It took Facebook a full day to respond to a Gizmodo story alleging that its employees hide news about conservative topics in the company's "trending" stories section. But here it is: Facebook says it has "found no evidence that the anonymous allegations are true." Don't expect the controversy to go away, though.
[Kurt Wagner | Recode]
The resignation of Lending Club CEO Renaud Laplanche comes at a topsy-turvy time for online lenders; investors are backing away from the space, and even its biggest boosters are predicting gloom and doom.
[Jason Del Rey | Recode]
Before founding CEO Parker Conrad was canned from unicorn Zenefits for reportedly helping his employees cheat insurance regulations he sold $10 million worth of stock.
[William Alden | BuzzFeed News]
Chinese search giant Baidu will have to undergo a costly revamp of its ad business in response to a government inquiry, related to the death of a cancer-stricken 21 year-old who pursued a "controversial treatment" through a Baidu ad. NYU professor Clay Shirky pointed out that the Baidu-government fight is partly a proxy for unprecedented tensions between Chinese tech giants and regulators.
[David Ramli | Bloomberg]
Music streaming services are getting into video. For example, Apple Music is making a six-episode show with Dr. Dre. And now, Spotify has unveiled a slate of planned video offerings, including programming from Russell Simmons and Tim Robbins.
[Lucas Shaw | Bloomberg]
