Brazilians Split on Decision to Ban X
A top Brazilian court upheld the decision to ban X on Monday, but opinions in the country are divided. Reuters reported that 51% of Brazilians oppose the ban, while 48% support it. Elon Musk expressed frustration at the suspension following months of legal wrangling, stating that Brazil no longer has access to the “#1 source of truth”.
Bluesky Benefits from Brazilian Exodus
As Brazilians scrambled to find a replacement, it was Bluesky, not Threads, that benefitted the most. Bluesky announced on Tuesday that it had welcomed 2.6 million new users in just five days, with “over 85%” of those in Brazil. This may be a blow for Meta after its efforts to position Threads as the best alternative to X. Bluesky also saw a spike in activity in other countries as total downloads soared 10,584% over the weekend.
Google’s August Core Update is Complete
Google’s latest core update is complete after a relatively short rollout period. The August 2024 core update reached the finish line on Tuesday (3 September), just 19 days after it went live. The consensus is that the latest changes have been quite impactful—44% of SEOs reported a decline in traffic and rankings in a poll by Search Engine Land, while 29% reported an increase.
Should Marketers Be on Reddit?
Reddit’s rise in Google search rankings is making marketers take notice. The social news aggregation site was the 5th most visible domain in organic SERPs over the summer, a huge jump from its 68th position twelve months ago. Online ad revenues are also up 41% year-on-year. Perhaps most importantly, user engagement is high—the average time spent on Reddit by adults per day has climbed 11%, which is higher than any other app.
Spam Score Not Relevant for Sites
SEO expert John Mueller says Google doesn’t use spam scores. Instead of focusing on these scores, he recommends making a “tiny part of your website truly awesome” and working to improve the overall quality of content. He added: “This spam score tells you nothing in that regard. Ignore it.”
YouTube is Gen Z’s Favourite App
TikTok isn’t close to usurping YouTube for Gen Z. In a new study by AdAge, 46% of “Zoomers” ranked Google’s video site as their favourite platform, ahead of TikTok (29%). Another interesting finding is that younger Gen Z cohorts aged 13 to 17 are more likely to use Facebook than Instagram. Worryingly for X, just 3% of youngsters ranked it as their favourite app.
Americans Cool on Desire to Ban TikTok
A TikTok ban in the US is on the horizon, but support for the bill is waning. Just 32% of adults believe ByteDance’s short-form video platform should be banned, down from 50% in March 2023. Most Americans are also sceptical that a ban will happen—only 31% believe it’s likely, with the sentiment echoed across the political divide. TikTok is set to disappear from US app stores in January 2025.
