Did People in the White House Place Bets on the Iran War? YouTube video by Offline with Jon Favreau

Here's that: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nk0F...

Are prediction markets an intriguing way of surfacing new information? A public menace? A bit of both?

I discuss my reporting on that with @jonfavs.bsky.social on his "Offline" podcast.

Plus, I'm hoping to get into his time as a special advisor to the chair of the Biden-era Federal Trade Commission, with a focus on what the rest of us are missing about the role of regulators here.

Here's all the details: politics-prose.com/olivier-sylv...

Looking forward to digging into his call for policymakers and the courts to build up a resilience to, as he puts it in the book, "the free speech mantra" the big online platforms invoke "to explain or justify their services and practices."

D.C. people, I'll be in conversation this Wednesday night at the @politicsprose.bsky.social on the Wharf with Fordham Law's @oliviersylvain.bsky.social about his brand-new book, "Reclaiming the Internet: How Big Tech Took Control—and How We Can Take It Back"...

The Campaign to Take Down Alex Bores Is Just the Beginning A leading AI industry-backed Super PAC is targeting a pro-regulation candidate — and building a strategy that other politicians will have to contend with.

"[The] goal is not actually to kill Alex's race. Their goal...is to scare other legislators into submission."

I profiled NY-12 Democrat Alex Bores & the AI industry's strategy against him for Politico Magazine:
www.politico.com/news/magazin...

Inside Washington’s Controversial Addiction to Autopens Can’t talk about it. Can’t live without it. From the White House to Capitol Hill, Washington relies on autopens. How did a machine that mimics human signatures become so essential—and sometimes conten...

That story is here: washingtonian.com/2025/11/06/i...

If I might, a moment of praise for librarians. The ones at the @librarycongress.bsky.social went to lengths to dig out an obscure book on JFK's autopen use. Super useful reporting-wise—and the cover inspired the resulting art on my new @washingtonian.com story on the topic. Yay, librarians.

Inside Washington’s Controversial Addiction to Autopens Can’t talk about it. Can’t live without it. From the White House to Capitol Hill, Washington relies on autopens. How did a machine that mimics human signatures become so essential—and sometimes conten...

New from me for @washingtonian.com: a deep dive into the autopen's place in American politics. washingtonian.com/2025/11/06/i...

Andrew Yang Wants to Pay You to Use Your Phone Less Noble Mobile is giving customers money back for not doomscrolling. Here’s why Mark Cuban and Scott Galloway are backing the idea.

The rest is here. (It's in Inc's premium section; consider a subscription!) Hope you'll give it a read. www.inc.com/nancy-scola/...

The whole thing is, of course, a bit of a flyer, but it's got some high-profile supporters.

The first investor is @profgalloway.com, and @mcuban.bsky.social told me, "I'm a fan of Andrew's. I hope he makes a killing!"

There's also a Yangian twist. One of the problems with the U.S., says Yang, is we're on our phones too much. Noble pays you back about a buck in "Data Dividend" for every gigabyte under 20 you use.

Stanford's Anna Lembke, author of "Dopamine Nation," told me she's intrigued:

But Yang also pitches his Noble Mobile as a chance to leverage the fact that Americans pay a premium for 'Big Three' cell phone service to make the economic math work better for everyday people—what he frames as one of the central ambitions of his political career.

First, running a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, is undeniably potentially a very good business.

Not for nothing did Ryan Reynolds sell his Mint Mobile—essentially the bulk reselling of T-Mobile service—for $1.3 billion.

I found myself curious why 2020 Democratic presidential candidate & 2021 NYC mayoral candidate @andrew-yang.bsky.social's latest act isn't another run for office but as CEO of a mobile phone service startup called Noble Mobile.

For the good folks at @inc.com, I dug in. Some tidbits…

New episode of the #computationalantitrust podcast. I talked with @nancyscola.bsky.social about the interplay between computational antitrust and antitrust reporting. Nancy had so many great insights. I very much enjoyed recording it, and I hope you'll enjoy listening to it.

Israel’s Zones of Denial A wave of triumph sweeps Israel in the aftermath of its campaign against Iran, even as Gaza’s suffering recedes from public view. Beneath the celebrations, a question nags: What is Israel becoming?

David Remnick reports from Israel:

"[T]he horrific scale of suffering among Gazans is nearly invisible in the Israeli media... Media executives seem convinced that they will alienate audiences if they give the subject much attention." www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

This DC-Area Lawyer Wants More Americans Betting on Elections Pratik Chougule wants to make wagering on politics as popular and legal as wagering on sports. Is that all in good fun—or a bad bet for democracy?

Political prediction markets are having their moment in Washington. For the good folks at @washingtonian.com I profile Pratik Chougule, the host of the podcast "Star Spangled Gambler" who is at the center of the push to make betting on politics mainstream.

www.washingtonian.com/2025/07/10/e...

560 | Nancy Scola: How to Win the New Ideas War in Washington Podcast Episode · The Realignment · 07/10/2025 · 1h 3m

Had a fascinating time talking about how political "idea flow" works in Washington with Marshall Kosloff on "The Realignment Podcast." podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/5...

Why I’m Resigning from the NSF and Library of Congress I cannot participate in systems that require dishonesty as the price of belonging.

"For me, the answer now lies in refusal, the withdrawal of participation from systems that require dishonesty as the price of belonging."

Today I am resigning from the National Science Board and the Library of Congress Scholars Council.

I wrote about my decision in TIME.

time.com/7285045/resi...

The Woman Who Can Make or Break Trump’s Big Tech Crackdown Gail Slater, the head of the DOJ’s antitrust division, will show how serious the right is about bringing big tech companies to heel.

I profile Gail Slater, the new head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division, for @POLITICO Magazine.

Wyoming senator fights cashless trend at National Park properties Tourists frustrated by the growing number of National Park Service properties refusing to accept cash have an ally in Sen. Cynthia Lummis.

Interesting fight brewing over some national parks no longer accepting cash.

Senate just approved Gail Slater to head DOJ’s antitrust division — for what it’s worth, filling the job more than six months sooner than in the first Trump administration.

How Americans Feel About Trump’s Tariffs Trump loves tariffs. Do Americans? It depends how pollsters ask the question.

Interesting look at the complexities of public polling on tariffs.

Real News Companies—And Most Reporters—Should Be Off Twitter It's no longer just ethically questionable—it's incompatible with basic professionalism.

I am being exceptionally petty, yes, but having seen several of your posts cross my X timeline today I'm wondering if this no longer applies: www.offmessage.net/p/real-news-...

Yesterday was really busy so it's worth saying again. The scope of the DOGE really shrank in terms of what was proposed to what was in the EO set it up yesterday...

from $2 trillion in cuts to, apparently, a more narrow focus on government technology....

www.nextgov.com/digital-gove...

What Jared's office actually does Inside the Office of American Innovation.

A reminder that the first Trump admin tried to use the existing framework of the EOP to 'reinvent government,' and there's a reason you probably don't remember the attempt.

Establishing And Implementing The President's "Department Of Government Efficiency" – The White House By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1.

Not the most consequential of things, but as @amac0.bsky.social notes this whole idea of 'DOGE' just stepping into the U.S. Digital Service wrapper as 'U.S. DOGE Service' makes it the "U.S. Department of Government Efficiency Service."

Likely going to be an interesting debate on the left over whether Democrats took too big of a swing at 'Big Tech' in the first place — or if it was a "you come at the king you best not miss" situation.

Though he's perhaps saved by the fact that the FCC has never really had a formal role in the TikTok debates.