GenAI, polyester & slop galore
David Marx (of Ametora fame), draws parallels between the role of polyester in textile manufacturing and its cultural implications and today’s rise of generative AI. When polyester first…
Tag: social media
The link not clicked
Have you ever not clicked a link because you didn’t want to send a signal to an algorithm or the entity behind it? To avoid being targeted with…
A healthy public infosphere is the missing building block in the fight for democracy right now
As we see democracy under pressure from populists and other malign hustlers around the globe, one essential issue has become painfully clear: We do not currently have a…
Virality vs popularity, and the demise of reliable stats
From the Garbage Day newsletter, some reflections on the connection between virality and popularity (highlights mine): The conclusion I’ve come to this summer — one I’m still not…
Refractive Fragmentation — where did social media go?
“An X never, ever marks the spot,” Indiana Jones once famously stated. Only in this one particular case, it totally does: When Twitter became X, it very much…
Ways to think about alternative social media
We know the many ways social media platforms are failing us. But/and I think it would be tremendously helpful to expand our vocabulary and thinking about these things…
Are social platforms a bit like fossil energy after all?
I never subscribed to narrative that Data is the New Oil — i.e. it’s highly valuable and a tradable commodity. Nor that it’s like oil in that it…