We always talk about what’s trending, but what does that even mean?

We always talk about what’s trending, but what does that even mean? It turns out the answer to that question is dubious at best. YouTube decides by analyzing “view count, the rate of audience growth, and the age of the content”—so a video that accumulates views quickly outranks the rest. Twitter’s algorithm takes into account who’s watching with location and more, while Facebook’s is “fully automated.” Unfortunately chalking “trending” up to an automated system means fake news and other inappropriate content slips through the cracks. (Select All)