Barbara Ortutay

In this Thursday, June 18, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump looks at his phone during a roundtable with governors on the reopening of America's small businesses, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (AP/Alex Brandon)

January 26, 2023, 3:57 am

Meta to reinstate Donald Trump to Facebook, Instagram after two-year ban

Personal account of former president, who cheered January 6 attack on US Capitol, to be reactivated; company says it is adding ‘new guardrails’ to ensure no ‘repeat offenders’

By Barbara Ortutay and Jill Colvin

US Attorney General Merrick Garland is joined by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Doha Mekki of the Antitrust Division (left), US Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta (second from left) and Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Antitrust Division (right), as he speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce a new antitrust lawsuit against Google on January 24, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images via AFP)

January 25, 2023, 4:57 am

US Justice Department sues Google over digital advertising dominance

Amid push to rein in big tech firms, government alleges tech giant looking to ‘neutralize or eliminate’ rivals in online ad marketplace through acquisitions, forced use of products

By Barbara Ortutay, Eric Tucker and Frank Bajak

January 7, 2023, 5:47 am

Israeli researcher reports leak of 235m email addresses linked to Twitter accounts

Alon Gal warns exposure of personal emails obtained in hack ‘will unfortunately lead to a lot of hacking, targeted phishing, and doxxing’

By Barbara Ortutay

FILE - A sign at Twitter headquarters is shown in San Francisco, November 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

December 13, 2022, 6:42 am

Musk’s Twitter disbands advisory panel on hate speech, other problematic content

Members of Trust and Safety Council informed of move shortly before scheduled meeting with representatives from the social media firm

By Matt O'Brien and Barbara Ortutay

Illustrative: The Mastodon site is shown on a smart phone. (AP Photo/Barbara Ortutay)

November 12, 2022, 6:44 pm

Mastodon, other Twitter alternatives emerge after Musk takeover drama

More than a million users have signed up for decentralized social media site named after extinct mammoth, where instead of tweets, posts are called ‘toots’

By Barbara Ortutay

People walk outside Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, Nov. 4, 2022. (AP/Jeff Chiu)

November 8, 2022, 4:50 am

Musk’s partisan tweets call Twitter neutrality into question ahead of midterms

World’s richest man uses his new platform to boost Republicans, wading into political debate that tech leaders have mostly avoided and stoking concerns about effects on democracy

By Barbara Ortutay

A Twitter headquarters sign is shown in San Francisco, November 4, 2022. Employees were bracing for widespread layoffs at Twitter, as new owner Elon Musk overhauls the social platform. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

November 5, 2022, 3:16 am

Twitter slashes about half its staff as Musk era takes hold on platform

Thousands of workers let go as worries mount over disinformation, extremism; Biden says Twitter ‘spews lies all across the world’

By Barbara Ortutay and Matt O'Brien

July 28, 2022, 6:26 pm

Facebook continues to allow hate speech in ads, latest test reveals

Trial conducted in Kenya showed gruesome Swahili language posts easily bypass detection; similarly hateful English ads approved as long as swear words taken out

By Barbara Ortutay

Seen on the screen of a device in Sausalito, Calif., Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg announces its new name, Meta, during a virtual event on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

July 28, 2022, 3:45 am

Facebook parent Meta posts first revenue decline in its history

Meta reports 36 percent drop in profit to $6.7 billion from last year’s $10.39 billion; Zuckerberg says he expects company to ‘get more done with fewer resources’

By Barbara Ortutay

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk speaks at the SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition in Washington, March 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

July 9, 2022, 2:25 am

Elon Musk backs out of $44 billion Twitter purchase deal; company says it will sue

Tesla CEO claims social media giant misled him about the number of fake accounts on the platform; agreement’s unraveling will likely lead to massive legal battle

By Barbara Ortutay, Tom Krisher and Matt O'Brien

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on 'Foreign Influence Operations and Their Use of Social Media Platforms' on Capitol Hill, Washington, on September 5, 2018. (AP/Jose Luis Magana)

June 1, 2022, 11:48 pm

Sheryl Sandberg, longtime No. 2 at Facebook, steps down

Executive says she’s ‘not entirely sure what the future will bring’ after serving as COO for past 14 years; Zuckerberg taps Javier Olivan to fill post

By Barbara Ortutay

The Twitter page of Elon Musk is seen on the screen of a computer in Sausalito, California, on April 25, 2022. On Monday, Musk reached an agreement to buy Twitter for about $44 billion. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

April 26, 2022, 12:59 pm

Is Elon Musk’s push for ‘free speech’ on Twitter just a case of deja vu?

Analysts warn that new owner of social media platform could repeat the mistakes of a decade ago, when unmoderated posts led to a ‘cesspool’ — and advertisers fled

By Barbara Ortutay and AMANDA SEITZ

November 3, 2021, 11:22 am

Facebook to shut down facial recognition system, delete data on 1 billion people

Move by beleaguered company comes amid growing concerns about tech and its misuse by governments, police; parent company Meta appears to be looking at new ways to identify people

By Matt O'Brien and Barbara Ortutay

A demonstrator poses with an installation depicting Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg surfing on a wave of cash and surrounded by distressed teenagers, during a protest opposite the Houses of Parliament in central London as Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen was set to testify to British lawmakers, on October 25, 2021. (Tolga Akmen / AFP)

October 26, 2021, 9:09 am

Facebook profits rise 17% amid accusations it values success over user safety

Net income in July-September period was $9.19 billion, social media giant says; whistleblower who leaked internal documents tells UK lawmakers company stokes online hate, extremism

By Barbara Ortutay and Kelvin Chan

Mark Zuckerberg, chairman and CEO of Facebook, speaks at the CEO summit during the annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Lima, Peru, November 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix, File)

October 25, 2021, 7:25 pm

Facebook papers show deep internal conflict: People or profit?

Amid efforts to expand outside US and Western Europe, social media giant has failed to address or anticipate the unintended consequences of signing up millions of new users

By Barbara Ortutay