What’s Trending Today: Bluesky vs. Twitter, Biden’s 2024 Bid, Fake AI Interview

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Social Buzz, a daily column looking at what’s trending on social media platforms. I’m Caitlin Fichtel, an editor on Bloomberg’s Breaking News team, which monitors everything from company statements to tweets from some of the most prominent people in the financial world. Here’s your daily look at what the internet is talking about.

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Bluesky vs. Twitter

Twitter users, weary from another tumultuous weekend, are exploring Jack Dorsey-backed app Bluesky as a possible alternative to the social media network. The invite-only Bluesky has been downloaded by iPhone users 245,000 times, of which more than half came this month, according to Data.ai. This year, the app started inviting users from its waiting list — which numbered more than a million people when Elon Musk bought Twitter in October — to test a beta version, although it’s limiting users for now.

Biden’s 2024 Bid

President Joe Biden formally announced that he would seek reelection in 2024, readying a historic campaign against a Republican field dominated by his predecessor while economic uncertainty clouds his case for a second term. Biden, 80, implored voters to let him “finish this job” he began when he took office and put aside any worries about his age. He said there is still work to do to give Americans a “fair shot” and beat back “extremists” in the Republican Party who want to cut government spending and curb abortion rights.

Fake AI Interview

A German magazine promoted an interview with retired Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher, claiming it was his first since suffering a severe head injury from a skiing accident in 2013, but the responses were actually generated by artificial intelligence, The New York Times reported. The magazine’s editor in chief was fired because of the article, a spokesperson for Die Aktuelle’s publisher told the newspaper.

Down Syndrome Barbie Doll

Mattel Inc. introduced a Barbie doll with Down syndrome to “allow even more children to see themselves in Barbie,” the company said in a statement. The company worked closely with the National Down Syndrome Society to ensure the doll accurately represented a person with the condition.

Trump vs. E. Jean Carroll

Jury selection will begin in the civil claim brought by E. Jean Carroll, who alleges that former President Donald Trump raped her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s, NBC News reported. Carroll claims the attack took place in a Bergdorf Goodman on Fifth Avenue in New York City. Trump has said her allegations are “a con job,” a “hoax” and “a complete scam,” which led her to sue him for defamation.

Aaron Rodgers to Jets

The Green Bay Packers traded quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets.

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--With assistance from Vlad Savov, Jordan Fabian and Melissa Shadrick.

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