For many years, “shitposting” has been a staple of internet culture in which individuals riff on the moment using nonsense and irony, derailing threads for fun. In today’s influencer-driven attention economy, however, shitposting as a practice is now a meaningful comms and engagement strategy.
Microposts
A difficult number for so many reasons.
The next big trend in AI that I’m watching is platform integration. First company to produce the interoperability required for a united platform experience wins.
RIP D’Angelo. And a good occasion to reread this excellent 2012 profile discussing fame, religion, and how his status as a sex symbol in his youth negatively impacted D’Angelo’s self-esteem - and ultimately his career.
What happens to college towns after they’re hit by the so-called enrollment cliff?
Choco Taco is back: the business and engineering behind the revival of a retro treat.
Thursday, September 25, 2025 →
From Propublica, on how publicly-funded private school vouchers are funding a segregation academy dynamic.
Thursday, September 25, 2025 →
Saving for later: The story of DOGE, as told by federal workers.
A lovely story about the restoration of prairie land undertaken by the nuns of Holy Wisdom, just outside of Madison, WI.
A pleasant surprise resulting from LLM acceleration in the IT landscape is the sudden opportunity for storytelling around other, more analog kinds of information technology and access models. Nostalgia abound (complimentary).
On the rise of faith tech.
Thursday, September 18, 2025 →
Harvard Business Review offers this take on why it’s bad for business to automate our way out of staffing entry-level positions.
What do people actually use ChatGPT for? A snapshot.
This is incredible storytelling from propublica.org, on opioids, inequality, and the scope of drug-induced homicide charges brought against teens in Wisconsin.
Gap capitalized on the Sidney Sweeney “good genes” controversy by doing this collab with Katseye, the global pop group where each member is a different nationality. Each member of the pop group dances through in black and brown jeans.
Another one on how LLM sycophancy facilitates suicidal ideation.
Something that worries me about AI adoption in higher ed is the risk to students facing mental health challenges, who are increasingly turning to chat bots to plumb their own depths. What can higher ed ask of LLM business partners to protect our students’ mental health?
“It’s almost as if groups on both sides of the political spectrum are looking for an excuse to brand business decisions as politically or socially hostile,” said Jill Fisch, a professor of business law at the University of Pennsylvania who studies how corporations operate in political spaces.
Hey chat, how is pedagogy changing in an age of AI?
I work in an IT communications role in higher ed, and AI finally crept into my life in a real way. Coming soon: some reflections on AI from a comms practitioner in higher ed.
AI-driven bots are disrupting web traffic— “and may also be inflating the internet economy by distorting the very metrics that drive tech company valuations.”
What makes AI generative? “To choose well between billions of things is difficult. To choose between effectively infinite options perfectly is impossible.”
“In 2024, there were a total of 454 words used excessively by chatbots, the researchers report.” When does use of AI tip over into something fraudulent? Experts disagree.
Currently reading: Women! In! Peril! by Jessie Ren Marshall 📚
The education sector is a big target for cyber attacks, with higher ed being one of the largest and most sensitive targets for bad actors. A recent study shows that education is unprepared as a sector and many institutions lack resources to support a thoughtful and robust cybersecurity program.
Search engines deliver answers instead of links. What does it mean for web traffic - and the outlets, people and jobs who rely on it? Inside the Media’s Traffic Apocalypse
A cool sustainability story out of Madison: “Birds did not evolve with windows, so [they] have little to no ability to identify them as solid, transparent objects…” sustainability.wisc.edu/bird-safe…
“The world’s most valuable companies are based in the United States, built on foundations of government-funded university research.” open.substack.com/pub/edtec…
Of course Jean Grae has a striking narrative voice and point of view. My hero. Currently reading: In My Remaining Years by Jean Grae 📚