Police seek US suspect accused of committing murder on Facebook

CHICAGO - Police on Sunday were searching for a gunman they said murdered a man live on Facebook in the US state of Ohio.

Officials in the city of Cleveland said the suspect, Steve Stephens, 37, shot his 74-year old victim at random -- a cold-blooded killing which was livestreamed on the internet.

"Suspect did broadcast the killing on Facebook Live and has claimed to have committed multiple other homicides which are yet to be verified," Cleveland police wrote on Twitter.

At a press conference late Sunday, authorities urged Stephens to turn himself in.

"Everyone is out there looking for Steve. We want this to end with as much peace as we can bring to this right now, and we want him to turn himself in," Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams told reporters, adding that local authorities were working with the FBI and regional law enforcement.

"We have all of our partners in on this, and we'll look until we find him," Williams said.

Mayor Frank Jackson told reporters police were still trying to communicate with the suspect.

"We want to communicate to him that we know who he is, and that he will eventually be caught. And that we're saying to him that he need not do any more," said Jackson.

Stephens was at large after fleeing in a white Ford Fusion with temporary license plates, police in the midwestern US city said.

Some local media reported that he had boasted on Facebook of killing more than a dozen people in an Easter Day massacre, but authorities said there was no indication of a broader killing spree.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Police arrest boy, seek others in 'Facebook live' rape case

Police in Chicago have arrested a 14-year-old boy and are seeking a 15-year-old in connection with the gang rape of a teenage girl that was broadcast on Facebook Live, authorities said Sunday.

Police were working to identify other suspects -- the Facebook video, since taken down, showed as many as six -- but the trauma suffered by the 15-year-old victim was complicating the investigation, area commander Brendan Deenihan told a news conference.

"She's just having a difficult time even communicating what occurred to her," Deenihan said, adding that the teen had been cyber-bullied by people belittling her ordeal, and that her family had received threats.

More arrests were expected soon, he said.

The girl went missing on March 19 in the crime-plagued midwestern US city. She was found two days later and taken to a children's hospital for treatment.

Police got involved when the girl's mother approached Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson at a neighborhood meeting, showing him graphic photos taken from the Facebook video showing several young men assaulting the teen.

The 14-year-old suspect faces at least three juvenile felony charges, including aggravated criminal sexual assault, police said Sunday. Juvenile suspects are generally not named.

It was the latest in a series of troubling incidents in which violent acts have been streamed live on Facebook, including two fatal shootings and the kidnapping and torture of a disabled 18-year-old.

The social networking site said in a statement after the Chicago rape case that it took seriously its "responsibility to keep people safe on Facebook."

Police said several social-media search warrants had been issued in the case and that Facebook was cooperating.

The live online video attracted as many as 40 viewers at one time, but no one contacted police.

"It just disgusts me that people could look at those videos and not pick up the phone and dial 911," Johnson said at the news conference.

"It makes me wonder, where are we going, what are we doing as a society?"

Chicago has been grappling with a surge in violent crime. Last year, the city endured its highest number of shootings and murders in nearly two decades, drawing attention from Donald Trump, first as Republican candidate, then as president.

Much of the violence is concentrated in a few impoverished areas, including the one where the teenage girl lives.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

New York Times surpasses 100 million views on Facebook Live

NEW YORK - Presidential politics and celebrity interviews helped The New York Times Co surpass 100 million views for its Facebook Live videos, the company said on Wednesday.

Facebook launched its live-streaming platform in August of 2015 and it is in its infancy. The New York Times has used Facebook Live to showcase its journalism, hoping to reach potential subscribers as the newspaper publisher relies more heavily on digital to grow its revenue.

It was not clear how much revenue The New York Times has derived from producing these videos.

Multiple media outlets reported that Facebook was paying certain media companies to produce Live videos through a one-year period from March 2016 to March 2017. The Wall Street Journal also reported that The New York Times was being paid around $3 million for the one-year period.

A New York Times spokeswoman declined to comment on any financials or the Wall Street Journal report. A Facebook spokesperson confirmed the company has been offering "temporary financial support" to a "relatively small number of companies" to produce videos.

The Times said it reached the 100 million views benchmark earlier this month. Comparative figures were not available for how the New York Times ranks against similar publishers, including The Washington Post.

The Times got more 5 million views on its live-stream of the first presidential debate between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton. There were 3.9 million views for a concert by Erykah Badu and another popular Times live-stream featured singer-actress Kristin Chenoweth.

Digital is becoming more important for many major U.S. media companies, particularly the New York Times, where print advertising revenue has been in freefall. During its most recent quarter, ad revenue from print slid 18.5 percent from the previous year, accounting for just 22 percent of its total revenue, said chief executive Mark Thompson during the Nov. 2 earnings call.

Digital ad revenue, which saw a 21.4 percent rise, now accounts for 35.5 percent of revenue at the New York Times. During that same earnings call, chief revenue officer Meredith Kopit Levien said video was becoming more of a factor in growing digital ad revenue.

(Reporting by Tim Baysinger; Editing by David Gregorio)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Facebook expands live video, challenging TV and web rivals

SAN FRANCISCO/LOS ANGELES - Facebook Inc. on Wednesday expanded its live video product, Facebook Live, giving the feature prominent placement on its app and rolling out features to make it easier for users to search and comment in real time.

The move is the biggest challenge yet by Facebook to online rivals, including Twitter Inc's Periscope live-streaming service, Snapchat's video features and Alphabet Inc's YouTube, as well as a potential threat to broadcast television.

Live video is becoming a highly competitive feature on social platforms, with companies competing to stream major sports events and exclusive video components from high-profile events such as the Oscar and Grammy awards shows.

Advertisers are particularly attracted to video that reaches a younger audience.

Facebook Live, which offers streaming video in real time, was launched last year. On Wednesday, it added features, including a map of video streams around the world, expanded search and filters that echo those on other platforms. Videos can be turned into black-and-white shots, like on Facebook's Instagram, for instance, and soon users will be able to add doodles, a nod to a feature on Snapchat.

Product head Chris Cox hosted a live video session Wednesday to advertise the product, and said Facebook hopes it will be used for everything from intimate family moments, such as a baby's first steps, celebrity-hosted question-and-answer sessions and breaking newscasts.

At a Facebook Live launch event in Hollywood on Wednesday, Will Cathcart, Facebook's vice president of product, told Reuters that the company has paid some partners to supply video in order to get Live off to a quick start, although he expected media companies would make money from advertising and other services longer term.

Time Inc has been paid to use Facebook Live, a source with knowledge of the partnership told Reuters. Vox Media Inc's eight brands, which include Vox and Re/code, also have been paid by Facebook, another source told Reuters.

Re/code tech news site said Facebook is paying The New York Times, BuzzFeed and the Huffington Post, as well.

Thomson Reuters and Conde Nast Entertainment also will work with Facebook Live, spokespeople said. Thomson Reuters is the parent of Reuters News.

Facebook's app now features Live prominently in the display bar for many users on iOS and Android across 60 countries.

While Facebook's News Feed has long had videos, largely shared from other websites such as YouTube, the company had not heavily pushed its own video products.

Its executives have, however, advertised the 1.6 billion-person social media site's video reach on earnings calls. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told investors in January that 500 million people watch videos on Facebook every day.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com