Ben Werdmuller - Nostr Hypermedia

Ben Werdmuller

benwerd@nos.social

npub183ng...4n09

I lead technology at ProPublica and write speculative fiction. This is a personal account. Every day, I write about tech, democracy, and society at https://werd.io. More about me: https://about.werd.io

benwerd 17 hours ago

Businesses rush to rehire staff after regretted AI-driven cuts

Businesses rush to rehire staff after regretted AI-driven cuts

"Two in three employers that reduced headcount because of artificial intelligence are already rehiring laid off staff, as most express regret over ...

benwerd 17 hours ago

FCC Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over Iran War Coverage

FCC Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over Iran War Coverage

Critics say Brendan Carr is positioning himself as a national censor. His threats to broadcasters covering Iran fit the bill.

benwerd yesterday

Trump is using immigration policy to suppress speech, lawsuit claims

Trump is using immigration policy to suppress speech, lawsuit claims

Researchers who study online safety are being censored and denied entry to the United States. It's having an unconstitutional chilling effect on in...

benwerd yesterday

When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”

When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”

AI use can lead to burnout - but how you use it really matters.

benwerd yesterday

BuzzFeed Nearing Bankruptcy After Disastrous Turn Toward AI

BuzzFeed Nearing Bankruptcy After Disastrous Turn Toward AI

Buzzfeed pivoted to AI - and now finds itself circling the drain.

benwerd 2 days ago

Notable links: March 13, 2026

Notable links: March 13, 2026

Bluesky's new CEO, Proton Mail de-anonymization, and promoting safety at work.

benwerd 2 days ago

Coming Off the Bench for Bluesky

Coming Off the Bench for Bluesky

Bluesky must succeed. It just might.

benwerd 3 days ago

Your Browser Becomes Your WordPress

Your Browser Becomes Your WordPress

A WordPress instance that's entirely hosted in your browser opens up interesting possibilities for self-hosted personal apps.

benwerd 1 week ago

Workers who love ‘synergizing paradigms’ might be bad at their jobs

Workers who love ‘synergizing paradigms’ might be bad at their jobs

Employees who are impressed with corporate jargon are less good at their jobs. News at 11.

benwerd 1 week ago

Proton Mail Helped FBI Unmask Anonymous ‘Stop Cop City’ Protester

Proton Mail Helped FBI Unmask Anonymous ‘Stop Cop City’ Protester

"A court record reviewed by 404 Media shows privacy-focused email provider Proton Mail handed over payment data related to a Stop Cop City email ac...

benwerd 1 week ago

Can we build the dog?

Evaluating feasibility: can we build the dog?

What resource-constrained teams need to ask before writing a line of code

benwerd 2 weeks ago

Good vibes, bad vendors

Good vibes, bad vendors

AI coding works now. Here's how to think about it.

benwerd 3 weeks ago

Notable links: February 20, 2026

Notable links: February 20, 2026

Why aren't newsrooms sharing and innovating? And more.

benwerd 3 weeks ago

Stop calling optimization "innovation."

Stop calling optimization "innovation."

"The problem is, if you’re optimizing a product that fundamentally isn’t working for how people get news in 2026, all you’re really doing is ...

benwerd 3 weeks ago

The political effects of X’s feed algorithm

The political effects of X’s feed algorithm

"Feed algorithms are widely suspected to influence political attitudes." This study shows that some do - to significant effect.

benwerd 3 weeks ago

In Graphic Detail: Subscriptions are rising at big news publishers – even as traffic shrinks

In Graphic Detail: Subscriptions are rising at big news publishers – even as traffic shrinks

In a world where traffic is decreasing, publishers are moving more heavily into subscriptions - with very good results.

benwerd 3 weeks ago

An increasingly dangerous world

An increasingly dangerous world

My underlying model for everything that's happening

benwerd 3 weeks ago

Building trust in the open

Building trust in the open

How Protocols for Publishers points to the future of journalism – and the web

benwerd 0 months ago

Growing the open social web

Growing the open social web

A position statement for FediForum's unworkshop

benwerd 0 months ago

Palantir vs. the "Republik": US analytics firm takes magazine to court

Palantir vs. the "Republik": US analytics firm takes magazine to court

Switzerland rejected Palantir on security grounds after independent journalism shed light on fundamental issues. Now the company is suing to tell i...

Load More →

↑