Skip to main content
Kate Knibbs

Kate Knibbs

Former Contributor
Author/Co-Author of 442 articles

Kate Knibbs is a writer from Chicago. She is very happy that her borderline-unhealthy Internet habits are rewarded with a job. You can find her at @kateknibbs on Twitter.

E-mail her tips, rants, comments, and pictures of your talented animal friends at kateknibbsfreelance@gmail.com

How Facebook’s new hashtags will change the SEO game

Hashtags are now Internet-ubiquitous. And that means they'll have a little something to do with Facebook SEO.
facebook tests video auto play meaning ads are creeping closer to reality fb

Facebook tests video auto-play, meaning video ads are creeping closer to reality

Facebook announced a new feature: auto-played videos. This could mean its plan to get video ads on the website is well under way.
google plus user numbers

Report: Google+ user numbers tell an incomplete story

Google+ released an update and positive news about user activity, but Google may be overstating the service's popularity.
can science predict the next big meme advice dog story

Can science predict the next big meme?

A researcher maps the rise and fall of memes - and his findings may help us make better ones.
memes evolve facebook 1511316 10152134808693415 1229605590 n

From healthcare support to blaming Obama: the evolution of a Facebook meme

Facebook's Data Science team took a look at how memes evolve on the social network, choosing a status update about Obamacare that went viral in 2009.
when does a meme become art

Are memes the pop culture art of our era?

There's a fine line between meme and art - and it's getting finer and finer.
crackdown on online drug market silk road continues

The crackdown on Internet drug market Silk Road continues

More online drug vendors are getting arrested as a crackdown on the Silk Road progresses.
now you can use bold italics and other fancy fonts on twitter isaac hepworth font

Want to fancy up your tweets? This simple hack brings fun fonts to Twitter

Bored of plain ol' text? Well a simple 'hack' now gives you creative license to bold, italicize, and more.
everyone can see the instagram photos of you now unless change your privacy settings untag me

Warning: Tagged Instagram photos go public … head to your privacy settings immediately

If you want to control the photos you're tagged in, change the default on Instagram's "Photos of You" section.
best thanksgiving social media contests serenity

Want to win more than an extra five pounds this Thanksgiving? Enter these social media contests

Sure, you'll be shopping on Black Friday, but some businesses are offering giveaways and prizes in honor of Thanksgiving itself.
facebook lock

Terrifying Facebook security flaw lets hacker access anyone’s page

A hacker unearthed a terrifying Facebook bug that gave him full access to everyone's Facebook accounts.
snapchat gets replay feature filters ios

Snapchat deals with major spam attack

Snapchat apologized for a recent increase in spam messages in a blog post today, though once again the company didn't offer much help to users.
instagram hoax oprah giving scholarships based scam

Instagram hoax: Oprah is not giving scholarships just because you follow her

A hoax is gaining steam on Instagram: An account set up to look like Oprah's OWN network is gaining followers by promising fake scholarships.
facebook hires photographer photo community liaison teru kuwayama

Notable photographer joins Facebook as ‘photo community liaison’

Facebook created a new position called "photography liaison" and hired photographer Teru Kuwayama to act as an advocate for photographers.
instagrammed place world siam paragon

The most Instagrammed places in the world: A Thai mall, Times Square, and Disney

Where are the most popular places to share photos on Instagram? A fancy Thai mall takes top honors this year, along with some New York City sights.
instagram the dictators choice how social media lets us mingle with villains dictator header

Instagram: The dictator’s choice! How social media lets us mingle with villains

Following despots and delinquents online is a fascinating exercise.
how facebook chat helped two high schoolers become playwrights adventures of boy and girl

How Facebook Chat helped two high schoolers become playwrights

Rachel Kaly and Alec Grossman wrote a play over Facebook chat. Now it's featured in the New York Fringe Festival.
whats up with north koreas air koryo facebook page korea airline

How is this North Korean airline running an incredibly active Facebook page?

It's surprisingly open and responsive - probably because it's not run by North Koreans.
lady-gaga-using-google-chrome

Is Instagram a celebrity confessional – and are admins keeping watch?

After a series of darker Instagram posts, Lady Gaga reportedly received word from Instagram checking in on her mental health.
the only shows that could possibly be worse than rich kids of instagram

The only shows that could possibly be worse than ‘Rich Kids of Instagram’

E! is producing a 'Rich Kids of Instagram'-inspired reality show, and we've got some social media-spawned ideas to add to its lineup.
one man new career instagram barbershop flickr mike barbiaz

How one man got a new career entirely through Instagram

Job searches often require the use of social media nowadays. But LinkedIn isn't the only option -- a man got a new career entirely through Instagram.
full length movie filtered instagram ig

Behold! The first feature-length film made with Instagram videos

You think you love Instagram? This filmmaker is creating her entire feature length picture using nothing but the beloved filter app.
dw hipstamatic

The debate over war photojournalism in the age of Instagram rages on

New research looks at the merits and problems of filtered photojournalism.
banksy has instagram or hes tricking us 2912056 orig

Banksy – or someone pretending to be the artist – has officially hit the social Web

It's hard to know what to make of Banksy's new Instagram account.
justin bieber pinterest

A little advice, Bieber? Don’t post selfies elsewhere when your app is bombing

Got a struggling start-up? Why not hire a celebrity to gain critical fan buzz, then watch as he uses established rival apps to promote his personal brand!
selling drugs on social media the stupidest people internet vol 1 weed dealer instagram

Meet social media’s drug dealers, also known as ‘The Stupidest People On The Internet’

A shocking amount of drugs-for-sale schemes are popping up on the social networks.
the internet made me care about miley cyrus and im pissed it vmas mem 2

Hackers rig Time’s Person of the Year online poll to coronate Miley Cyrus

Who should be the Person of the Year for 2013? According to two intrepid hackers, Miley Cyrus has twerked her way to the role.
nyan cat

Warner Brothers used memes to advertise – and now they’re getting sued by Mr. Nyan Cat

Unpermitted use of two of the Internet's favorite cats -- Nyan Cat and Keyboard Cat -- has led to a lawsuit for the Warner Bros.
wevorce divorce

You’ve heard of online dating, but what about online divorcing?

A new service called Wevorce wants to take divorce to the Web in order to streamline the process and drive down the costs.
the woman who used vine to score a job screen shot 2013 04 09 at 6 02 pm

Want to Vine your way to a job? This woman did

Vine is the latest social app to take the networking world by storm. Dawn Siff made it work for her by creating a unique resume with the app.
is that you snapchat gets a major facelift ghost

Snapchat gets a major update and loses its smiley face in the process

Snapchat's got a shiny new look. The app now sports a sleeker UI, new friend-finding features, and lost its smiley exterior in the process.
facebook doesnt hate tor

Facebook doesn’t hate Tor (but it is blocking it)

Tor users trying to access Facebook are out of luck. But the privacy-friendly system says the social network isn't doing it on purpose.
is there really an app for romance url 373 625x1000

Are social apps creating or killing romance?

A slew of new apps promising real love from your preexisting social network are hitting the market.
is instagram changing stock photography instastock feature

InstaStock wants to turn your selfies into a business model

If you want to make money off your Instagram account, a new service lets you turn your filtered snapshots into stock images.