Notable links: August 14, 2026
Chicago Public Media is building a social network for America's third largest city. Forget AI - this is the thing I'm most excited about in news technology.
Ben Werdmuller
Writing at the intersection of technology, journalism, and community.
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Chicago's social network is a huge bet for news. I think it's the future.
Chicago Public Media is building a social network for America's third largest city. Forget AI - this is the thing I'm most excited about in news technology.
My next experiment
I'm spending a year at Stanford to explore community platforms in news.
Notable links: July 31, 2026
Change is fractal; data ownership can be collective.
Change is fractal. It starts with leaders
"Leaders are leverage. Every leader is a multiplier, if they choose to be."
Don't bring sensitive data to a border crossing
The DOJ is trying to prosecute Sam Tunick for allegedly using a duress passcode. It's a lesson in why your best protection is having nothing to protect.
Can data collectives help strengthen vulnerable cultures in the face of AI?
"Data collectives and cooperatives, which let creators control the collection and distribution of their data, are emerging as preferred alternatives to big tech companies."
Notable links: July 24, 2026
America's AI dominance is under threat; AI vendors put us at risk; meanwhile, everyone's staying in their jobs for the health insurance.
AI vendors can't be trusted to secure their systems. Newsrooms need to act accordingly
There were two big lapses in the Hugging Face / OpenAI hacking story: the lack of security protections on OpenAI's end, and Hugging Face's vulnerable production database. That should worry anyone who uses AI with sensitive data.
Private healthcare makes industries less innovative. It's time for change.
1 in 4 American workers stay in their jobs because of the healthcare. It suppresses wages and working conditions - and prevents innovators from heading out on their own.