The Week Unwrapped: Massage apps, social media copyright and a tropical disease

Are home massage services putting users at risk? Is YouTube’s copyright system fit for purpose? And how has a tropical disease been almost completely eradicated?

Man receives massage
(Image credit: BartekSzewczyk/Getty Images)

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

In this week’s episode, we discuss:

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Home massages

A new range of service-providing apps have made it quick and convenient to book and receive a massage therapy treatment at home. But recently, some women have reported incidents of sexual assault after booking a masseuse through such companies, raising questions about how safe users really are.

Worm disease

A campaign to eradicate guinea worm disease began in the late 1980s, when millions of cases were recorded worldwide. Data on last year’s recorded cases indicate the 30-year campaign has proved incredibly successful, with only 15 cases reported in total. What’s behind this disease eradication success story?

YouTube copyright

Fans of YouTube sensation Lofi Girl weren’t able to tune into the channel’s soothing music this week after another channel made a copyright claim against its tunes. Lofi Girl’s ban was quickly overturned on appeal, which appears to be a common pattern on the platform, with some 2.2 million such claims overturned last year. Is the service’s copyright claim system fit for purpose?