We can still rise
What a morning. I know this quote has been shared and reshared ad infinitum, but it gives me hope today, and I hope it will do the same for you: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me,
Ben Werdmuller
Ben Werdmuller helps leaders at newsrooms, non-profits, and mission-driven organizations to navigate their biggest technology challenges.
Reflecting today
Today I’ve been thinking a lot about my relatives who actively fought against nationalism as part of the resistance. What they and their colleagues did in the name of inclusion and opportunity. That's the name of the game: a world where everyone has the same opportunity to
10 distractions, in case you need them for some reason
In case you’re searching for things to take your mind off the immediate horrors of the real world for, you know, some reason, here are ten: 3D Workers Island is a horror story told in the form of late-nineties screenshots from forums, websites, and a mysterious screensaver. Practical
Technology
Sen. Ron Wyden: Women's phones have become a tool for abortion surveillance
[Senator Ron Wyden at MSNBC] Senator Wyden has long been a loud voice for surveillance reform and stronger data protections, so this op-ed isn't really a surprise - but it's still nice to see him weighing in here: "Data brokers are selling the ability to
Notable links
Election Issues 2024: Economy, Immigration, Abortion and More
[ProPublica] "With just days to go before Election Day, political coverage is everywhere. At ProPublica, we avoid horse race reporting and focus on telling stories about deeper issues and trends affecting the country. Here are some stories from the last year about issues that are important to voters."
Notable links
Kamala Is Not Our Savior. But a Trump Win Would Be Catastrophic.
[Versha Sharma in Teen Vogue] This is a remarkable kind-of-sort-of-endorsement from Teen Vogue. "As the head of this publication, dedicated to young readers, I have been closely following younger generations’ collective disbelief at the Biden administration’s support of the Israeli government during its all-
Notable links
Exploiting Meta’s Weaknesses, Deceptive Political Ads Thrived on Facebook and Instagram in Run-Up to Election
[Craig Silverman at ProPublica and Priyanjana Bengani at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism] "The network, which uses the name Patriot Democracy on many of its ad accounts, is one of eight deceptive Meta advertising operations identified by ProPublica and Tow. These networks have collectively controlled more than 340
Technology
Democratising publishing
[John O'Nolan] This is a genuinely inspiring post from John O'Nolan about the foundation behind Ghost and how it operates. It feels like a blueprint for so many open source projects. "The business model was simple: We would make a great open source product that
Tech is interesting, but democracy deserves our attention
I’m aware that a lot of my linkblog posts have been about the state of America this week. That’s because — well, I’m sure you can figure out why. There is nothing bigger to talk about than this election. So much is at stake, and it really, truly
Notable links
Josseli Barnica Died in Texas After Waiting 40 Hours for Miscarriage Care
[Cassandra Jaramillo and Kavitha Surana at ProPublica] The deeply tragic stories of how abortion bans lead to preventable deaths continue. "The fetus was on the verge of coming out, its head pressed against her dilated cervix; she was 17 weeks pregnant and a miscarriage was “in progress,” doctors noted
Notable links
A vote for Donald Trump is a vote for school shootings and measles
[Nilay Patel at The Verge] This is, uh, the opposite of this year's trend of a bunch of newspapers refusing to endorse anyone: "Donald Trump is a dangerous maniac who can barely complete a sentence, and it is lunacy to believe he can even recognize the existentially
Notable links
Videos Reveal Trump Adviser’s “Shadow” Plan for Second Administration
[Molly Redden and Andy Kroll, ProPublica, and Nick Surgey, Documented] "A key ally to former President Donald Trump detailed plans to deploy the military in response to domestic unrest, defund the Environmental Protection Agency and put career civil servants “in trauma” in a series of previously unreported speeches that