Former employees of NewsBreak, who requested anonymity, revealed that most of the engineering work behind the app's algorithm is carried out in its China-based offices. This has raised concerns about the potential access to American user data in China. Despite these concerns, NewsBreak insists that it complies with U.S. data and privacy laws and that its data is maintained on U.S.-based Amazon servers. The company, which was launched in the U.S. in 2015 as a subsidiary of Chinese news aggregation app Yidian, is currently only available in the U.S.
Key takeaways:
- NewsBreak, a free news app with roots in China, has been publishing erroneous stories, creating fictitious bylines, and lifting content from competitors, according to a Reuters review of court documents and a company memo.
- The app's use of AI technology has led to the publication of false stories, including a false report of a shooting in Bridgeton, New Jersey, and incorrect information about charity events, causing harm to the communities it serves.
- NewsBreak, which is the most downloaded news app in the U.S., generates revenue by showing ads to its users and publishes licensed content from major media outlets as well as information obtained by scraping the internet for local news or press releases.
- NewsBreak has faced legal issues related to copyright infringement, with Patch Media reaching a $1.75 million settlement in a lawsuit against the company and Emmerich Newspapers also reaching a settlement in a similar lawsuit.