Walking the tightrope between AI and audiences
Yes, being left behind is a risk. But so is destroying audinece trust while leaving ourselves in hock to toxic companies.
Latest
Cuttings #1
Essential reads on AI, SEO and Bluesky
When did you last reply to someone on a social network?
A little more conversation, a little less promotion, please
Is Trump a blogger or a social object?
The relationship between Trump and other users of his social media platform Truth Social is interesting, and not a little alarming.
The problem isn't AI, the problem is humans
We have a great new tool. We just have to learn to use it properly…
Why is media so… conservative?
For an industry so obsessed with news, why are we so reluctant to cover new things?
Sit quietly and read time: AI, Meta, money and… Tintin?
Some worthwhile reading gleaned from my open tabs over the Bank Holiday weekend…
Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t know what he’s doing
Nowhere does the heroic myth of the founder look more tarnished than in the tattered remnants of the Facebook creator's reputation.
Friday night's fine for linkin'
Lots of good stuff to read – and think about – over the weekend
A new threat for newsletters?
The simplicity of the in-box is a thing of the past. Can we handle categorisation?
XCity 2025 is here
The latest annual issue from our MA Magazine journalism students
Trust me, I’m a journalist
We're labouring under the illusion that the public trust us. Time to wake up.
AI
How are audiences feeling about AI in 2025?
More research showing just how wary audiences are of AI being used in journalism
quartz
Quartz finally burns out
A moment's silence for one of the great 2010s journalism innovators
Book recommendations: Drax & Meta
How money from the slave trade is still influencing British politics — and the inside story of the people in Facebook that ended up upending society.
AI
Meta pirated books — and trained AI on them.
And it looks like some of mine were in there.
Seeking refuge from the technofeudalist attention economy – in print
Print doesn't have to die for digital to win.
AI
The AI trap has closed around Apple. Don’t be next.
Apple tried to make AI a personal answer engine. It failed. It's a warning to all businesses.
The humour and morality void at the heart of Meta
A new book is confirming every dark suspicion we had about Facebook
fediverse
The federated One Man & His Blog
If you haven't heard of ActivityPub yet, now might be the time to start paying attention
AI: Take a guess
LLMs are, in essence, guessing machines. They work by determining what’s probably the answer. And that means they’re great for ideas — and terrible for facts.
Media mutatis
A new season of OM&HB is coming your way. And this might be the most interesting time to be writing about media in the two decades I've been posting here.
podcasts
Audience Strategy: further reading (listening?)
More bonus links for my students, with a distinct MAGA world theme…
Politics
We are become meme
Internet culture has infected and mutated mainstream culture — and the shitposters have the reins of power. Meme journalism used to be a joke. Now it's a necessity.