially end its US fact-checking partnerships in March.

Meta has faced a string of controversies since 2016 over lapses in content moderation. It has faced criticism for, among other issues, its role in illicit drug sales. Last year, founder Mark Zuckerberg joined other tech CEOs for a Congressional grilling about safety measures for children online.

Internationally, Meta's lack of content moderation and reliance on third-party civil society groups to report misinformation have been found to play a role in proliferating violence in Myanmar, Iraq, and Ethiopia.

Zuckerberg's content moderation changes resemble those made by Elon Musk on the social media platform X, which he bought in 2022.

Stephen Craig Campbell, now 76, was apprehended in Weed, N.M., on Feb. 19

Brittany Fortinberry, 31, is facing multiple counts including sexual misconduct with a minor, dissemination of matter harmful to minors and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

The Knicks do many things well, and one of them, a key one, was on full display on Wednesday night.

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© Ben Blackall/Netflix/PA Wire

If you can’t join ‘em, RUN

© AP

Agreement to put $160mn into manufacturing and innovation comes after Jakarta rejected $1bn offer from US tech giant

Europe has an electric bike problem. Direct-to-consumer e-bikes from inexpensive Chinese brands like Engwe and countless others can be easily purchased online despite openly flouting EU restrictions. They feature throttles and powerful motors that can be easily unlocked to far exceed the 25km/h (16mph) legal speed limit — no pedaling required.

Here in Amsterdam, cheap Super73-knockoffs ridden at almost twice the legal speed have made the city’s renowned bicycle lanes increasingly chaotic and dangerous. Across the Netherlands, over 10,000 of these electric “fat bikes” were seized in 2024. 

Engwe’s new Mapfour lineup is the company’s attempt at going legit by expanding from souped-up electric fat bikes and foldables into “premium commuter” e-bikes. And because they’re the first e-bikes that Engwe has designed exclusively for European roads, the company swears they can’t be unlocked for more speed.

I’ve been riding the new Mapfour N1 Pro model for the last few weeks. It lists for €1,899 (almost $2,000), or €1,799 during the initial launch — a price that brings heightened expectations. 

The N1 Pro is slathered in premium capabilities like GPS/GSM tracki …

Read the full story at The Verge.

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Local officials in Japan blamed the unusually dry winter and strong winds.

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Ruben Amorim said he will speak to Alejandro Garnacho after the Manchester United forward walked straight down the tunnel following his substitution during their 3-2 win over Ipswich Town.