Future of News
There's no such thing as neutral technology
Why organizations must evaluate values, not just features
Ben Werdmuller
Ben Werdmuller helps leaders at newsrooms, non-profits, and mission-driven organizations to navigate their biggest technology challenges.
Technology
Trump Administration's Arrival on Bluesky Highlights Growing Pains for Open Networks
"It’s no accident that US political operatives have been singling out Bluesky as a target for political control and retribution for months." But the result puts protocol developers and the users of their networks in opposition.
AI
This Is How Much Anthropic and Cursor Spend On Amazon Web Services
AI at scale isn't scaling.
Notable links
Russell Vought: The Shadow President
Reporter Andy Kroll explains Vought’s rise from a congressional staffer to the man piloting everything from Trump's layoffs and agency closings to his shutdown strategy, controlling the fate of trillions of dollars and millions of federal workers.
Technology
Europe Can’t Defend Democracy on US Servers
MEP Alexandra Geese argues that Europe needs its own infrastructure, social networks, and software. Rising US authoritarianism means the clock is ticking.
Technology
What Made Blogging Different?
Blogging was a different medium - and there's still a need for it more than ever.
Technology
Why the open social web matters now
The needs are real – and you have so much power.
Future of News
Build what makes you special. Buy the rest.
A framework for newsroom build vs buy decisions.
Media
What AI means for the business of: journalism
"[An] archipelago of high-trust communities [is] where journalists are uniquely capable of building thriving businesses."
Asides
Telomeres, my son, and me
I bawled my way through Nowhere Special, a 2020 movie about a terminally ill man who needs to find a new family for his four year old son. I’ll be thinking about it for years. It’s the story of a window cleaner with a terminal illness who needs
Democracy
Massive immigration raid on Chicago apartment building leaves residents reeling: 'I feel defeated'
Many of our colleagues' communities are being directly targeted by an increasingly authoritarian, anti-immigrant regime. As managers and leaders, we have a duty of care. It starts with listening.
Media
Don’t dwell on “democracy,” and other new findings about how to market local news
It turns out that "we're protecting democracy and our industry is dying, please pay us money" is not a great sales pitch.