Can the algorithms built into social media really understand your emotional well-being? Munmun De Choudhury says yes, and explains how it works. 

On TLDR episode #27, we talked to Matt Haughey, the owner of Metafilter, about how his site saw a sudden traffic drop in November, 2012. He attributed the drop to a change in Google’s algorithm, something we essentially couldn’t confirm because Google refused to comment. Danny Sullivan, who also featured in our story, reports that yesterday, Google’s search-swami Matt Cutts confirmed that Metafilter was indeed hit by a change in the algorithm.

When an earthquake sent tremors through Los Angeles this week, an algorithm called Quakebot allowed the LA Times to release the news faster than any other media outlet. Bob talks with Nick Diakopoulos, a Tow Fellow at Columbia Journalism School, about what reporters should keep in mind as algorithms increasingly play a role in newsrooms.