Social Media Round-up of the Week – 23 May

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Welcome back to our weekly instalment of what’s hot in the world of social media. In case you missed what happened over the past week, here’s a run-down of our top six: Social media gender

1. Twitter has passed the 300 million registered account mark.  According to Twitter tracking site Twopcahrts Twitter is adding around 5.5 accounts per second and has already hit more than 301,331,151. The social media platform has been increasingly positioning itself as a credible news source and press stream over recent months, with the ‘Super-injunction’ scandal of two weeks ago pushing it further into mainstream media.

2. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview last week he would like to create a safe and educational social networking environment for kids younger than 13. Whilst the remarks proved controversial, the fact remains that many under the age of 13 are already using social networking sites to connect with others.

3. Saudi authorities detained a female activist who uploaded a video of herself behind the wheel of a car on to YouTube, in a campaign to overturn a ban on female drivers in the deeply conservative kingdom. More than 600,000 people have now watched the video, a seemingly mundane scene where Manal al-Sharif, 32, is seen chatting to a female friend as she drives around the eastern city of Khobar.

4. An eight-year-old boy has clinched his dream job by becoming a toy tester.Not only will James Childs review each new Ben 10 toy before it goes on sale, he will be paid monthly in toys and will get to suggest his own ideas for new products. James, from Luton, landed the role after winning a competition where children had to write to manufacturer Bandai to say why they should get the job.

5. Linkedin announced this week that the professional social networking giant is now valued at $8.79 Billion, roughly 38 times sales figures reported in 2010, after it’s first day as a publicly traded company on May 18.Founder Reid Hoffman’s stake in the social networking site has now been valued at $1.7 Billion.

6. Our latest infographic (see above) shows social media by demographic.