THREAD: I got laid off from NYMag/Vulture after 14 years. The family lost 75% of income + medical. Now mzs.press bookstore, once a side project. is do-or-die for Judith & I. I feel weird telling you this because others are doing much worse. But if you could like or share this, we'd be so grateful!
Not just for Pennsylvanians... please sign this petition to call for John Fetterman's resignation from the Senate. This doesn't include his recent atrocious vote supporting this week's illegal war... sign.moveon.org/petitions/ca...
move slow and repair things
the two phases of writing: (1) writing and (2) wandering aimlessly like an unmoored ghost and complaining about not writing
A video essay from Kogonada about Richard Linklater and the Before trilogy that never doesn't hit hard, slows down your brain a little, and makes you cry in the good way
This is such a well done piece that reports out, with hard data and interviews, something profound about what's gone wrong in this country.
www.wsj.com/us-news/amer...
A man speaking into a recorder: Diane, 11:30 a.m., February 24th. Entering the town of Twin Peaks.
Here we are.
This guy gets it.
A whiteboard leaned against a shelf with many trinkets. On the whiteboard, it says “When you look at a blank page, think of who you love”
In his acceptance speech for award for best screenplay, Ryan Coogler said “when you look at a blank page, think of who you love” and I dunno, that really moved me so I wrote it down and sat it on my desk to look at while I work
The tragedy of John Fetterman is that he used to dress like a slob but have an encouraging spirt, making him an Oaf of Rugged Individuality, one of America’s great oaf groups. But now he dresses like a slob and whines all the time, making him an Oaf of Misery
The political effects of X's feed algorithm https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-026-10098-2 Received: 16 December 2024 Accepted: 4 January 2026 Published online: 18 February 2026 Open access • Check for updates Germain Gauthier,5, Roland Hodler?5, Philine Widmer35 & Ekaterina Zhuravskaya3,4,5 m Feed algorithms are widely suspected to influence political attitudes. However, previous evidence from switching off the algorithm on Meta platforms found no political effects'. Here we present results from a 2023 field experiment on Elon Musk's platform X shedding light on this puzzle. We assigned active US-based users randomly to either an algorithmic or a chronological feed for 7 weeks, measuring political attitudes and online behaviour. Switching from a chronological to an algorithmic feed increased engagement and shifted political opinion towards more conservative positions, particularly regarding policy priorities, perceptions of criminal investigations into Donald Trump and views on the war in Ukraine. In contrast, switching from the algorithmic to the chronological feed had no comparable effects. Neither switching the algorithm on nor switching it off significantly affected affective polarization or self-reported partisanship. To investigate the mechanism, we analysed users' feed content and behaviour. We found that the algorithm promotes conservative content and demotes posts by traditional media. Exposure to algorithmic content leads users to follow conservative political activist accounts, which they continue to follow even after switching off the algorithm, helping explain the asymmetry in effects. These results suggest that initial exposure to X's algorithm has persistent effects on users' current political attitudes and account-following behaviour, even in the absence of a detectable effect on partisanship.
A new paper shows that less than 2 months of exposure to Twitter’s algorithmic feed significantly shifts people’s political views to the right.
Moving from chronological feed to the algorithmic feed also increases engagement.
This is one of the most concerning papers I’ve read in awhile.
There is so much pent up demand for joy and to believe in the future.
This is the interview Donald Trump didn’t want you to see.
His FCC refused to air my interview with Stephen Colbert.
Trump is worried we’re about to flip Texas.
Cannot believe that I got to profile an extraordinary filmmaker, who happens to be the mother of NYC’s new mayor, and think about intersections of art and politics, and how familial love might produce a buffer against the corrosive politics and cynicism of our time. My story about Mira Nair:
Next time somebody tries to get me to justify the existence of the humanities, I’ll just point out how for the past two Super Bowls we’ve all jumped online and engaged in collective semiotics and hermeneutics of the half-time show as text.
Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue
Unbelievable
I’d like to believe there’s a heaven so that Catherine O’Hara & Fred Willard are reunited to perform this:
youtu.be/fggXs7oIP7Q?...
Mayor Mamdani is personally checking on the outer boroughs during the storm. Here he is stopping in Bed-Stuy to help NYCHA residents whose car got stuck.
This is Alex Pretti.
I can't put into words the feeling of watching our government, a hive of evil antisocial filth, the absolute worst humanity has to offer, colliding with the best. Ordinary people trying to help each other, risking everything to stand up for what's plainly, unambiguously fair and right. It's unreal
Average Sunday show interview:
OFFICIAL: we are going to dip enemies of the state into acid vats
HOST: how will you pay for it?
OFFICIAL: tariffs
HOST: critics say tariffs don't generate acid vat money
OFFICIAL: tariffs have generated more money than has ever existed
HOST: thank u for ur time
A massive "Hands off Greenland" protest is happening right now in Copenhagen to demonstrate against Trump's threats.
"The aim is to send a clear and unified message of respect for Greenland's democracy," organisers said.
“Respect for Greenland, respect for Greenlanders, respect for Denmark.”
What a world huh Lemon it’s still struggling to be born
New today!
Our reflections on the best movies and first watches of 2025, featuring @eccantwell.bsky.social, @frankfalisi.bsky.social, @franhoepfner.bsky.social, @dodgyboffin.com, @russellnichols.bsky.social @abigailoswald.bsky.social, @chadperman.bsky.social, @aheartofgould.bsky.social & more
lord, give me the strength to not argue at people who basically agree with me
the.fearless.haunted.anti. hero • 9h Follow Dear Americans, How would you feel if Canada did to you want your government did to Venezuela? What if we went in and bombed DC or Mara Largo, took your president and First Lady then ran your country until a new leader was available? Would you like it? © 10.9K @9.3K G630 & 413
So when can you start
Zohran’s inauguration brimmed w/the energy that NYC is “a shining beacon of possibility” per @jumaane.bsky.social.
Amidst the darkness of authoritarianism, inequality & hate, we have a chance to show what’s possible.
That’s always been our mission as New Yorkers—it was profoundly renewed today.
BREAKING: Zohran Mamdani is officially mayor of New York City
