🎙️ InnovEU S5E8 with Ethan Zuckerman – Are Platforms Extracting Europe’s Future? YouTube video by Fernando C. Gaspar

Enjoyed this interview with InnovEU about the possibility of taxpayer-supported social media platforms and digital public infrastructure: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_M7...

Register for free to hear from leading voices including: @abridgman.bsky.social, Sally Guy, Helen A. Hayes, Emily Laidlaw, @petermacleod.bsky.social, @taylorowen.bsky.social, Ava Smithing, Tracy Vaillancourt and @ethanz.bsky.social.
tinyurl.com/4hs6ywh2

@ethanz.bsky.social & @antisomniac.bsky.social reach into obscure parts of YouTube to present a methodologically rich exploration of what they call the "accidental archive" of online life and culture

ijoc.org/index.php/ij...

Trump realized he can just do things. Who can stop him? There are far too few checks left on executive power.

I sometimes read _Reason_ for smart thinking from a point of view well to the right of my own. Found this piece depressing and helpful, especially the argument that we both have "a very bad man in the presidency" as well as systemic problems with executive power: reason.com/2026/04/04/w...

BDP - The Bridge Is Over YouTube video by RazZzoR1000

Which meant we listened to BDP's "The Bridge is Over", KRS-One's legendary takedown of MC Shan and Marley Marl in 1987. Imagine being dissed so hard that the track that buried you is the subject of a serious academic discussion 39 years later:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0Sy...

My brilliant student Vik is working on a terrific article about rappers in India working in their local languages who are finding audiences across linguistic barriers. We got to talking about hiphop and locality, the ways in which early MCs fiercely defended the Bronx roots of the art form

I think 72 documented examples in an election that's not widely reported outside of that country is a pretty good documentary effort. I don't think comparing to parallel situations with extensive international coverage is an especially fair comparison.

How artificial intelligence and synthetic reality shaped Bangladesh’s 2026 election An analysis of seventy-two pieces of AI-generated content, showed that AI was a powerful political weapon, and was used to manufacture false narratives and shape electoral outcomes ahead of Bangladesh...

An excellent overview of how AI deepfakes made Bangladesh's February elections deeply confusing: globalvoices.org/2026/04/01/h...

Why artificial intelligence is no substitute for real learning AI can supercharge the work of experts and those who understand it, like my “centaur” student. But it can also stop beginners from learning anything a...

"When you give powerful AI to people who don’t understand what it’s doing, they can do stupid things very quickly." @ethanz.bsky.social HT @kzwa.bsky.social www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/techno...

It’s not a good thing. The company in question started as a textbook rental company on Shark tank, pivoted into AI detection and now tries to sell AI as a writing tutor.

If you were looking for signs that there's an AI bubble, there's a pair of well-dressed twenty-somethings walking through the academic offices at UMass, offering donuts to professors and trying to get them to try their AI-enabled discussion board product. Too much marketing money.

Why artificial intelligence is no substitute for real learning AI can supercharge the work of experts and those who understand it, like my “centaur” student. But it can also stop beginners from learning anything a...

Also in new writing today: this month's column for @prospectmagazine.co.uk, in which a brilliant student of mine and I figure out how AI can accelerate our research... which sometimes means doing dumb shit really fast: www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/techno...

This is a bit of a manifesto and a research agenda for our lab: we want to dig into the recesses of YouTube and TikTok and learn how people in different cultures are using these tools. And we want to preserve slices of video culture at different moments for future study.

It wasn't an easy paper to get published. One reviewer strongly disagreed with our core idea of an "accidental archive", believing that archives must reflect curatorial choice. Our examples of accidental archives in recent and distant history suggest a heritage for this idea.

Ryan McGrady (@antisomniac.bsky.social) and I just published a new paper about exploring the outer reaches of YouTube - randomly selected videos with only a few views - and the idea that these videos constitute an "accidental archive", a picture of online life and culture: ijoc.org/index.php/ij...

Angine De Poitrine: Interview with Infectious Quebec Band — NOIZE MAGAZINE Read our interview with Angine De Poitrine, the infectious rock band from Quebec. Learn how they formed, the stories behind their songs, and what’s next for the band in this in‑depth feature.

There's lots online that focuses on the mystery of the band (rumors that they speak only in an alien language!) but this interview gives a great overview of how they came about and the ideas that make the music work: www.noizemagazine.com/blog/angine-...

ANGINE DE POITRINE en direct du Planète Claire - Journée de l'album québécois 2025 YouTube video by Journée de l'album Québécois

This live show in Chicoutimi is perhaps funkier and more dance-focused, and shows the wonderful ways the crowd is starting to embrace the band's visual language: www.youtube.com/watch?v=es-y...

Angine de Poitrine - Full Performance (Live on KEXP) YouTube video by KEXP

Falling deep down the Angine de Poitrine rabbit hole, starting with the KEXP video you've probably already seen: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ssi...

New publication: The Quotidian Web and the Accidental Archive in IJOC. @ethanz.bsky.social and I argue that video platforms function as "accidental archives," hosting vast quantities of everyday life - valuable, but hard to study. ijoc.org/index.php/ij...

Can Middleware Save Social Media? Can middleware save social media? Exploring third-party tools that give users more control and privacy.

Excellent conversation going on at the National Press Club about whether middleware can help alleviate the problems we face with social media: www.eventbrite.com/e/can-middle...

he monetized the web. now he has a plan to fix it Podcast Episode · kill switch · March 25 · 38m

Speaking with Dexter Thomas on the Kill Switch podcast about whether "ethical advertising" is a possible future: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/h...

You’ll never guess who wants to sue Facebook YouTube video by kill switch podcast

Had such a good time with Dexter and The Kill Switch podcast: www.youtube.com/watch?app=de... So appreciate getting to talk about internet economics in detail with a smart, thoughtful journalist.

Heads up women on the SAVE Act.

He Predicted the Metaverse Would Fail. He Has a Warning about AI. - Kliger's Corner Meta just pulled the plug on the metaverse after investing over $80 billion. I spoke with Ethan Zuckerman to understand why the Metaverse failed, what it reveals about what Gen Z wants, and what worri...

Had a great time talking with Zachey Kliger about Meta's failed Metaverse bet, why Gen Z is suspicious of social media, and why XR is more interesting than VR: kligerscorner.com/blog/ethan-z...

Curious about middleware? Wondering what I'm talking about? RSVP below for Friday's @knightcolumbia.org event on regulating social media, where experts including @oliviersylvain.bsky.social and @ethanz.bsky.social will hash it out. Join us in person (breakfast provided!) or online. Link below.

FRIDAY 3/27 EVENT: Can Middleware Save Social Media?

In-person in DC at the National Press Club, and online.

Meet our keynote speakers @oliviersylvain.bsky.social and @ethanz.bsky.social.

RSVP: bit.ly/3P3Uf6M

Howard French: The Second Emancipation - Ethan Zuckerman Legendary journalist Howard French examines the long global roots of Pan-Africanism in a new biography of Kwame Nkrumah

Pan-Africanism's roots go back to the 1700s - Howard French's new book looks at the long rise of a movement to "peak blackness" and Kwame Nkrumah: ethanzuckerman.com/2026/03/24/h...

Howard French: The Second Emancipation - Ethan Zuckerman Legendary journalist Howard French examines the long global roots of Pan-Africanism in a new biography of Kwame Nkrumah

Howard French on his new book, "The Second Emancipation", speaking at UMass Amherst: ethanzuckerman.com/2026/03/24/h...

Can Middleware Save Social Media? Can middleware save social media? Exploring third-party tools that give users more control and privacy.

📍THIS FRIDAY 3/27: RSVP to our half day convening "Can Middleware Save Social Media?" ⬇️

In-person in DC and livestreamed.

Speaker lineup includes @oliviersylvain.bsky.social, @daphnek.bsky.social, @noupside.bsky.social, @ethanz.bsky.social, @lukehogg.bsky.social, @rreisman.bsky.social.

Is that a comment about your ability to multitask or about an amazing capacity to procrastinate? :-)