Trending

Two stories about viral stories that kicked off deep debate about social issues. What happened when social media moved on? Randa Jarrar, a university professor, tweeted a provocative – and many would say deeply offensive – message after the death of former US First Lady Barbara Bush. It went viral and hit a nerve in a country riveted by debates over free speech and its limits, especially on college campuses. And you may remember the story of the jogger who was caught on video throwing a homeless man’s possessions into a lake in Oakland, California. The incident eventually led to criminal charges for the jogger, and also sparked an outpouring of sympathy for the homeless man. But what happened next – yes, you guessed it – might surprise you. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Chris Bell(Photo Caption: Photo illustration featuring Randa Jarrar (centre) / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Where some see a crisis, others see an opportunity… For the past few weeks, hackers and scammers around the world have been busy using the confusion and anxiety created by coronavirus as cover for dangerous and illegal activities. From phishing emails to bogus cures and treatments, their scams have taken a number of different forms. BBC Trending turns the spotlight on the darkest corners of the web and analyses some of the scams and hacks that have emerged since the coronavirus outbreak began. Presenter: Marco Silva(Photo: illustration of a magnifying glass hovering over a laptop that has received malicious content/Credits: BBC)

It seems like everything’s being changed by coronavirus – and love is no exception. Dating apps are often a first point of call when people want to meet someone new, but the real-world meetups that used to spring from online conversations are now impossible in many areas under lockdown. So how are people using tech to meet new partners during this global pandemic? We talk to people in Iran, India and Italy to find out how love is operating in lockdown. Will the virus result in a long-lasting shift in attitudes towards dating – and what do people plan to do first once the restrictions are over?Presenter: Reha Kansara Photo: Illustration of a woman wearing a mask on a phone Photo credit: Getty Images

We’re in the middle of an “infodemic” – that’s the slightly clunky word the World Health Organisation has used to describe the deluge of information about coronavirus. While some of it is accurate, the facts swim in a vast sea of more dubious content – misinformation, disinformation, conspiracy theories, unproven cures and bad health advice. So what can we all do to stop the spread of misinformation to our friends, family and contacts on social media? We’ve talked to the experts and have collected seven key tips: 1. Stop and think 2. Check your source 3. Ask yourself, could it be a fake? 4. If you’re unsure whether it’s true … don’t share. 5. Check each fact, individually. 6. Beware emotional posts. 7. Think about biases Think of it as the digital equivalent of washing your hands.

There's a huge amount of misleading information circulating online about coronavirus - bad advice, conspiracy theories, dodgy health tips and more. This week Trending delves into one specific viral post. It's a list of supposed facts about the virus and what you can do to protect yourself. Some of the tips are true, some are false but relatively harmless, and some are potentially dangerous. The list was first put on Facebook in early February and has since been dubbed the "uncle with master's" degree post, because of the alleged source of the information. It hopped from Singapore to India to England and has been sent to us by listeners all around the world who are rightfully suspicious of its contents. Along the way it mutated - it has incorporated new and more dangerous false information, and has been translated into at least half a dozen languages. So who's behind the post and how did it spread? We get to the bottom of this mystery. And we give some crucial pointers about how you can avoid spreading bad information. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Marianna Spring With reporting by: Olga Robinson, BBC Monitoring Photo: Photo illustration of social network logos and coronavirus Photo credit: BBC

New laws are being passed across Poland taking aim at the LGBT community. They’ve been called “LGBT free zones” as a shorthand. While they don’t necessarily mean that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are being thrown into prison, they are having a chilling effect on the community. The laws have contributed to a more general climate of conflict and fear. In 2019, violence broke out at several equality marches after far-right groups held counter demonstrations. After one such clash, LGBT activists fought back with a hashtag campaign - which led to more protests on the streets. We meet the activists who are rallying support and the counter demonstrators who organise against them. And we find out whether young LGBT people in Poland are planning to leave the country – or stay put. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Ben Hunte Producer: Sean Allsop Picture caption: Anti-LGBT protesters burn a rainbow flag at a demonstration last year in Bialystok in Poland Picture credit: BBC

Alan commutes into London where he works as a concierge. In his spare time he composes songs with political themes. But his beliefs also fuel a much uglier hobby: leaving nasty messages online – often hateful, racist and threatening. One of those at the receiving end of his abuse is a high-profile political activist and businesswoman. Gina Miller gets so much abuse from people like Alan that she travels everywhere with security.At our request, they have agreed to meet. What happens next might surprise you. Presenter: Reha Kansara Reporter: Marianna Spring(Photo Caption: A troll in the shadows / Photo Credit: Getty images)

How did a trove of confidential government documents end up on social media… And is Russia to blame? As the UK prepared to go to the polls in December, sensitive documents outlining ongoing US-UK trade talks were published on Reddit. They made for potentially explosive reading and were rapidly seized upon by opposition politicians. But the origin of the leak soon aroused suspicions. When investigators looked at how the documents were spread online, they soon found striking similarities to a disinformation operation originating in Russia. But is there any evidence that the Russian state was behind the leaks? And were the documents authentic? We take a careful look at the clues left behind by a social media user going by the name of “Gregoratior” and uncover a shadowy network of whispers, forgeries, and social media deception. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Marco Silva (Photo Caption: illustration of confidential UK government documents held in front of a Russian flag / Photo Credit: BBC)

Dax Flame was once YouTube royalty – his channel was among the top 20 in the early years of the site. He parlayed his social media fame into an acting and writing career. But then work dried up and he stopped making YouTube videos. Now, Dax works in a restaurant and tries to scrape together money for rent, food and headshots. But he’s still hopeful that his career might take off again. We follow Dax as he tries to get back on track – and we explore a mystery that has followed him around the internet for more than a decade. Are his videos “real” – or was he acting?Presenter: Reha Kansara Reporter: Mike Wendling Additional production: James Stewart(Photo: Dax Flame, who was once one of YouTube’s biggest stars)

Women in Kuwait are being bought and sold on apps available on the most popular online platforms. Experts call it an ‘online slave market’ - supported by Silicon Valley companies. BBC News Arabic has gone undercover to expose the users who buy and sell domestic workers. The traffickers repeatedly break Kuwaiti law - using racist language as part of their sales pitch, confiscating their domestic worker’s passports, withholding their salaries and making the women work excessive hours.Our investigation found that despite the human rights violations, the apps were still available on major platforms. Since news of the scandal broke, has anything changed? Presenter: Jonathan GriffinReporter: Jess KellyPicture: Credit: BBC

They were just children when Adolf Hitler's rule came to an end, but they will never forget the horrors the Nazis inflicted on their families. A group of Austrian grandmothers is determined not to let younger generations forget about the dangers of far-right ideologies. As right-wing populism spreads across Europe, they feel their warnings are now more pressing than ever. "Omas Gegen Rechts" (or "Grannies Against the Right") started as a small Facebook group and has rapidly grown into a protest movement with branches in Austria, Germany, and Italy. The grannies say they want to prevent history from repeating itself. But others have accused them of scaremongering and of using the past to undermine right-wing politicians. Is their alarm justified? And can they succeed in containing the populist tide? Presenter: Marco Silva(Photo: members of "Grannies Against the Right". Credit: Christopher Glanzl)

When Azerbaijani journalist Arzu Geybulla started to receive abusive messages online, she quickly became suspicious. She had received offensive messages before. But this time was different. She was being flooded with them. So she decided to dig further. Her investigation brought her into the murky world of state-sponsored trolling. Around the world, more governments are getting involved in harassment campaigns against journalists, activists and citizens. According to the Oxford Internet Institute, 47 countries conducted state-sponsored trolling campaigns in 2019. That’s up from 27 the year before. Governments are using trolls and campaigns of abuse to silence critics, to sow discord and hold onto power. We meet the targets of government trolling campaigns and the researchers trying to combat them. What can we do about state-sponsored trolling? Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Ant Adeane (Photo: Person in the shadows on a computer. Credit: Getty Images)

Ingebjørg spends hours every day on Instagram, but she’s not posting selfies. She’s trying to save lives. This softly-spoken 22-year-old has made it her mission to keep an eye on hundreds of desperate young women and girls who post their self-harm pictures and suicidal thoughts on secret accounts that only trusted followers can see. Many of those involved have eating disorders, depression or other mental health problems. They don’t trust healthcare workers or doctors. But they do trust Ingebjørg. She can see what they post and she routinely calls the police when she thinks somebody is in danger. It’s earned her the nickname “The Lifeguard”. Ingebjørg doesn’t work for Instagram. Saving lives isn’t her job, she has no formal training and nobody pays her for what she does. So should the Facebook-owned social network take more responsibility for helping its users? And what would happen if Ingebjørg wasn’t there? If you are affected by the issues discussed you can find information about support organisations on the Befrienders Worldwide website https://www.befrienders.org/ Presenter: Catrin Nye Producer: Ed Main Editor: Mike Wendling(Photo Caption: Ingebjørg in her home city of Bergen, Norway / Photo credit: BBC)

Andrine was 17 years old when she killed herself in March 2017. For two years her mother left Andrine’s phone untouched in a cardboard box by her front door. But when a journalist from the Norwegian broadcaster NRK approached her Andrine’s mother plucked up the courage to take a look.The information from Andrine’s phone uncovered a secretive international network of young women and girls who share pictures of self-harm, thoughts about killing themselves and even their suicidal attempts. Many of those in the network have eating disorders, depression or other mental health problems. They don’t trust healthcare workers or doctors, and they communicate using private Instagram accounts.The investigation by NRK has identified at least 15 young women and girls in the network who have taken their own lives in the last three years.So what responsibility does social media – and Instagram in particular - bear for the deaths?If you are affected by the issues in this programme you can find information about support organisations on the Befrienders Worldwide website. https://www.befrienders.org/ Presenter: Catrin Nye Producer: Ed Main(Photo: A close-up of Andrine pinned on a noticeboard. Credit: BBC)

The Brazilian Butt Lift or as it’s more commonly known, the BBL, is one of the most dangerous cosmetic procedures in the world but that hasn’t stopped it becoming one of the most requested.Posts on this type of cosmetic surgery are all over social media which show before and after photos to portray this popular body type.It’s influenced one woman to think about having a BBL. But before she makes a decision, she speaks to social media influencers, her close friends and medical professionals who help guide her through her choice. Are the deadly risks involved in this type of cosmetic surgery worth taking for a big bottom?Originally broadcast 10/5/19Presenter: Anisa SubedarReporter: Lola MosanyaPicture: Credit: BBC

"Go home!"That's what some tourists are being told when they visit the Athens district of Exarchia. It’s been described as an "anarchist enclave", a place where riot police regularly clash with local activists. But it’s also a rapidly gentrifying area where Instagramable coffee shops are adorned with colourful, anti-establishment graffiti. Its central location and cheap property prices mean that Exarchia has in recent years attracted increasing numbers of tourists. This in turn has stoked resentment among some activists, who say the pressures of tourism have driven rents up and pushed long-established residents out of their homes.Radical left-wing groups have called for direct action to stop this trend. They hang banners telling tourists they are "targets", vandalise flats rented out via Airbnb, and post videos of their comrades shouting at visitors to leave. But others in the neighbourhood argue tourism is giving Greece the means to recover from a devastating economic crisis and years of financial austerity.BBC Trending travels to the beating heart of Exarchia to meet residents, activists and tourists. What happens when Instagram hipsters clash with local activists?Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Jessica Bateman Producer: Marco Silva(Photo Caption: Activists stencil a slogan reading "Flats for immigrants not for Airbnb" on a wall in central Athens / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

A revolution is underway in Cuba. The country’s communist leaders, who normally retain tight control of the media, have encouraged Cubans to become more connected online. Internet access used to be the preserve of a privileged (and relatively rich) few. But prices have come down, public wifi spots are popular, and less than a year ago 3G data access became available on Cuban phones.Along with a huge uptake in the internet has come a flood of Cubans signing up to social media accounts. Even President Miguel Diaz-Canel is on Twitter. And unlike staid and traditional state-run media, Cuban social media is relatively open, freewheeling, full of jokes, criticism of the government and, of course, memes.Prices are still high and the government keeps a close eye on dissidents or “counter-revolutionaries”. But online, Cubans are exploring new ways to communicate that would have been unheard of just a few years ago.The BBC’s Cuba correspondent Will Grant and BBC Trending reporter Reha Kansara have been meeting the Cubans at the forefront of their country’s digital revolution. They meet political podcasters, a lesbian activist, a pro-government blogger, a gamer-turned-protester, a dissident journalist and one of Cuba’s biggest YouTube stars. How are Cubans making their voices heard in a way they never have before – and how might social media transform the country?Presenters: Will Grant and Reha KansaraPhoto: A young Cuban standing by the waterfront in Havana accesses the internet on his phone.

Algorithms have shaped the internet as we know it. Complex automated instructions drive search engines and social media platforms, and offer us each a tailored, individualised online experience. Techno-optimists have long looked at artificial intelligence in awe, hoping that machines and algorithms would help humans find solutions for complex problems and remove human bias. But some are more sceptical and argue algorithms not only have human prejudices built into them – but that they are making those biases worse. Robert Elliott Smith is an expert in artificial intelligence and author of the new book Rage Inside the Machine: The Prejudice of Algorithms, and How to Stop the Internet Making Bigots of Us All. He argues that algorithms are prejudiced by their very nature and that, in their search for simple solutions to human questions, they have created divisions among us. He also argues algorithms have amplified our biases and turned many of us into bigots. But are the machines really to blame? Or are they just mirroring who we really are?Presenter: Anisa Subedar Producer: Marco Silva(Photo Caption: Illustration of a woman shouting obscenities / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Recently an app called Zao zoomed up the charts in China. It uses artificial intelligence to allow people to upload themselves into famous movies. One viral clip showed a young Chinese man being transformed into Leonardo DiCaprio in the film Titanic. Although for most people it was harmless fun, the rise of Zao prompted more worrying headlines about “deepfake” technology. The concerns are not that it could be used to make fake movie clips, but instead to make fake news – for instance, viral videos of politicians appearing to utter things they never actually said. While the technology behind deepfakes has been in development for a while, it’s only in the last few years that it has become good enough to trick people on a wide scale, using the power of social media.Some experts say that in that in a year it may be tough to tell which videos on our timelines are real and which ones are fake. We go deep into the world of deepfakes, meet some of the people who are trying to develop methods to detect them and find out just how easy it is to make a deepfake from scratch. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Sean Allsop(Photo caption: A digitised face / Photo credit: Getty Images)

The Medical Medium has millions of followers on social media. He claims he can help cure your chronic illness with home remedies like celery juice. But he doesn’t have any medical qualifications. Instead, he claims he gets his medical information from communicating with spirits. Thousands of people online say he’s helped them. But could his claims be stopping patients seeking the medical help they need. And is the rise of unqualified influencers creating distrust in real doctors? We explore the booming celery juice trend and meet the doctor who is trying to start a counter-movement to get qualified medical professionals to use social media more effectively. Presenter: Jonathan Griffin Reporter: Ione Wells (Photo Caption: Screenshot of the Medical Medium Instagram account / Photo Credit: Instagram)

Algeria is a nation in flux - and it has become an information battleground. In February this year, thousands came out onto the streets to protest against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's decision to run for a fifth term in office. He eventually resigned, but the demonstrators have continued to press for change.Protesters have been using social media to keep up the momentum, but a campaign of disinformation threatens to stop them in their tracks. A flurry of fake news stories has been spreading online, while pro-government trolls have tried to shape the online conversation.Opposition figures have accused the regime of deploying such tactics - but what do we really know about this faceless online army? We delve into a world of online lies and rumours and meet the volunteers helping Algerians distinguish fact from fiction.Presenter: Marco Silva(Photo: An Algerian protester shouts slogans during a demonstration in Algiers on 1 May. Credit: Getty Images)

Some believe red mercury is a mystical elixir with magical healing powers that has survived from the time of the pharaohs in ancient Egypt.Others fear that it is a dangerous nuclear material, which in the wrong hands could bring about the apocalypse.However, red mercury doesn’t actually exist. So why is it being offered for sale on social media?We go in search of the many amazing lives of this mysterious mythical material.Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Sarah Myles Producer: Ed Main(Photo Caption: Illustration of a red splodge / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

How do Chinese social media users navigate government censorship?Months of unrest in Hong Kong have caused concern in mainland China, where news about the pro-democracy protests has been carefully filtered out of social media.It’s common for social media companies in China to remove content that is perceived to be threatening to social stability or the ruling Communist Party.Beijing-based journalist and writer Karoline Kan delves into a world of forbidden words and state-sanctioned influencers.Presenter: Marco Silva(Photo Caption: Illustration of a man pulling the Chinese flag over another person’s mouth / Photo Credit: BBC)

When it became clear Samantha couldn’t give birth to her own children, she and her husband decided to look on social media for pregnant women who wanted to give their babies up for adoption.They got a message from a young woman, who said she was heavily pregnant and wanted them to adopt her child. The couple couldn’t believe their luck. But what followed was more than a month of emotional turmoil.They had fallen prey to a scammer who had promised babies to lots of couples she found on Instagram.We investigate the web of lies and deceit spun by the scammer and explore the emotional toll it took on dozens of hopeful parents. Presenter: Reha Kansara Reporter: Naomi Pallas (Photo Caption: A composite of a family portrait without a child / Photo Credit: BBC)

War-torn countries are having their cultural heritage destroyed with antiquities being looted and sold to generate money. In some cases, the plunder may constitute a war crime.Instability in countries like Syria means some people are taking desperate measures to survive, but some looters have connections to criminal gangs, the Syrian government and terrorist organisations.How has this trade moved online and what is being done to prevent the destruction of cultural heritage? We examine the scale of the looting, how traffickers use the features of platforms like Facebook to facilitate their illegal businesses, and how the western art world could help tackle the issue.Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Sarah Myles(Photo Caption: An April 2019 picture of the adorned arc at the 5th century basilica in Syria's Qalb Lozeh village in the north-western province of Idlib / Photo Credit: Omar Haj Kadour/AFP/Getty Images)

Have you ever wondered what would happen to humanity if we all stopped having babies? The extinction of the human race may be a scary thought to most of us, but not for the “anti-natalists”. They’re a thriving online community based on Facebook and Reddit that firmly believes human life only brings suffering and should therefore come to an end. While some entertain the idea on a purely philosophical level, others say reducing the number of people on Earth is an imperative to combat climate change. So what exactly motivates the anti-natalists? And how seriously should we take some of their rather controversial views and arguments? We have been following their conversations online and spoken to a number of anti-natalists who want a worldwide birth stop now. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Jonathan Griffin(Photo: Red ban sign over baby's picture. Credit: Getty Images)

YouTube has been criticised for failing to take responsibility for videos posted on the platform. So can it be trusted to control potentially harmful content?The video-sharing site is just 14, but there's no doubt it has become a giant of global communication. According to the company's own figures, it has more than a billion users around the globe, watching more than a billion hours of videos every day. At the same time as it has grown phenomenally popular, however, YouTube has also been accused of spreading conspiracy theories and radicalising people into violent extremism. It has also been blamed for allowing hate speech, while failing to protect users from harmful videos.And so it's only fair to ask: can YouTube really be trusted? In a rare interview with the BBC, YouTube UK managing director Ben McOwen Wilson gives us a glimpse into the company’s thinking about the many challenges and controversies it has faced in recent months.Presenter: Marco Silva Reporter: Chris Fox(Photo Caption: a laptop showing YouTube's logo on its screen is held in front of graffiti / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

What does the QAnon conspiracy theory tell us about American politics today? It’s a sprawling set of allegations which has a number of branches and offshoots –but if one thing unites its believers, it’s that they all support President Trump. We meet Dylan Wheeler, an influencer with more than 370,000 followers on Twitter, as he speaks at a gathering of Trump supporters. Although the people in the crowd aren’t all conspiracy theorists, some of them aren’t exactly opposed to such ideas. We hear from experts who tell us that conspiracy theories are a consistent and significant feature of American politics, and they come from the left as much as the right. What, if anything, is different about QAnon?Presenter: Mike Wendling(Photo Caption:: A QAnon supporter holds up a sign outside a rally for President Donald Trump / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Many people who believe the Earth is not round first heard the idea on YouTube. While it’s hard to accurately say how many flat Earthers there are worldwide, it is undeniable that their community has grown in recent years. Flat Earth meet-ups and conventions have popped up in a number of countries, while online searches for the topic have reached unprecedented levels. YouTube hosts thousands of flat Earth videos, some with millions of views. And when you ask flat Earth conspiracy theorists how they got into the movement, they almost always say their introduction came via the world’s most popular video-sharing site. It was on YouTube that many were persuaded to reject centuries of solid science and where they found like-minded people to share their views with. YouTube says it's taking action to address the proliferation of misinformation and conspiracy theories on their platform. The Google-owned company says it’s trying to limit the spread of flat Earth videos (albeit only in the United States so far) and is taking steps to insert factual information among the conspiracy content. But is it all just too little, too late? Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Marco Silva(Photo: 3D illustration of a flat earth model/ Photo credit: Getty Images)

Growing up, Dina – not her real name – would browse social media and imagine a life far from the one she was living. She felt shackled by the rules imposed on her by her parents, religion and the culture of the United Arab Emirates. So one day she escaped, using social media to navigate through networks of people and ex-Muslim communities, to get to the West. Several recent high-profile cases of Emirati women leaving the country have been in the news recently. But Dina’s story is more ordinary and indications are it is becoming more common. We explore why Dina fled the UAE, how she did it and what life is like for her now. Presenter: Reha Kansara Reporter: Sophia Smith-Galer (Photo Caption: Dina, who fled her family in the United Arab Emirates / Photo Credit: BBC)

After a Sudanese protester was killed, there was a wave of sympathy on social media – but scammers took advantage. In early June, 26-year-old activist Mohamed Mattar was shot and killed in Khartoum. He was one of 100 protesters who died in a government crackdown on a sit-in. Blue was his favourite colour, and at the time of his death, the avatar on his social media pages displayed a deep shade similar to the colour of the ocean. Some of Mohamed’s friends and family changed their avatars to the same colour that he used. Within days, a worldwide movement had started: #BlueForSudan. But along with the authentic outpouring of support came scammers who used the trend to harvest likes, shares and followers. So how did “sympathy scammers” exploit the crisis for their own benefit? We speak to the teenage boy who took them on.Presenters: Jonathan Griffin and Reha Kansara(Photo caption: Some of the fake accounts / Photo credit: Instagram)

It was a moment that defined online activism. When tens of thousands of people came out to Cairo’s Tahrir Square to demand the end of the rule of Hosni Mubarak in January 2011, they weren’t responding to a political party or a leafleting campaign – but instead to a Facebook page.It was called “We are all Khaled Said” - in honour of a 28-year-old man who was tortured to death by Egyptian police. It was the moment when the world woke up to the true political power of social media.Wael Ghonim was one of the founders of that Facebook page - but the revolution did not go according to plan. The Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi was elected president, and was then overthrown by the army. He recently died while on trial.A wave of terror attacks, a shaky security situation, a faltering economy, and increasing political repression have rocked Egypt.Earlier this year, Trending visited Wael Ghonim in one of his favourite cafes in San Francisco to talk about technology, politics, and revolution. Have the events in Egypt changed his perspective on technology and politics?Presenter: Mike Wendling(Photo Caption: Wael Ghonim / Photo Credit: BBC)

Online debate is broken – full of angry shouting and mindless agreement. And that’s even before you get to the trolls, lies, misinformation, and fake news. This week we visit Inverness, in the Highlands of Scotland, to meet a man with a plan to fix this problem.Six years ago, when he was a curious, guitar-playing student, Kal Turnbull started a subreddit – a section of the website Reddit - called Change My View. He encouraged people to post their opinions and invite other users to politely argue against them.It took off, and now has more than 700,000 subscribers. And now Kal wants to take the idea beyond Reddit, with a new website – ChangeAView.com – which just launched. We stroll around a very damp Inverness to find out more about his new business, ask Kal about some of the criticisms that have been levelled at it, and look at how online debate became so unhealthy.Presenters: Jonathan Griffin and Mike Wendling(Photo Caption: Kal Turnbull on the banks of the River Ness / Photo credit: BBC)

Nina spends three hours a day on Facebook – not sharing selfies or catching up on news, but trying to make the network a nicer place. She’s a German member of a large and growing international movement called #IAmHere. Started in Sweden in 2016, tens of thousands of volunteers in more than a dozen countries organise in closed Facebook groups.They target popular posts, often from mainstream news organisations, which get overrun by extremism, violent threats and hate speech. Their goal is to inject balance into the conversation with facts and more moderate views.There’s some evidence to indicate that their efforts are starting to have an impact. We’ve been in around Europe visiting #IAmHere’s founder, Swedish journalist Mina Dennert, and several members from the German group – fittingly called #IchBinHier. We find out how they operate – and what motivates people like Nina to spend so much time trying to chip away at such an enormous issue.Presenter: Reha Kansara Reporter: Jessica BatemanPhoto: German #IAmHere volunteer Nina Photo credit: BBC

They were meant to be private, and the people posting them considered them “jokes”. But when female students at the University of Warwick found out about hundreds of violent and obscene messages – some of them directly naming themselves and their friends - they were horrified and scared. We heard from the women who were named in the group chat, and who alleged that a later university investigation fell short of their expectations. The messages came from closed social media groups – and it was a social media campaign which led to a public outcry which changed the direction of the case.Presenter: Jonathan Griffin Reporter: Larissa Kennelly Photo caption: Hands holding a mobile phone / Photo credit: BBC

Why are there so many conspiracy videos on YouTube? The company has clamped down on extremist and dangerous content, but conspiracies, outright fakes, and hoaxes are still very easy to find. Sometimes they’re only watched by a few people, but often these videos go viral. The reason why they so often pop up on your screen, says former Google employee Guillaume Chaslot, is YouTube’s algorithm. Chaslot was one of the engineers who helped shape the YouTube recommendation engine, the mechanism that determines which videos the site suggests you watch next. He was sacked in 2013, and since then he has become a critic of the company. He now says that YouTube’s obsession with keeping people watching has turned the platform into an incubator for false, incendiary, and sensationalist content – and this, in turn, is having a very real impact on the world we live in. Presenter: Marco SilvaPhoto caption: YouTube logo on a smartphone Photo credit: Getty Images

Officials in Brussels are worried. With the elections for the European Parliament rapidly approaching, they say Russia is using disinformation and fake news to sow discord and to undermine people's trust in the European Union. Moscow flatly denies such accusations. But EU officials say Russian disinformation could help anti-EU parties and movements. And, if you were to believe the polls, populist and Eurosceptic parties are indeed likely to increase their number of seats.While the EU talks of a threat that can’t be ignored, others argue that European governments are missing the point: it's not foreign threats they should be tackling, but rather issues such as economic uncertainty, worries over immigration and discontent with traditional politics. So, how seriously should we be taking the EU's warnings? Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Marco Silva(Photo caption: Mural depicting a man chipping a star off of the European Union flag, by British graffiti artist Banksy / Photo credit: Getty Images)

It’s a dangerous cosmetic surgical procedure that’s all over social media. About one in every 3,000 women who undergo a Brazilian Butt Lift - or BBL - will die, but the stark statistics haven’t stopped its popularity. In the United States, for instance, the number of BBLs has doubled in just a few years.Fuelling the trend are social media photos and influencers who show off their hourglass shapes – including big breasts, tiny waists, and a big bottom. It’s a particularly prized body type in some cultures and, in modern times, it’s been popularised by superstars like Kim Kardashian. We follow Shami, a 23-year-old who’s considering having a BBL. Before she makes a decision, she speaks to social media influencers, her close friends, and medical professionals who help guide her through her choice. Will she – or won’t she?Presenter: Anisa Subedar Reporter: Lola Mosanya(Photo caption: artist’s impression of a Brazilian Butt Lift/ Photo credit: BBC)

Where did it all go wrong? The liberating promise of the internet and social media has recently been swamped by worries about privacy, misinformation and online radicalisation. Now that doubts about our digital technologies are all over the news, what should we do about it?Author and podcaster Douglas Rushkoff wants a new fight against “anti-human” technologies. He says that many recent technological developments – including the rise of social media – have alienated and isolated us. Rushkoff is not a Luddite – in fact he’s an enthusiastic early adopter and long-time chronicler of the digital world. But in his new book Team Human, and his podcast of the same name, he argues for a critical look at how technology is affecting our brains and our lives. What does he think is the way forward – and are people really listening? Presenter: Mike Wendling Producers: Jonathan Griffin and Ed Main(Photo caption: Douglas Rushkoff/ Photo credit: Iain Marcks)

There’s a new wave of political activism in South Africa. Young activists with social media savvy have shaken up the system and could be a decisive factor in next month’s general election.We’ve been to Johannesburg to meet Sankara. His day job is selling eggs, and he’s a staunch supporter of the African National Congress (ANC) – the political movement that has been in power ever since Nelson Mandela was elected president 25 years ago.But this time around the ANC’s majority is not looking so certain. One relatively new party, the Economic Freedom Fighters, are looking to boost their share of the vote with more radical policies over land reform and other issues. Their hard-left rhetoric has found an audience among many young people including students like Thapi.The new wave of youth activism has been given a boost by campus movements against rising tuition fees and against alleged bias in education. And so it’s fitting that we brought Sankara and Thapi to meet on the grounds of Wits University to debate the future path of South Africa.Presenters: Jonathan Griffin and Anisa Subedar Producer: Marco SilvaPhoto Caption: ANC member Sankara (left) and EFF member Thapi (right)/ Photo Credit: BBC

Trending investigates claims that innocent men were framed to try to discredit demonstrations against Sudan’s former leader Omar al-Bashir. After mass street protests, the military stepped in to end President Bashir’s 30-year rule earlier this month. But the BBC has uncovered evidence that the regime organised a fake news campaign to try to portray peaceful protesters as violent rebels. Students were allegedly tortured to make false confessions that were filmed and distributed online. However, social media played a critical role in exposing the attempted deception. Presenter: Anisa Subedar Reporter: Owen Pinnell Photo Caption: Demonstrators gather during a rally outside the army complex in the capital Khartoum. Photo Credit: Getty Images.

How did an ambitious musician fool thousands of people using social media?Jered Threatin successfully managed to fake an entire existence as a rock star. He persuaded people he was an award-winning musician who had played to sold-out venues. And as a result of his seemingly popular social media accounts and faked web pages, he orchestrated a European tour, got his eponymous band booked in venues across six countries. The BBC’s Jessica Lussenhop got an exclusive interview with Jered Threatin, and she helps tell the story of how he was able to dupe people, how he was uncovered and why his desire for global success has now made him famous – for all the wrong reasons. Presenter: Anisa Subedar Reporter: Jessica Lussenhop(Photo Caption: Jered Threatin / Photo Credit: BBC)

The video-sharing app TikTok has taken the teenage world by storm. But where there are kids, there are also predators. We found dozens of adults using TikTok to post sexual comments on videos uploaded by teenagers and children. TikTok, which has 500 million users worldwide, says it is working hard to protect its users from inappropriate approaches. But a BBC Trending investigation exposed some worrying shortcomings in the way it deals with the problem. Presenter: Mike Wendling Reporter: Marco Silva(Photo: TikTok logo. Credit: TikTok)

Roger McNamee was a Facebook fan and an advisor to Mark Zuckerberg. Now he says he’s sad about the way the company is being run and the impact that it’s having on the world.Zuckerberg first sought out his advice, McNamee says, in 2006, shortly after Yahoo was making a $1bn bid to buy the social media company. McNamee, a veteran Silicon Valley investor, says he saw Facebook’s potential and urged the young entrepreneur to stay independent. But a decade later, he saw hyper-partisan posts poisoning politics online, and during the late stages of the US presidential election in 2016 he turned from a Facebook booster to a Facebook critic. Roger McNamee recently stopped into a studio to talk to us about his new book, Zucked, and he told us that Facebook, Google and other tech companies have serious flaws which require drastic and swift action. Presenter: Mike Wendling Producer: Edward Main(Photo: Roger McNamee. Credit: Rick Smolan)

Where does the extremist culture that inspired the Christchurch killer come from?A graphic live-streamed video and a rambling document included clues as to how the Christchurch shooter was radicalised. He used the message board 8chan to announce his attacks, which killed 50 people in the New Zealand city. And throughout his online postings are clues to how connected he was with the online culture of 8chan and a related website, 4chan. We break down the online networks used by far-right extremists to disseminate their messages under layers of irony and double meaning. And ask questions about the big social media companies, who’ve been criticised for not taking quicker action – both against the live-streamed video of the attacks and more generally against white nationalist propaganda. Is there anything that can be done online to stop similar attacks in the future?Presenters: Anisa Subedar and Mike WendlingGuests: Robert Evans, investigative journalist, Bellingcat Hussein Kesvani, UK editor, MEL magazine Annie Kelly, digital culture researcher, University of East Anglia Issie Lapowsky, senior writer, Wired magazine Ali Soufan, former FBI agent and chief executive officer of The Soufan Group Abdirahim Saeed, BBC Monitoring’s Jihadist Media Team(Photo Caption: A police officer stands guard inside an Islamic centre in New Zealand during a silence for the victims of the Christchurch attacks / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

Since the election of Donald Trump, there’s been a disturbing wave of street violence across America.The epicentre is Portland, Oregon, a place better known for its chilled out hipster lifestyle – but which has been the scene of dozens of far-right marches and rallies. Those events often result in arrests and violence. BBC Trending went there to meet two activists who have been on opposite sides of the fighting.Anti-fascist activist Luis Enrique Marquez and Rob Cantrall, member of the far-right Proud Boys group, have agreed to meet for a discussion. But will they have any common ground to bridge the political divide?Presenter: Mike Wendling Producers: Linda Sills & Natalia Zuo Editor: Jeremy Skeet(Photo Caption: A far-right protester in Portland / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

There is a disturbing new wave of political street violence in America. Groups on the far right and the far left have clashed in New York, Berkeley, California, and Charlottesville, Virginia. But one liberal enclave is the main battleground: Portland, Oregon - a progressive city in the Pacific north-west.BBC Trending has visited Portland to meet two activists who have traded insults and threats online, as well as confronting each other in the streets. What drives anti-fascist Luis Enrique Marquez? And why has marijuana farmer Rob Cantrall joined the Proud Boys, which one anti-extremism organisation has dubbed a hate group?Presenter: Mike Wendling Producers: Linda Sills and Natalia Zuo(Photo: Anti-fascist activists line up in front of police in Portland. Credit: Getty Images)

After she got a death threat, Ginger Gorman dove headfirst into the world of trolls.It all started when she wrote a light feature about a gay couple who had adopted a child. Years later, the couple were arrested on child sexual abuse charges, and although she had no knowledge of their crimes, internet trolls swarmed to attack her – even sending her and her family death threats.Where some would run away and hide, Ginger became fascinated with the world of online trolling and spent five years researching a dark and dangerous online world for a new book. Not only did she gain insight into the psyche of a troll but one notorious troll actually became her friend. But what are the implications and consequences of trolls on the people they target? And should social media companies do more about the people who post online threats on their platforms?Presenter: Anisa Subedar(Photo Caption: Ginger Gorman / Photo Credit: Ginger Gorman)

Recently, printers around the world started spewing out pages without any direction from their owners. Then a mysterious video showed up on smart TVs. Both hacks were designed to promote PewDiePie, the most popular vlogger on YouTube, in his battle to maintain subscriber supremacy against popular Indian channel T-Series.The hackers say they did it to expose the flaws and dangers in some connected devices, but they also got the attention of the YouTube star – as well as the authorities, and trolls who sent them threats. The BBC’s cybersecurity correspondent Joe Tidy tracked down the hackers and joins us in the studio to tell us what he found out. After the pranks make worldwide news, the pair decided to disappear from the internet for fear of reprisals. Do they now regret hacking?Presenter: Anisa Subedar Reporter: Joe Tidy(Photo Caption: YouTuber PewDiePie / Photo Credit: Getty Images)

There is no independent media in Eritrea, a country that ranks near the very bottom of press freedom indexes. But one man is trying to change his country’s repressive system. “J” is the editor of Eritrean Press, a Facebook page which is a mix of political reporting, satire, sport, and light features. It’s an almost unique development aimed at Eritrean readers both inside the country – where only around 1% of the population is able to access the internet – and the wider diaspora around the world. In his first-ever interview, the editor of Eritrean Press talks about what it’s like to run a news outlet from outside the country, and how a peace agreement caused his page’s stance to shift - from broad support of government foreign policy to a sharply critical line on President Isaias Afwerki’s regime. Reporters: Reha Kansara and Mike Wendling Producers: Reha Kansara and Ed Main(Photo Caption: The Eritrean Press logo with a silhouette of man talking into a microphone / Photo Credit: BBC/Eritrean Press)