3. Increased social rigidity Digital reputation systems are limiting our ability and our will to protest injustice. In China each adult citizen is getting a government mandated “social credit score“. This represents how well behaved they are, and is based … Read more
There’s this popular idea that socially anxious folks are just dying to be liked. It seems logical, right? Why else would someone be so anxious about how others see them? And yet, being socially anxious tends to make you less … Read more
Open source has clearly won. Yes, there are plenty of closed source products and businesses. But the shared infrastructure—the commons—runs on open source. We might take this for granted, but it wasn’t a foregone conclusion thirty five years ago. There … Read more
16 Sep, 2025 People often assume that I hate social media. And they’d be forgiven for believing that, since I am overtly critical of current social media platforms and the effects they have on individuals and society; and deleted all … Read more
James O’Sullivan lectures in the School of English and Digital Humanities at University College Cork, where his work explores the intersection of technology and culture. At first glance, the feed looks familiar, a seamless carousel of “For You” updates gliding … Read more
Infinite Scroll Social Media Is Navigating Its Sectarian Phase Many liberals who had fled X for Bluesky seem to be embracing the Elon Musk-owned platform once more. Why? By Kyle Chayka September 10, 2025 Illustration by Ariel Davis Save this … Read more
How Blacksky grew to millions of users without spending a dollar If you haven’t been watching closely, you could be forgiven for assuming that Bluesky is a just liberal Twitter clone, or a newfangled imitator of Mastodon. But under the … Read more
I started last year with one clear goal: 2024 was going to be the year that I finally did social media. Regular posting, a content calendar, a strategy, a plan for growth — all of that. And yet I ended … Read more
The Social Security Administration will no longer be communicating with the media and the public through press releases and “dear colleague” letters, as it shifts its public communication exclusively to X, sources tell WIRED. The news comes amid major staffing … Read more
Feb 16, 2025 reminiscence POWCON Vax With one thing and another I’ve recently been feeling quite nostalgic for the technology landscape of my early university days (around 1990) and so I wanted to write a little bit about that. Background … Read more