Mia Sato Profile and Activity

Platforms & Communities Reporter, The Verge

Mia Sato is a reporter at The Verge covering tech companies, platforms, and users. Since joining The Verge in 2021, she’s reported on the war in Ukraine and the spread of propaganda on TikTok; Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter; and how tech platforms and digital publishers are using artificial intelligence tools.

Sato has written about tech platforms and communities since 2019. Before joining Vox Media she was a reporter at MIT Technology Review, where she covered the intersection of technology and the coronavirus pandemic. Prior to that she served as the audience engagement editor at The Markup. As a freelance reporter, she’s written about the subversive Hmong radio shows hosted on conference call software, online knitting activism, and the teens running businesses in Instagram comment sections. Her work has appeared in outlets like The New Republic, The Appeal, and Chicago Magazine. She is based in Brooklyn.

Got a tip? Contact her at mia@theverge.com or email for her Signal number.

mia@theverge.com

Mia Sato Jun 7

MrBeast’s charity’s latest video was funded by Koch money.

The video “We Schooled Hundreds of Teachers” was funded in part by Stand Together, an organization founded by right-wing billionaire Charles Koch, reports Fast Company.

The video profiles Ron Clark Academy, a private school in Atlanta. For decades, the Koch family has worked to undermine public schools. “Education alternatives” are one of Stand Together’s key issues.

MrBeast took money from a Koch organization for a YouTube video - Fast Company

[Fast Company]

Mia Sato Jun 7

Threads might end up using normal hashtags after all.

The platform’s “tag” feature is different than traditional hashtags — users can tag phrases, not just words, and the # symbol disappears once the tag is added.

App researcher Alessandro Paluzzi reports Meta is experimenting with displaying the # symbol. It’s a small change, but could potentially help when crossposting to the fediverse, which currently breaks the added Threads tag.

Creators

Twitch announces a program allowing DJs to split revenue with record labels

Mia Sato

Jun 6|

Politics

Israel reportedly used fake social media accounts to influence US lawmakers

Mia Sato

Jun 5|

Tech

A new Google Maps layer shows public restrooms in NYC

Mia Sato

Jun 4|

Mia Sato Jun 3

Can Etsy survive in a Temu world?

Handmade marketplace Etsy is fighting for customers as shoppers turn instead of ultra cheap retailers, The Information reports. One problem is that Temu products are often listed for more money on Etsy.

Etsy sellers have long complained about drop shipped items infiltrating the site. It was a key issue in the 2022 seller strike and subsequent organizing efforts.

How Etsy is Trying To Win Back Shoppers Amid Rise of Temu and Shein

[The Information]