Snapchat video key in Murdaugh case: Here’s why it was so influential
One of the last pieces of a legal dynasty that doled out justice in rural South Carolina for decades crumbled Friday as prominent lawyer Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for the murder of his wife and son at their sprawling estate.
School lawsuits over social media harm face tough legal road
Like the tobacco, oil, gun, opioid and vaping industries before them, the big U.S. social media companies are now facing lawsuits brought by public entities that seek to hold them accountable for a huge societal problem in the mental health crisis among youth.
Group urges feds to investigate Snapchat over fentanyl sales
As the U.S. deals with its deadliest overdose crisis to date, a national crime-prevention group is calling on the Justice Department to clamp down on social media’s role in the spread of fentanyl, the drug largely driving a troubling spike in overdose deaths among teenagers.
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Clay County authorities investigate vague social media threats against schools
The Clay County District Schools Police Department posted a warning to parents Tuesday night about social media posts that could threaten schools in the county and neighboring areas. “The author of a newer social media post apparently formed conclusions of what they heard. We will continue to monitor safety and security measures at all Clay County Schools,” the department’s updated Facebook post read. UPDATE from social media post from March 9, 2021 Clay County District School Parents: After yesterday’s notice to... Posted by Clay County District Schools Police Department on Wednesday, March 10, 2021Visible police presence could be seen at schools around the county Wednesday. “Social media is a platform that everybody uses in one way or another.”
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Twitter without Trump tumbles along with other tech shares
FILE - This April 26, 2017, file photo shows the Twitter app icon on a mobile phone in Philadelphia. Twitter is launching tweets that disappear in 24 hours called Fleets globally, echoing social media sites like Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram that already have disappearing posts. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)Shares of social media and other tech companies slid Monday, hit by fallout from the siege on the U.S. Capitol by supporter of President Donald Trump. Trump supporters have argued that the actions of the technology companies is a violation of free speech and Trump has long tried to repeal Section 230. Though Trump's tenure ends in nine days, power in the Senate has flipped to the Democrats who have long begrudged the oversized influence of social media.
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Twitter launches disappearing tweets that vanish in a day
Twitter is launching tweets that disappear in 24 hours called “Fleets” globally, echoing social media sites like Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram that already have disappearing posts. Twitter tested the feature in Brazil, Italy, India, and South Korea, before rolling it out globally. Fleets are a “lower pressure” way to communicate “fleeting thoughts” as opposed to permanent tweets, Twitter executives Joshua Harris, design director, and Sam Haveson, product manager, said in a blog post. The news comes the same day Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg faced questions from a Senate Judiciary Committee about how they handled disinformation surrounding the presidential election. Such features are increasingly popular with social media users looking for smaller groups and and more private chats.
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2 men arrested, accused of using Snapchat to lure minors
A man in New York was arrested and charged with sexual exploitation of three minors throughout the country, after an investigation started by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. — Clay County Sheriff's Office, FL (@ccsofl) June 15, 2020The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York released information about the arrest that utilized the Department of Homeland Security, the Putnam County sheriff’s Office and the Longview Police Department in Longview, Texas. Utilizing the Snapchat name “Ian_Jameson,” Weiss communicated online with three different 13-year-olds, asking each to send him explicit photos. One of the victims was allegedly from Clay County, according to authorities with the Department of Homeland Security. News4Jax has also learned of a Jacksonville man charged after allegedly meeting a 14-year-old girl on Snapchat and then meeting her for sex.

South Carolina boy drives 200 miles to live with stranger he met on Snapchat
An 11-year-old South Carolina boy drove his brother's car 200 miles to meet a man he met on Snapchat. (CNN) - An 11-year-old boy drove 200 miles across South Carolina to meet a stranger he knew only on Snapchat, the Charleston Police Department said. The child drove from the northwest town of Simpsonville to Charleston. He told the officer early Monday morning he had taken his brother's car to go to Charleston where he wanted to live with "an unknown male he met on Snapchat," police said. Police have launched an investigation into the unknown male, Charleston spokesman Charles Francis told CNN affiliate WCSC.

Restaurant chain revives famous 'lost murals' through Snapchat AR
For National Hispanic Heritage Month, which is underway now through mid-October, the chain restaurant El Pollo Loco -- which has locations in California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Utah and Louisiana -- is using augmented reality to bring back some of Los Angeles lost murals, as theyre called. (We are) working with our communities to ensure the legacy of our city's great murals endures through digitally restoring lost murals and donating our storefronts as permanent canvases.So what does that mean, exactly? The website provides a list of where exactly these murals are located in L.A. The campaign is expected to last throughout Hispanic Heritage Month, which ends Oct. 15. [READ NEXT: 5 Instant Pot dishes to make for Hispanic Heritage Month | 10 Spanish-speaking TV shows you should be streaming on Netflix | How did Hispanic Heritage Month come to be? ]

11-Year-Old Drives 200 Miles to Meet Up With a Stranger He Met on Snapchat: Cops
An 11-year-old drove himself more than 200 miles to meet a man hed been talking to on Snapchat. He told the officer hed been driving for three hours already but got lost when the GPS app on his dad's tablet stopped working. Police then contacted the boys father, who was in the middle of reporting the boy missing to police. Authorities said they werent able to identify the man the boy was supposed to be meeting because the Snapchat messages had already disappeared, but they kept the tablet to investigate further. RELATED STORIESVirginia Teen With Carnival Cruise Snapchat Handle Gets His Dream VacationCarnival Cruise Line Offers Boy a Free Cruise in Exchange for His Snapchat NameMale Student Pretends to Be Teen Girl Using Snapchat Filter and Nabs Cop Allegedly Seeking Sex

One Colorado school shooting suspect claims he was forced to do it
In the message, McKinney allegedly told him not to come to school. The two suspects are accused of carrying out a mass shooting at STEM School Highlands Ranch near Denver in May, killing Kendrick Ray Castillo, 18, and wounding eight others. Following the shooting, Erickson told investigators that McKinney made him do it and tasked him with guarding an exit and telling everyone not to move. Erickson took the two handguns used in the shooting from his parents, according to a law enforcement source. The two students used the middle school entrance because they knew they would be able to get the guns into the school, the affidavit states.

Putnam County teen accused of making another school threat
A teenager who deputies said posted a gun threat on Snapchat in May when he was a senior at Interlachen High School is accused of making another school threat, according to the Putnam County Sheriff's... Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

Putnam County teen accused of making another school threat
PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. - A teenager who deputies said posted a gun threat on Snapchat in May when he was a senior at Interlachen High School is accused of making another school threat, according to the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. Baylee Crowe, 19, was booked Wednesday night into the Putnam County jail, where he's being held without bond, online jail records show. On Wednesday morning, according to deputies, those students told school administrators and the information was handed over to youth resource deputies, who contacted the Sheriffs Office. We will continue to take seriously any threat made against our school campuses and students, Sheriff H.D. Putnam County School District Superintendent Rick Surrency thanked school staff, youth resource deputies and the Sheriff's Office for taking swift action that led to Crowe's recent arrest.

Snapchat unveils redesigned Spectacles sunglasses
(CNN) - Snap isn't giving up on its smart sunglasses.On Tuesday, the Snapchat parent company announced Spectacles 3, the latest version of its video-recording sunglasses now with new 3D effects and an eye-popping price tag. In a video teased on social media, Snapchat teased the new special effects users can add to their "Snaps" with Spectacles. Snap said Spectacles 3 is a limited-edition product, and it will produce less of the new sunglasses than it has in the past. Google is now focusing on offering augmented reality glasses for businesses and Apple is rumored to be developing AR glasses. "The high price and clunky user interface will make most Snapchat users simply look the other way," she said.

Snapchat tops 200 million daily users for first time
Snapchat added 13 million daily users in the three months ending in June, ending a long period of lackluster growth and pushing the company's total audience above 200 million daily users for the first time. It's now just short of its initial public offering price. The social media company has been working to right the ship for most of the two years since its initial public offering. In the quarter ending in June, it appears to have moved in that direction. Revenue hit $388 million, up 48% from a year earlier and well above analysts' projections of $360 million.
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Parents, are you doing enough to keep your kids safe online?
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat … it can be tough to keep all the social media channels straight. And then you throw in texting, e-mail, the Cloud -- phew. It’s one thing to maintain a personal Facebook account. But when you try to stay on top of all the apps on your child’s or teenager’s phone? It can feel like a full-time job.