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Author Helen Fielding has begun work on a third Bridget Jones novel, 13 years after its predecessor.
With a new film and a musical based on the singleton in the pipeline, Helen Fielding turned to the world of texting and Twitter to help her write a new “scenario for Bridget”.
“I’m having a lot of fun, and it’s very funny and it’s making me laugh,” she said.
Bridget Jones was born out of a weekly column in The Independent in 1995.
The first two books, Bridget Jones’ Diary and The Edge of Reason, sold more than 15 million copies and inspired two films, with Renee Zellweger in the starring role.
After living in Los Angeles for much of the past decade, Helen Fielding returned to London two years ago with her two children – and it was then that she rediscovered the voice of Bridget.
“After the unexpected success when it first came out, I was startled by the whole thing,” she said.
“When I first wrote it I didn’t think anyone would read it. It was just a column in the Independent, so it was very easy to write and be very honest – and then I got all self-conscious because I knew so many people would read it.”
Author Helen Fielding has begun work on a third Bridget Jones novel, 13 years after its predecessor
However, in spring of 2011, Helen Fielding hit upon a way forward.
“I had new stuff I wanted to say and things that were making me laugh,” explained Helen Fielding.
“Things that didn’t exist when I wrote the last Bridget, like emails really, and texting, the way life is lived through texting and Twitter, and a whole new idea for a phase of her life.”
“It’s more like <<number of Twitter followers: 0. Still no followers. Still no followers>>. But she has grown up,” explained Helen Fielding, who revealed the book will be set in present day London.
“My life has moved on and hers will move on too,” she said.
“She’s still trying to give up [drinking and smoking], she’s still on a diet.
“She’s trying a bit harder, and is a bit more successful, but she’s never really going to change.”
Admitting she is scared by the idea of bringing out a new book, Helen Fielding claims she is still getting great enjoyment from writing it: “If people laugh as much reading it as I am while writing it, then we’ll all be very happy.”
The second film adaptation, The Edge of Reason, was released in cinemas eight years ago, with a further film sequel Bridget Jones’ Baby due for release in early 2013.
Colin Firth and Hugh Grant are set to return as Mark Darcy and Daniel Cleaver.
Helen Fielding said it has taken a long time to get the film right, describing it as “a different, earlier story, not based on a novel – it started with some columns I wrote in the Independent about six years ago.
“I think with a third installment [of the film] the stakes are very high. We all go back a long way, we’re all really fond of each other and everyone really wants to get it right, but that means there are a lot of voices, a lot of writers.
“Getting Bridget right, I always think it’s like a little duck – in the end it needs to skim effortlessly along the surface, but underneath the legs are going really, really fast.”
The third film has been delayed over script issues – and the musical is still very much a work in progress, according to Helen Fielding.
“It’s been huge fun and will take ages because musicals do. It’s herding butterflies, people move off and then come back together again but I think it’s going to be fantastic when it does happen.”
Many of Americans were upset when Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney lost the election and most of them used social media to post shockingly racist tweets against President Barack Obama.
A map collected by Floating Sheep, a collective of geography academics, shows the shocking demographic of racist “hate tweets”, many of them collected from states that were won by Mitt Romney.
The majority of the tweets, as Jezebel noted, were often from young white residents in southern states.
One male user wrote on Election Day following Romney’s loss: “Ok we pick a worthless n***** over a full blooded American what the h*** has our world come its (sic) called the white house for a reason.”
Another wrote: “F*** you, Obama. Your (sic) a stupid n***** and you don’t do anything good for our country.”
Using geodata called DOLLY (Data On Local Life and You), Floating Sheep mapped out tweets beginning November 1. They then calculated the percentage of each state’s so-called hate tweets in relation to the gross number of tweets coming out of that state.
Their results showed that states like Arkansas and Mississippi were relatively inundated with racist tweets. However, they measured only the quantity of tweets, noting that a lone Twitter user could be sending out dozens of vitriolic tweets all on their own, thus adding to the location-inspired measure, or LQ.
A map collected by Floating Sheep, a collective of geography academics, shows the shocking demographic of racist hate tweets after Barack Obama re-election
The map also reveals other southern states like Tennessee, Georgia, and the Carolinas had their fair share of people tweeting bigoted things. Floating Sheep noted that both the East and West coast had a lower number of such tweets.
The site noted, too, that the phenomenon wasn’t only in the south – a series of racist tweets trickled up the Eastern Seaboard, and could also be found in Utah and Missouri.
While it was not openly addressed by the candidates on the campaign trail, political pundits have insisted that demographics and race played a huge role in helping Barack Obama keep the White House.
On Election Day, a riot broke out at The University of Mississippi – known as Ole Miss – as more than 400 students yelled out racial slurs and burned Obama-Biden campaign posters after the Democratic incumbent was crowned the victor.
Emotions ran high among the angered college conservatives in Oxford, Mississippi, with university police being called in shortly after midnight to diffuse the crowd.
The incident began as a small gathering of frustrated voters, meeting to share their misery at Barack Obama getting another four years in office, shortly after midnight.
But word soon spread over social media and the crowd began to swell to hundreds of students, yelling out racial slurs, chanting anti-Obama rhetoric and some reportedly throwing rocks at cars.
Police were called and told the crowd to go home but their presence only attracted more attention and the mass began to multiply.
Two students were arrested in the fracas, one for public intoxication and one for failure to comply with police orders, the university confirmed.
“Disperse or go to jail,” University Police Department officers told the crowd, according to the student newspaper, The Daily Mississippian.
But Ole Miss student Nicholas Carr tweeted that the whole thing was being overblown, saying that more people were taking pictures of the so-called riot than actually joining in on the chanting.
“I was there the whole time. No rocks were thrown. There was 1 sign lit on fire. For about 45 seconds,” Nicholas Carr wrote.
“Mostly, it was 100s of college kids who heard the word riot and ran to take pictures and see what it was about. Again, no rocks or missiles thrown.”
But the school’s administration confronted students on Wednesday and blasted Tuesday’s behavior as “a very immature and uncivil approach to expressing their views about the election”, University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones said in statement.
“The gathering seems to have been fueled by social media, and the conversation should have stayed there.”
Thousands of Twitter users around the world have received emails warning their account has been compromised by a third party.
Some accounts had been compromised, but other users had received the emails after Twitter had unintentionally reset unaffected passwords, the company said.
The mass email coincided with incidents involving several high-profile accounts.
Other media organizations, such as the TechCrunch blog, reported being warned.
Twitter gave no indication of the cause or source of the compromise, and would not share details of the size of the issue.
Thousands of Twitter users around the world have received emails warning their account has been compromised by a third party
In a statement, Twitter said: “When we believe an account may have been compromised, we reset the password and send an email letting the account owner know this has happened along with information about creating a new password. This is a routine part of our processes to protect our users.
“In this case, we unintentionally reset passwords of a larger number of accounts, beyond those that we believed to have been compromised.
“We apologize for any inconvenience or confusion this may have caused.”
Some users who received the email noticed that some of their tweets had been deleted, while others said spam links had been posted without their knowledge – a typical characteristic of a compromised account.
British comedian David Mitchell tweeted that he had received the email, and that a tweet he had written publicizing his column in the Observer newspaper had been removed.
Some users criticized Twitter’s email, suggesting it looked like a “phishing scam” – a message that impersonates an official email in an attempt to trick users into giving up personal details.
Justin Bieber, the world’s richest self-made teenager, has now 47 million Facebook fans, 29 million Twitter followers and three billion YouTube hits.
As the world’s first social-media superstar, Justin Bieber, 18, built up a fan base of millions before he’d even signed a record deal.
His world record puts him ahead of Lady Gaga, Rihanna or Eminem.
“The genius of Justin Bieber is he used the power of social media like no other artist – and he doesn’t stop,” said Simon Cowell.
“Only a fool would underestimate him.
“I’ve met him a few times. He’s bright. The kid is more in charge than people think. I know this industry, I know what it takes, and he will be around for a very long time,” added Simon Cowell.
With a fortune estimated at $105 million – which is set to double in the next two years on the back of a world tour, a movie and the returns from numerous investments – Justin Bieber is part teenage heart-throb, part superstar businessman.
His latest album, Believe, topped the charts in the U.S. and throughout Europe, and his tour is sold out.
This amazing success has brought him a $6 million, 10,000sq ft house north of LA, a Disney-princess girlfriend, Selena Gomez, and a $750,000 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van customized with three high-definition TVs and a recording studio. About the only thing lacking in his fairy-tale world is a private jet.
“No way,” he says emphatically.
“It’s a total waste of money. You buy the plane, then you have to pay for storage, and on top of that you have to think about the fuel, the cost of the fuel – that’s maybe $4,000.
“Even hiring a private plane is like 50 or 60K. Once you get into that it becomes a habit – a bad habit.
“I’ll get one when I need it – if I have to go somewhere instantly – but you don’t want to buy a plane; it’s definitely not worth it.”
What makes this exchange truly surreal isn’t the fact that Justin Bieber barely even shaves yet – but that he’s only out by $100 on the cost of a tank of jet fuel.
“I never stop working,” says Justin Bieber.
“In what I wanted to do in music I’ve never had any fear. But now I’m at the top there’s nowhere to go but down; for me it’s about staying standing at the top.
“I’m not a kid any more – I’m an adult, I’m making the decisions and I want to keep on growing, and I believe I can.”
Unlike, for example, Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus and Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber didn’t spring fully formed from a major TV show.
Instead, aged 12, he appeared from nowhere – or more precisely, from YouTube, where his mother, Pattie Mallette, posted videos of her son singing in a local competition and in their tiny basement apartment in the blue-collar town of Stratford, Canada.
Justin Bieber has now 47 million Facebook fans, 29 million Twitter followers and 3 billion YouTube hits
Justin Bieber’s backstory is straight out of a Hollywood script. Troubled teen (Pattie Mallette) gets pregnant by her on-and- off boyfriend (Jeremy Bieber).
At 18, Pattie Mallette gives birth, and – besotted by her baby – turns her back on drugs and alcohol and embraces Christianity.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Bieber, 19, languishes in jail for assault. Jeremy Bieber and Pattie Mallette eventually separate.
At the age of two, Justin Bieber starts playing the drums, and soon he’s astounding his mother’s friends with his natural talent.
A hyperactive child, he teaches himself to play the guitar, piano and trumpet too, and begins performing in his home town.
Then, when Justin Bieber was 13, talent manager Scooter Braun spots him on YouTube. Scooter Braun flies him and his mother to Atlanta, attracts interest from R&B star Usher and gets him a record deal with Usher’s mentor LA Reid.
At 16, Justin Bieber’s debut album goes double platinum. His dad reforms and settles down, and his mother tours the world with him.
“What happened was I found something I wanted to be good at,” says Justin Bieber now.
“I wasn’t good at school because I had no passion for it. If I hadn’t found music my life would have been bad.
“My family are all poor, so the cycle would have continued. My kids would have been poor, and their kids would have been too. I feel I broke the cycle, and when you get to break the cycle, you don’t go back.”
Justin Bieber was originally painted as a pretty puppet, with Scooter Braun, now 31 and worth $23 million, pulling the strings.
“That’s the greatest misconception of me,” he smiles.
“People think I’m a product, that they found this good-looking kid, cut his hair nice and put Auto-Tune on his voice, wrote him good songs, taught him how to dance and then said, <<Here is a pop star for you>>.
“I am the furthest thing from that. I’m a musician; I play instruments, I write songs. I’m a businessman; I want to create an empire. I want people to know I don’t just sing songs. I’m the guy who signed the girl who just had the biggest single all round the world [Carly Rae Jepsen with Call Me Maybe; he brought her to the attention of Scooter Braun, who gave him a 50% cut when he signed her].
“I’m going to do movies – I’m talking with Mark Wahlberg about my first big movie. I invest in start-ups and IT. I have a very smart manager, but I always wanted to learn from him.
“The education I’ve had you couldn’t get in any school. If I want to be good at something I will be. I’m good at this.”
With all his money and fame Justin Bieber can do anything, except walk down a street without being mobbed. You wonder how he gets his thrills.
“On stage,” he says.
“Playing a song acoustically.”
President Barack Obama has enjoyed a surge in Facebook “likes”, thanks to a co-ordinated social media campaign.
His team paid for “Sponsored Stories” to appear in some users’ Facebook news feeds – regardless of whether they wanted to receive them.
President Barack Obama’s page received more than one million “likes” in a single day – compared with about 30,000 per day in earlier weeks.
But some observers warned the approach could frustrate and dissuade voters.
It comes at a time when both President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney are stepping up their efforts on social media.
The opponents each have a presence on a host of digital communities, including streaming music service Spotify, image-sharing network Pinterest and the Facebook-owned picture network Instagram – where Mitt Romney has been busy posting pictures of himself at home with his family.
But users were quick to voice their annoyance as President Barack Obama campaign advertisements and messages appeared within Facebook news feeds.
“Why is Barack Obama on my Facebook newsfeed?” wrote a young female user from Illinois.
“I’m getting really sick of those Obama ads sponsored on my Facebook page,” wrote another.
Barack Obama has enjoyed a surge in Facebook “likes”, thanks to a co-ordinated social media campaign
One user, in a message directed at President Barack Obama’s Twitter account, demanded: “Quit trying to promote yourself on my Facebook and Twitter feeds. I never <<liked>> or <<followed>> you.”
Dr. Sandra Gonzalez-Bailon, from the Oxford Internet Institute (OII), said that this kind of campaigning was part of a transition period – which Facebook users may take some time to get used to.
“Before there were physical spaces where people discussed politics – the public sphere has been reconfigured,” she said.
The growth comes as Barack Obama and Mitt Romney look to ramp up their use of digital and social media ahead of November’s vote.
In 2008, Barack Obama’s campaign was praised for its innovative use of social media to engage young, often first-time, voters.
This time around, the efforts have been stepped up a notch. Both candidates have invested in getting good placement on both Facebook and Twitter – with campaign teams placing ads that appear whenever a certain word, such as “debate”, is searched for by a user.
President Barack Obama took to answering questions on popular link listings site Reddit – a move that went down well with the site’s clientele but was dismissed as a quick-win publicity stunt by his detractors.
The president has even had his team place adverts within video games. The top-selling American Football title – EA’s Madden NFL 13 – had images advertising President Barack Obama’s website, voteforchange.com.
Other EA titles – including the classic Tetris – were also used to promote Obama’s campaign.
Mitt Romney’s campaign team told American broadcaster NPR they too had used video games for advertising.
Both campaigns would have hoped that swamping the digital world with their “message” was a surefire election hit. However, research conducted by the University of Pennsylvania suggested a different picture.
Of 1,503 internet-using American adults surveyed by the university’s school of communications, 86% said they did not want to receive political messages tailored for them, and 70% said seeing ads from a candidate they already supported would in fact decrease their chance of voting for them.
“The findings represent a national statement of concern,” said Prof. Joseph Turow, lead researcher on the study.
“We have a major attitudinal tug of war – the public’s emphatic and broad rejection of tailored political ads pulling against political campaigns’ growing adoption of tailored political advertising without disclosing when they are using individuals’ information and how.
“Our survey shows that in the face of these activities, Americans themselves want information.”
Sandra Gonzalez-Bailon said that politicians – and indeed anyone using social media to advertise – must be wary of a “red line” that should not be crossed when dealing with worries of intruding into people’s private digital lives.
She recounted an incident in 2004 when Italy’s then-prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s office sent out text messages reminding people to vote in upcoming elections – causing a political row in the process.
“Receiving a text message on your mobile was a way more serious transgression of your private sphere than seeing a sponsored ad on Facebook,” she said.
Sponsored story spat
President Barack Obama’s campaign team used Facebook’s Sponsored Stories function to place their paid-for messages.
However one lawsuit, which the social network has been fighting since 2011, said the feature was violating Californian law by publicizing users’ “likes” without compensation or a way to opt-out.
Facebook’s proposed settlement in the case amounts to $20 million and would allow for individual users covered by the ruling to claim up to $10 each in compensation from the company.
The proposed settlement also outlines new ways of making it easier for children on Facebook to opt-out of the Sponsored Stories feature.
Two members of punk-rock group Pussy Riot, who are being sought by Russian police, have fled the country, the band’s Twitter account says.
Three members of the group were jailed this month for staging an anti-Vladimir Putin protest in a Moscow cathedral.
The pair who fled has not been named but the husband of one of the jailed women said the duo had taken part in the cathedral protest in February.
Many in the West condemned the Pussy Riot sentences as disproportionate.
However, the Kremlin has rejected accusations by musicians and some governments that the case was politically motivated.
Two members of punk-rock group Pussy Riot, who are being sought by Russian police, have fled the country
Maria Alyokhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich were found guilty of “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred” and jailed for two years.
The Twitter account called Pussy Riot Group said: “In regard to the pursuit, two of our members have successfully fled the country! They are recruiting foreign feminists to prepare new actions!”
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova’s husband, Pyotr Verzilov, told Reuters news agency: “Since the Moscow police said they are searching for them, they will keep a low profile for now. They are in a safe place beyond the reach of the Russian police.”
He suggested that this meant a country that had no extradition arrangement with Russia.
Pyotr Verzilov told Reuters: “Twelve or even 14 members who are still in Russia actively participate in the band’s work now, it’s a big collective.”
The jailed women are appealing against their sentences.
Following the verdict, Russian police said they were actively searching for other members of the group who had taken part in the cathedral protest.
But they gave no names and did not say how many were being sought.
The jailed women said their performance of a “punk prayer” on 21 February in the Christ the Saviour Cathedral had been to highlight the Russian Orthodox Church leader’s support for Vladimir Putin.
Their brief, obscenity-laced performance, which implored the Virgin Mary to “throw Putin out”, enraged the Orthodox Church.
Kris Jenner was out with daughter Khloe Kardashian and her friend of 18 years, Nicole Richie, last night.
The group was at a Mexican restaurant and they were clearly in good spirits as they donned festive sombrero hats.
At what appeared to be the beginning of the night, the trio had chips and dip at their table plus a huge cocktail glass accompanied the snacks.
While Nicole Richie and Khloe Kardashian displayed large grins on their faces, 56-year-old Kris Jenner‘s relaxed facial expressed seemed to indicate she was getting a little worse for wear.
In one shot posted afterwards, Kris Jenner flaunted her ample chest for her over two million Twitter followers.
Kris Jenner flaunted her ample chest for her over two million Twitter followers
Opening up her black blazer and low-cut top she posted the caption on Twitter, via her Instagram account: “TWITTER OR TITTER??”
While some fans found the stunt funny and other issued insults Kris Jenner hit back: “Obviously hacked!!!!!!!!! Duh!!!!!”
But her daughter quashed her get-out clause and replied: “How are you hacked when you are posing for your own pictures???? LOL @KrisJenner drunkie.”
In other images the mother-of-six children could be seen screaming at the camera and gesturing the peace sign with a smile on her face.
As the designated driver for the night, a sober Khloe appeared to be having fun through her tipsy parent, judging by her series of tweets.
Last night she shared on the micro-blogging website: “Is it wrong to take advantage of your drunk mother???? Hummmmm.”
This morning Khloe Kardashian added: “I wonder if my mom has a hangover today?”
It seems Kris Jenner isn’t so coy after all despite suggesting she can’t watch her behavior back on showing of her E! show.
Kris Jenner admitted her own marital dust-ups with husband Bruce Jenner have made it particularly hard for her to watch this season of Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
The Kardashian matriarch told Us Weekly: “I watch it back and I’m like, <<Oh my God, I can’t watch>>. It’s so crazy painful that I can’t watch it.”
“Bruce and I are okay and that’s all that matters,” Kris Jenner said.
“The kids understand. It’s just hard to watch. I just can’t wait until Season 8!”
Kim Kardashian revealed her diet secrets as she shared another picture of herself in a bikini on her Twitter page, showing off her toned curves in a sexy purple two-piece.
Kim Kardashian, 31, said in a recent interview: “I used to eat a ton of junk food, but there are plenty of fast food places that offer healthy options, so there’s no excuse for eating badly all the time.
“Although, when I go out for dinner, I eat what I want. You can’t spend your life worrying about calories.”
Kim Kardashian later shared another picture of herself in the bikini, with the caption: “#nofilter #nophotoshop.”
Kim Kardashian revealed her diet secrets as she shared another picture of herself in a bikini on her Twitter page
She has been keeping her fans updated with her diet and exercise regime on her Twitter page.
And earlier this week Kim Kardashian tweeted that she was keen to tone up, writing: “Back on my workout grind!”
Kim Kardashian’s bikini pictures came after she was subjected to abuse on Twitter over her weight.
After she received comments surrounding her figure, and the size of her derriere on the micro-blogging site, sister Khloe Kardashian came forward to defend her sibling.
Khloe Kardashian wrote on Twitter: “Still get disgusted by how people judge others by weight. Either <<fat>> or <<skinny>>. Nothing is ever good enough…
“Throwing stones behind a screen. If you must judge a person. Try judging their soul. My brick walls are getting higher and higher.
“U can’t love any1 else until u know how to love urself first. The good, bad, ugly, beautiful…. Love yourself deeply. The rest is easy.”
Twitter is facing a user backlash after suspending the account of journalist Guy Adams, who had criticized NBC Universal’s coverage of the Olympic Games.
NBC Universal had complained that Independent newspaper correspondent Guy Adams had posted the email address of one of its executives.
But Guy Adams has alleged the complaint was only made after Twitter had alerted NBC to his message.
Twitter said it “does not actively monitor users’ accounts”.
However, the social network refused to discuss Guy Adams’s case, saying “it was company policy not to comment on individual users” for privacy reasons.
Twitter formed a partnership with NBC ahead of the Games to create a page highlighting messages from NBC personalities, athletes and fans during the event.
The broadcaster paid $1.18 billion for the US broadcast rights to the Olympics.
Twitter is facing a user backlash after suspending the account of journalist Guy Adams, who had criticized NBC Universal's coverage of the Olympic Games
Several users have retweeted the executive’s email address in protest at the suspension.
Guy Adams – who is based Los Angeles – posted a message last Friday criticizing NBC’s decision to broadcast the Games’ opening ceremony with a time-delay in order to target a prime-time audience.
On the US’s east coast it was shown with a three-and-a-half hours delay, on the west coast the gap was up to six-and-a-half hours.
This caused problems for users who enjoy swapping comments about major events on social network sites.
“The man responsible for NBC pretending the Olympics haven’t started yet is Gary Zenkel. Tell him what u think,” Guy Adams tweeted, referring to NBC’s Olympics president.
He also included Gary Zenkel’s business email address in the message.
Guy Adams said when he checked his account on Sunday he had received a message saying it had been suspended.
NBC Sports subsequently released a statement confirming it had called for the action.
“We filed a complaint with Twitter because a user tweeted the personal information of one of our executives,” it said.
“According to Twitter, this is a violation of their privacy policy. Twitter alone levies discipline.”
Guy Adams then published an article saying a Daily Telegraph journalist had forwarded him an email from NBC.
He quoted an NBC spokesman as saying: “Our social media department was actually alerted to it by Twitter and then we filled out the form and submitted it.”
Twitter’s terms and conditions say posting another person’s private and confidential information, including “non-public, personal email addresses” is a violation of its rules.
But Guy Adams said he had done nothing wrong, as the address he had used was a corporate one based on the same system used by NBC’s other employees and could easily be worked out by “anyone in possession of 30 seconds of free time and access to Google”.
Many Twitter users have come out in support of Guy Adams.
“Scandal that someone should be banned for voicing an opinion,” tweeted London-based Nicholas Pritchard.
“I think Twitter’s suspension of Guy Adams’ account hurts its own brand. A lot,” posted George Maschke from the Netherlands.
Among the critics were others involved in the media industry.
“Twitter’s suspension of @guyadams jars with company’s claim to be the free speech wing of the free speech party,” wrote the Guardian‘s special projects editor Paul Lewis.
“I wouldn’t have posted the email address. But Twitter’s removing his account was outrageous,” added Dan Gillmor, from the Arizona State University’s school of journalism.
Several users posted internet links to websites that had previously published Gary Zenkel’s contact details. Some also reposted the executive’s email address to Twitter.
NBC has highlighted that a record 40.7 million people watched its coverage of the opening ceremony, saying it was “a great early sign that our strategy of driving people to watch NBC in prime-time is working”.
Apple is reportedly considering buying a stake in Twitter worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The technology giant, which has stumbled on the social media front, has been in talks with Twitter in recent months about the strategic investment, according to The New York Times.
Apple’s hefty injection of funds would value the social networking powerhouse at more than $10 billion, up from an $8.4 billion valuation last year, the newspaper’s sources said.
Apple has had huge success selling its iPhones and iPads but has had little traction in the fast-growing social media world.
As social media, accessed on computers and mobile devices, increasingly influences how people spend their time and money, Apple, which also sells applications, games, music and movies, is keen to get in on the action.
Apple is reportedly considering buying a stake in Twitter worth hundreds of millions of dollars
The New York Times said it’s not a done deal and the companies are not in negotiations at the moment. But are likely to form a strong partnership against intensifying competition from the likes of Google and Facebook.
Facebook is aligned with Microsoft, which owns a small stake in it, and Google, which rivals Apple in the smart phone market, is pushing its own social network, Google Plus.
“Apple doesn’t have to own a social network,” Timothy D. Cook, Apple’s chief executive, said at a recent technology conference.
“But does Apple need to be social? Yes.”
Twitter and Apple have already been working together, with the technology leader embedding Twitter features into its software for phones, tablets and computers.
Meanwhile, Twitter has been working to bolster its relationship with Apple, according to The Times.
An investment in Twitter would not be a big financial move for Apple, which has $117 billion in liquid investments, but it would be one of Tim Cook’s most important strategic decisions since taking the helm after Steve Jobs’ stepped down due to illness.
For Twitter, having the backing of a tech icon like Apple would see its valuation shoot up overnight.
Like that of other start-ups, the company’s valuation has languished in the wake of Facebook’s lackluster market debut.
But Twitter does not need Apple’s cash injection. Earlier this year, chief executive Dick Costolo, said the company had “truckloads of money in the bank”.
The Times’ sources reckon this “truckloads” adds up to more than $600 million in cash on hand thanks to a healthy flow of advertising revenue.
Both Apple and Twitter refused to comment in the article, but Dick Costolo said of Apple in a recent interview: “Those guys are a great partner. We think of them as a company that our company looks up to.”
Parts of Twitter became inaccessible today, in the eve of Olympic Games opening, before thousands of fans are expected to start tweeting.
The Twitter.com site was unreachable for almost an hour, and continued to suffer intermittent faults thereafter.
The service was still accessible via its mobile site and other applications.
In a message to users, the company said: “Howdy folks, looks like we’re experiencing a small interruption of Twitter.com and some mobile clients.“
On its network status page, the company wrote: “Our engineers are currently working to resolve the issue.”
The Twitter.com site was unreachable for almost an hour, and continued to suffer intermittent faults thereafter
It is not yet known what caused the fault. Users that could access the service reported that shortened URL links included in tweets were not working properly.
Twitter is expected to be one of the main social networks to be used by both fans and athletes during the Games.
Sporting events regularly attract the service’s biggest audience.
During Spain’s Euro 2012 win, there were over 15,000 tweets every second.
For London 2012, there are over 2,000 verified Olympians – past and present – that are signed up to use the service.
Downtime plagued Twitter during its early years, but subsequent investment meant the site has become more reliable.
Last month, Twitter blamed a “cascading bug” for causing “turbulence” on the service which made the site slow or inaccessible for about two hours.
At the time, Mazen Rawashdeh, the site’s vice president of engineering, apologized to users but praised the site’s recent reliability record.
“For the past six months, we’ve enjoyed our highest marks for site reliability and stability ever: at least 99.96% and often 99.99%.
“In simpler terms, this means that in an average 24-hour period, twitter.com has been stable and available to everyone for roughly 23 hours, 59 minutes and 40-ish seconds.”
Chirp, a new app that transmits data via a burst of “digital birdsong”, aims to simplify the way users share images and other files between smartphones.
Chirp plays a two-second long noise that sounds as if it was made by a robotic bird. When heard by other devices it triggers a download.
The software was developed by Animal Systems, a spin-off business from University College London (UCL).
It is free to use, but companies will be charged a fee for add-on services.
At the moment users are limited to sending pictures, website links or 140-character text messages. These appear in a feed similar to Facebook’s timeline.
Other applications such as Android Beam, Bump, Datasync and Dropbox allow users to swap material via bluetooth, wi-fi or links to cloud-based storage.
But Chirp has the advantage that it can quickly send data to multiple devices at once without them needing to be either paired or have a wireless connection.
If recipients are offline their devices will remember the “chirp” and download associated content later.
Chirp transmits data via a burst of "digital birdsong" and aims to simplify the way users share images and other files between smartphones
“We are pretty sure this is unique,” said Patrick Bergel, the firm’s chief executive.
“We solve the problem of having to pair devices to move data. It’s fairly novel to be able to transmit information to anyone who is in earshot – a large number of devices can share the same information at the same time using sound.
“You can also use it as a device shifting mechanism. In the future you will be able chirp yourself a link to a map from your laptop.”
Patrick Bergel says Chirp’s distinctive sound allows it to work at low volumes in relatively noisy locations such as pubs, clubs or busy streets.
It can also work over public address systems or radio transmissions – potentially allowing broadcasters a way to send up-to-date pictures or links to background information; or an advertiser to send coupons or snippets of a song or promotional video.
Animal Systems subscribes to a “blacklist” service to prevent users transmitting known pornographic or illegal-content website links. However, it does not plan to moderate other material.
The application works by uploading a user’s material to the firm’s servers. The data is then identified with a 50-bit address space: one of trillions of available identifiers.
This location is then sent to the sender’s device. When the user presses a button in the app it plays an audio-encoded version of the address.
Data has long been passed between machines in the form of sound, including recordings on tapes used to load programs into 1980s home computers and early modems dialling into networks.
Even so, Patrick Bergel said he had taken steps to prevent others copying his product.
“We have a systems patent on moving short codes over the air,” he said.
“We have [also] solved a lot of difficult problems. There’s a lot of technical issues around moving data and making it robust against noise and echoes.”
Having launched the app the five-man team behind it will now focus on offering premium services to marketers and other businesses.
Patrick Bergel said these could include:
• A guarantee that uploaded content would be permanently kept on the firm’s servers.
• Access to analytical data letting firms track whose devices have “listened” to their chirp.
• The ability to send video messages that play within the Chirp app.
Patrick Bergel said the ultimate goals was to see manufacturers pre-install Chirp on handsets.
However, he must first convince users that they need the service at a time when wi-fi, 4G data and advanced bluetooth connectivity are becoming increasingly common.
For now Chirp is only available as an iPhone app. An Android version is promised “soon”.
Twitter blames a “cascading bug” for rendering the social networking site inaccessible yesterday.
Users from around the world reported difficulties logging on to the site after problems started at about 17:00 BST.
The service was affected for around two hours while engineers sought to solve the issue.
In a blog post, Twitter dismissed reports it had been hacked, and offered “sincere apologies” to its users.
“A cascading bug is one with an effect that isn’t confined to a particular software element, but rather its effect “cascades” into other elements as well,” explained Mazen Rawashdeh, the site’s vice president of engineering.
“One of the characteristics of such a bug is that it can have a significant impact on all users, worldwide, which was the case today.
“As soon as we discovered it, we took corrective actions, which included rolling back to a previous stable version of Twitter.”
Twitter blames a "cascading bug" for rendering the social networking site inaccessible yesterday
Mazen Rawashdeh described the situation as “turbulence”.
“We began recovery at around 10:10 a.m., dropped again around 10:40 a.m. PDT, and then began full recovery at 11:08 a.m. PDT.”
Twitter’s last major downtime in the UK was on New Year’s Day when the site crashed after becoming overloaded.
In its earlier days, Twitter was famed for its flaky reliability, with its “fail whale” cartoon – which was displayed when the site was overloaded – becoming a regular sight for users.
However, added investment into the service has resulted in better stability, Mazen Rawashdeh wrote.
“For the past six months, we’ve enjoyed our highest marks for site reliability and stability ever: at least 99.96% and often 99.99%.
“In simpler terms, this means that in an average 24-hour period, twitter.com has been stable and available to everyone for roughly 23 hours, 59 minutes and 40-ish seconds.
“Not today though.”
Sina Weibo, China’s biggest Twitter-like microblogging platform, is introducing a membership charge for premium features.
For a monthly fee of 10 yuan ($1.57) its 300 million users can add personalized pages, voice posts and better security, among other services.
The move could help return the firm to profit. It posted a $13.7 million loss for its first quarter in May.
One analyst called it a “bold move”, adding Twitter was unlikely to follow.
Sina Weibo is introducing a total of 15 added VIP features, according to the Tech in Asia blog.
It said the move built on other recent innovations added to the platform including social games and a virtual currency called Weibi.
One Beijing-based business consultant noted the decision to charge fees had followed government pressure on the business to boost efforts to filter out illegal posts by some of its members, increasing its costs.
Sina Weibo, China's biggest Twitter-like microblogging platform, is introducing a membership charge for premium features
“Weibo has become an indispensable tool to Chinese netizens, although some argue of late that it has become less compelling due to the restrictions,” said Duncan Clark, chairman of BDA.
“But for Sina of course ultimately its aim is not to run the service as a charity.
“This could be a tricky situation – if they push too far to monetize they could tarnish their brand, but if they don’t succeed in converting all this traffic to commercial value then it’s ultimately unsustainable in the long term.”
While the move may prove a success for the Chinese firm, independent media analyst Mark Mulligan suggested it would be a mistake for western social networks to follow at this point.
“It’s a very brave move, and I do not think it is likely that Twitter would follow a similar route, certainly not at this stage,” he said.
“In order to start charging for something that people expect to be free, a company has to be very confident of its market position.
“Any social tool faces competition – Facebook has done a lot trying to emulate microblogging with its timeline features. If Twitter tried to [introduce fees], Facebook would capitalise on that and try to implement a much richer set of services entirely free.”
He added that the dynamics were different in China and Sina Weibo might not be afraid of competition since other domestic web giants, such as Tencent and Renren, had also introduced membership fees for some add-on services.
A spokeswoman for Twitter said the firm did not comment on other companies, adding that its business model remained based on advertising.
Lady Gaga became the first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter as she immediately tweeted her gratitude to fans yesterday.
“#25milliontweetymonsters wow! I’m officially feeling like the luckiest girl in the world today,” the singer wrote.
Lady Gaga, 26, has more than two and a half million followers more than her nearest competitor, Justin Bieber, who has 22.5 million.
The singer is one of eight pop stars in the top ten most followed people on Twitter, with Barack Obama and Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey making up the final two.
Lady Gaga was also the first person to reach the milestones of 10, 15 and 20 million followers respectively on the social networking site.
She has won legions of fans with her outlandish costumes, including the infamous meat dress which she famously wore to the 2010 MTV awards.
Lady Gaga became the first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter as she immediately tweeted her gratitude to fans yesterday.
Lady Gaga, real name Stefani Germanotta, has a special relationship with her fans, dubbing them “little monsters” and herself “mother monster”.
However, she suffered a setback this week when she was forced to cancel a concert in Indonesia after Islamist hard-liners threatened violence, claiming her sexy clothes and provocative dance moves would corrupt the nation’s youth.
The singer has since moved on and was spotted strolling around Bangkok in a typically outlandish dress made of black PVC last week.
THE MOST FOLLOWED CELEBRITIES ON TWITTER
1. Lady Gaga – 25 million
2. Justin Bieber – 22.5 million
3. Katy Perry – 20.4 million
4. Rihanna – 19.7 million
5. Britney Spears – 17.2 million
6. Shakira – 16.3 million
7. Barack Obama – 16 million
8. Kim Kardashian – 14.8 million
9. Taylor Swift – 14.5 million
10. Nicki Minaj – 12.2 million
Source: twittercounter.com
Weibo, “China’s Twitter”, has introduced a code of conduct explicitly restricting the type of messages that can be posted.
China’s biggest microblogging service took the action after local authorities criticized “unfounded” rumors posted by some users.
Reports suggest a credit score system will also be introduced with points deducted for rule breaches.
Repeat offenders face having their accounts deleted.
Weibo’s parent, Sina Corp, says it has more than 300 million registered users.
Users are reported to start with 80 points – they gain more by taking part in promotional activities, but lose points if they break any of the rules.
It is reported that if a subscriber’s points fell below 60 a “low credit” warning would appear on their microblog, leading to the possible cancellation of their account if it hit zero. If they “behaved” for two consecutive months their score is reported to return to 80.
“This is a sign of the authorities trying to restrain the internet in China, but a hardcore group of people will still find ways to get round the restraints,” said Dr. Kerry Brown, head of the Asia Programme at the Chatham House think tank.
“There is a tradition of indirect criticism in which people make points using coded references. I very much doubt these rules will change anything.”
The news was first reported in the western press by The Next Web which quoted from a translated version of the rules created by an anonymous group of volunteers.
Weibo, “China's Twitter”, has introduced a code of conduct explicitly restricting the type of messages that can be posted
The “community convention” says its members may not use the service to:
• Spread rumors
• Publish untrue information
• Attack others with personal insults or libelous comments
• Oppose the basic principles of China’s constitution
• Reveal national secrets
• Threaten China’s honor
• Promote cults or superstitions
• Call for illegal protests or mass gatherings
It adds that members must not use “oblique expressions or other methods” to circumvent the rules.
Users have sometimes abbreviated names or used code words to avoid detection in the past.
The Tech in Asia blog noted that Sina did not invent the rules.
“They are pulled directly from Chinese law and are applicable to Weibo posts regardless of whether Sina includes them in a user contract or not,” it said.
However, it added that Sina Corp’s credit score system was an innovation.
A committee made up of experts and Sina Weibo subscribers will be charged with enforcing the rules.
Sina – and its competitors Baidu and Tencent – were ordered to ensure all their members registered their real identities by March. However, Sina later admitted it had not fully implemented the order.
Last month Chinese officials forced Sina and Tencent to suspend users’ ability to comment on each other’s posts for three days after allowing rumors to spread.
The official news agency, Xinhua, reported that the sites “pledged to strengthen management” afterwards.
Authorities have been critical of false reports spread through microblogs including news of the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, and stories of a military coup that tried to overthrow Chinese President Hu Jintao.
Chinese social media has also been pressured to filter posts featuring words associated with controversial events.
When the former Communist Party’s Chongqing chief, Bo Xilai, was stripped of his Politburo post several sites would not deliver results for searches featuring his name.
Twitter is objecting at a New York state court order to hand over the message history of Malcolm Harris, one of its users who is an Occupy protester.
The court has called on Twitter to release tweets written by an activist who took part in the Occupy Wall Street protests last year.
The micro-blogging service disputes a judge’s ruling that messages are owned by Twitter rather than its users.
The American Civil Liberties Union commended the company for defending free speech rights.
Twitter’s lawyer, Ben Lee, said: “Twitter’s terms of service make absolutely clear that its users <<own>> their own content. Our filing with the court reaffirms our steadfast commitment to defending those rights for our users.”
The case centres around Malcolm Harris, managing editor of the New Inquiry website.
Malcolm Harris was arrested on 1 October along with hundreds of other campaigners during a march across Brooklyn Bridge.
Malcolm Harris was arrested on 1 October along with hundreds of other campaigners during a march across Brooklyn Bridge
Prosecutors claim tweets by Malcolm Harris would reveal that he was “well aware of police instructions” ordering protesters not to block traffic.
Malcolm Harris’s lawyer had tried to block access to the postings, but a judge ruled that once the messages had been sent they became the property of Twitter, meaning the defendant was not protected by Fourth Amendment protection against unlawful search and seizure.
Twitter’s lawyers argued that the judge had misunderstood how the service worked, noting that the Stored Communications Act gave its members the right to challenge requests for information on their user history.
“This is a big deal,” said the American Civil Liberties Union in a blog post.
“Law enforcement agencies… are becoming increasingly aggressive in their attempts to obtain information about what people are doing on the internet.
“If internet users cannot protect their own constitutional rights, the only hope is that internet companies do so.”
One media analyst said Twitter’s action also reflected its wider desire to avoid becoming caught up in litigation.
“Twitter, like any internet service provider, wants people who upload material to be responsible – it doesn’t want to be in a position where it has to review all of the tweets,” said Benedict Evans from Enders Analysis.
“It sees itself as being like an email provider and doesn’t want to have to worry about issues of copyright (and) libel about other matters relating to what people post.
“That said, it can’t totally avoid the issue. We have seen cases of US courts forcing email providers to hand over evidence, and Twitter has access to the data.”
Demi Moore has finally dropped Ashton Kutcher’s name on Twitter as she changed Mrs. Kutcher to @justdemi.
Demi Moore, 49, and Ashton Kutcher, 34,who often used the micro-blogging site to post pictures of themselves and proclaim their love for one another, announced the end of their marriage in November.
In April, Demi Moore asked her followers on the site for suggestions for a new Twitter handle.
TV personality Piers Morgan suggested: “How about (at)mrsmorgan?”
Demi Moore said she would “have to get clever” because so many names on the popular site have already been claimed.
The actress wrote yesterday: “So hard finding a name that was fun somewhat playful and available. So for now it will be @justdemi It could grow on me!”
Demi Moore has finally dropped Ashton Kutcher's name on Twitter as she changed Mrs. Kutcher to @justdemi
Demi Moore also thanked fans for helping her find a new name.
“Thanks everyone for your help in finding my new name!” she wrote.
The star has nearly 5 million followers on Twitter.
Demi Moore announced her intention to divorce from Ashton Kutcher last November – although proceedings are yet to be executed by either party.
It followed claims Ashton Kutcher had cheated on her with partygirl Sara Leal during a seedy night in San Diego.
Demi Moore checked out of Utah’s Cirque Lodge in March, where she was allegedly treated for eating disorder issues, exhaustion and substance abuse.
Last month the actress returned to Twitter after a spell away from the social networking site she once so regularly frequented.
Demi Moore uploaded a bizarre picture of herself from an elevated angle with the caption: “Testing….”
She was seen lying on her bed with her shoes on and the snap shows her glasses, nose and chin and her legs.
Meanwhile her estranged husband Ashton Kutcher has been linked to his former That ’70s Show co-star Mila Kunis.
Last night Kim Kardashian shared her beauty secret, by posting a picture of herself on Twitter.
In the shot, Kim Kardashian, 31, is seen with some kind of yellow-based primer smeared all over her otherwise make-up free face.
The reality star posted the picture with the caption: “Glamming up with @1maryphillips!!! A little confused by her new technique BUT I know it will be fab!”
Celebrity make-up artist Mary Phillips counts Kim Kardashian, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Lopez and Salma Hayek among her famous clients.
Kim Kardashian later tweeted a shot of the finished look, writing: “Flash a little bright but here’s the after pic!!!”
While it is not clear exactly what kind of product was used on Kim Kardashian's face, it appeared to be some kind of color-correcting primer
She was having her make-up done ahead of attending the Jeep Brand and USA Basketball celebration of the launch of the 2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Altitude at LA Center Studio.
While it is not clear exactly what kind of product was used on Kim Kardashian’s face, it appeared to be some kind of color-correcting primer.
Yellow-colored primer is usually used to disguise under-eye circles and mild red tones on the face.
Despite the fact that Kim Kardashian has long been an advocate of experimenting with make-up, she has also posed make-up free in the past – describing the experience as “empowering”.
The reality star said: “Make-up is fun, but it’s just another accessory.
“Posing make-up free is really empowering. Why not show people what I really look like?
“I’m happy with myself, and this is who I am.
“As much as it’s fun to glam up, the most important thing is to be comfortable in your own skin – with or without makeup.”
Pinterest clones have flooded China’s web world – only months after the original social photo-sharing website reached massive popularity.
Pinterest has recently surpassed 10 million users, in record time.
Copying it seems to be the latest cloning trend in China – a country known for copying the designs of everything from shoes and cars to iPads and tech start-ups.
Tech blogs say there are about 20 Chinese clones of Pinterest already.
Some copycats modify the original site’s design only slightly, while others go a step further.
Several have taken the basic idea of “pinning” and sharing theme-based photos a bit further, for example changing the interface to allow online shopping.
Tech blogs say there are about 20 Chinese clones of Pinterest already
In China, locals joke that they have much more choice of products than in the Western world – and in a way, they do.
Local markets offer anything and everything that looks like the original version, but often with subtle differences.
And the online world is no stranger to cloning.
For instance, in 2011 copycats of a social network Tumblr were popping up here and there, with one of the most popular clones being Diandian.
Even a major Chinese Facebook clone, Renren, and China’s microblogging site Sina Weibo, dubbed a hybrid of Facebook and Twitter, launched their own Tumblr-type blogs – Renren Stations and Qing.
But in the second half of 2011, Pinterest clones started to emerge.
One of the most recent ones is Alibaba Group’s social shopping platform Fa Xian.
It was launched only four weeks ago in a test mode, but already has some 60,000 viewers a day.
Just like Pinterest, it lets users “pin” images of items on virtual pinboards, where others can then post comments.
But with a different twist, Fa Xian lets people shop, too – anything pinned on the platform is available for purchase through two Alibaba-operated websites, Taobao Mall and Taobao Marketplace.
Besides Fa Xian, two other Pinterest clones have proved a huge success in China – Mogujie.com and Meilishuo.com.
But instead of letting users “pin” images from anywhere on the web, they only offer content from China’s biggest e-commerce site, Taobao.com.
On Mogujie, visitors can buy items as well.
And just like sharing “pinned” Pinterest images on Facebook and Twitter, Chinese clones allow you to share on Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo, another Twitter copycat.
There are other Pinterest clones that, just like the original website, do not allow users to shop and open the entire web space for “pinning” images.
They include Qihu 360’s, Woxihuan.com, Huaban.com and iCaitu.com.
Frances Bean Cobain has slammed her mother Courtney Love’s Twitter rant accusing Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl of “hitting” on her estranged daughter.
Frances Bean Cobain, 19, told Lifeline Live: “While I’m generally silent on the affairs of my biological mother, her recent tirade has taken a gross turn.”
The teenager added: “I have never been approached by Dave Grohl in more than a platonic way. I’m in a monogamous relationship and very happy. Twitter should ban my mother.”
Courtney Love, who is estranged from her only child, made the accusations on her private Twitter account on Wednesday night.
She claims that her daughter’s roommate told her that Dave Grohl – who is known as one of the nicest men in rock – “hit on Frances”, according to Gawker.
Dave Grohl, 43, is, for the uninitiated, the former Nirvana bandmate and best friend of Frances’ father, Kurt Cobain.
He has therefore known her since she was a baby.
Dave Grohl responded to Courtney Love’s accusations in a statement, he said: “Unfortunately Courtney is on another hateful Twitter rant. These new accusations are upsetting, offensive and absolutely untrue.”
After the initial incredible allegation, Courtney Love went on to threaten a Twitter account she obviously believed belonged to Dave Grohl, although it is actually linked to a German IT worker who hasn’t tweeted since 2008, according to the website.
Frances Bean Cobain has slammed her mother Courtney Love's Twitter rant accusing Dave Grohl of trying to seduce her
Courtney Love talked about Dave Grohl’s “pathology”, insisting that Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins resembles Kurt Cobain and is in the “submissive drummer position” in his hugely successful band.
It has to be noted that Taylor Hawkins actually looks more like Dave Grohl, albeit with Kurt Cobain-coloured straw blonde hair.
Courtney Love also argued that the fact Dave Grohl called one of his daughters Violet is salient, as a Hole song shares the same name.
However, his eldest child, who turns six on Sunday, was named after Dave Grohl’s maternal grandmother, as he’s stated in many interviews.
The happily married rocker also has daughter Harper, who turns three next week, by his wife of nine years, Jordyn Blum.
Dave Grohl is one of the most beloved artists in the world, and unusually for a rock star, all the tales about him relate to his generous and moral character.
Unencumbered by actual facts, however, Courtney Love also accused Dave Grohl of being “sexually obsessed” with Kurt Cobain then relayed information from a driver who claimed that Grohl had “his hands all over” Frances in his car.
The singer also insisted that Dave Grohl, who grew up in a suburb of Washington D.C, has tried to seduce her in the past.
This is far from the first time Courtney Love has attacked Dave Grohl.
Last November, Courtney Love started ranting about him taking food from her child’s table at a festival in Brazil after a fan flashed a poster of Kurt Cobain in the audience.
It’s alleged they clashed over Nirvana copyright issues, yet Dave Grohl has kept his counsel about Courtney Love and his friend.
Courtney Love has also accused singer Ryan Adams of ripping her off after getting confused about a connection she had with a member of his production crew, the Ashes and Fire star had to release a statement setting the facts straight.
And she lambasted former lover Steve Coogan, even accusing him of being a causal factor in his friend Owen Wilson’s suicide attempt.
Frances Bean Cobain filed a restraining order against Courtney Love in 2009, after it was granted she chose initially to live with her maternal grandmother and now has a residence in Los Angeles where she lives quietly away from the spotlight with her fiancé, Isaiah Silva.
Courtney Love’s private Twitter account, @cbabymichelle, is locked from the public, but Gawker has posted a screen capture collecting all of her tweets from last night.
Bobbi Kristina Brown has broken her silence on Twitter for the first time since December 26 to admit her romance with Nick Gordon.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, and Nicholas Gordon, 22, are proud to be together.
“I’ve proved my loyalty to [Krissy] and the Houston family,” Nick Gordon tweeted on March 13.
“I don’t owe any of you anything. Ha I don’t even know y’all haters. And Kriss is doing really well, I’ve been so happy with her strength.”
Nick Gordon went on to say discuss that he is not blood related to Bobbi Kristina: “For the stupid ppl out there she gave birth to 1 child. And she trusted me with EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Bobbi Kristina Brown has broken her silence on Twitter for the first time since December 26 to admit her romance with Nick Gordon
Bobbi Kristina Brown tweeted for the first time in three months about her relationship with Nick Gordon. The 19-year-old retweeted tons of positive tweets about her relationship by fans.
“@ndgordon I don’t understand why the world is so against LOVE!!!” Bobbi Kristina tweeted.
“Let @ndgordon love and support @REALbkBrown! Stop hating people.”
Bobbi Kristina Brown also retweeted this comment from a fan: “@ndgordon its no ones business what you and @REALbkBrown do. If people don’t understand that’s their problem. Do what makes you happy.”
Kim Kardashian shared a picture of her dressed-down look on her Twitter page.
Kim Kardashian, 31, is seen baring her washboard stomach in a pair of loose jogging bottoms and cropped sports top as she poses and pouts for the camera.
The reality star accompanied the shot with the caption: “Sweatpants hair tie chillin with no make up on (sic)!”
And despite looking less than red carpet ready in the outfit, Kim Kardashian still managed to look as picture perfect as ever in the shot, taken in her bathroom.
Kim Kardashian shared a picture of her dressed-down look on her Twitter page
In a previous interview, Kim Kardashian said that she doesn’t like to rely too much on make-up to look good.
Kim Kardashian said: “Make-up is fun, but it’s just another accessory. I’m happy with myself, and this is who I am.
“As much as it’s fun to glam up, the most important thing is to be comfortable in your own skin- with or without make-up.”
Kim Kardashian’s sexy dressed-down photo came after she spent the evening with sisters Kendall, Kylie and Khloe.
Kim Kardashian's sexy dressed-down photo came after she spent the evening with sisters Kendall, Kylie and Khloe
Earlier in the night, Kim Kardashian had tweeted a picture of the family group, writing: “Family dinner tonight! I love my sissy’s!!!”
One person missing from the shot, however, was the pregnant sister Kourtney, with Kim Kardashian later tweeting her: “You were late to dinner! LOL.”
Kim Kardashian posted a series of photos to her Twitter account to show her new hairdo after dyeing her locks a lighter shade.
Kim Kardashian, 31, was shooting a campaign for the Kardashian Kollection lingerie line, and she made sure she was the perfect advert for the range as she posed for her Twitter snaps in nothing but a coral colored bra.
The reality star amped up the sex appeal by posting a photo of herself wearing just the underwear, with the caption: “Photo shoot fresh! All about corals for spring swimwear.”
Kim Kardashian then sent an almost identical but slightly less revealing snap of herself in an untied fluffy white bathrobe, with her hair partially covering her cleavage.
The second shot was accompanied by the words: “Last shot of the day! On set of our Kardashian Kollection for Sears shoot!”
But while Kim Kardashian’s Twitter followers would have been focused on her ample curves, the businesswoman was more interested in her new hair color.
Kim Kardashian was shooting a campaign for the Kardashian Kollection lingerie line and she posed for her Twitter snaps in nothing but a coral colored bra
Shortly after the photo shoot, Kim Kardashian posted yet another photo to the social networking site.
Kim Kardashian’s assets were again clear for all to see, but the star simply asked her fans what they thought about her new hue.
The reality star wrote: “I dyed my hair lighter yesterday! I’m loving it! New hair color=new beginnings for me You like?”
But it hasn’t all been fun and photo shoots for Kim Kardashian after the star recently had to deal with a trespasser on her property, it has been reported.
According to TMZ, a stranger appeared at her Beverly Hills mansion over the weekend with several suitcases and requested to stay in her home.
TMZ claims it was told by a source that police officers were called to the house and the man in question told them he had a job interview lined up with the reality star.
The man was reportedly given a trespassing warning by the police, who then allegedly drove him back to the airport so that he could book a flight home.
Kim Kardashian was also using her famous curves to promote her latest venture earlier in the day, after she posed topless with her sisters Khloe and Kourtney in a campaign for their denim line.
The three sisters can be seen intertwined while wearing nothing but their range of jeans, another strand of the Kardashian Kollection for Sears.
Kim Kardashian was also using her famous curves to promote her latest venture earlier in the day, after she posed topless with her sisters Khloe and Kourtney in a campaign for their denim line
Kim Kardashian posted the racy image to her website and wrote: “Kourt, Khloe and I decided to go natural for our Kardashian Kollection denim shoot with Nick Saglimbeni and pose in only our favorite jeans! What do you think of the pic? I think it’s such a beautiful shot and Khloe and Kourtney both look so stunning! Xo”
They unveiled a campaign for the line last week, which saw each of them sporting a pair of jeans named after them, along with identical fitted white shirts.
However the reality stars then decided to generate further buzz for their denim line by releasing the new image, which shows them protecting their modesty with their arms as they pout seductively for the camera.
McDonald’s became the subject of an outburst of vitriolic hatred on Twitter when critics hijacked a promotional hash-tag created by the fast-food giant.
The critics accused McDonald’s of making customers vomit, serving pig meat from gestation crates and dishing up a burger containing a finger nail.
One fierce opponent claimed he would rather eat his own diarrhea than visit the famous Golden Arches.
Jumping on the social media bandwagon, McDonald’s last week launched a campaign featuring paid-for tweets, which would appear at the top of search results.
An initial hashtag, “#MeetTheFarmers”, meant to promote the corporation’s guarantee of fresh produce, concentrated on wholesome stories about farmers.
McDonald’s tweeted: “Meet Dirk Giannini, McDonald’s lettuce supplier, as he shows u his life on the farm #MeetTheFarmers http://mcd.to/AyvF4M”
All was humdrum until 2:00 p.m. last Wednesday when the global chain sent out two tweets with the more general hash-tag “#McDStories”.
Some marketing whizzkid proclaimed: “When u make something w/pride, people can taste it,” – “McD potato supplier #McDStories http://t.co/HaPM5G9F”
But within minutes the tweets began to go radically off message, as the hash-tag took on a life of its own.
McDonald's became the subject of an outburst of vitriolic hatred on Twitter when critics hijacked a promotional hash-tag created by the fast-food giant
Detractors seized on “#McDStories” as an opportunity to document their alleged horror stories at the Golden Arches.
@jfsmith23 wrote: “Watching a classmate projectile vomit his food all over the restaurant during a 6th grade trip. #McDStories”
One of the worst was @MuzzaFuzza who wrote: “I haven’t been to McDonalds in years, because I’d rather eat my own diarrhea.”
Followers chimed in including @nelo_taylor who wrote: “These #McDStories never get old, kinda like a box of McDonald’s 10 piece”
Social media director Rick Wion told paidcontent.org: “Within an hour, we saw that it wasn’t going as planned,
“It was negative enough that we set about a change of course.”
However the campaign wasn’t a complete failure.
The “#meetthefarmers” hashtag, which escaped the battering, stimulating mostly positive tweets, has stayed put.
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