We couldn't be prouder to have been awarded the Grand Prize at the Open Social Awards! 🍾 💢 These things don't happen overnight or without help, so here's a little thank you to everyone who has helped us get here 🧡

Still can't quite believe this!!! Congrats to @sill.social and @blackskyweb.xyz for winning the Excellence Awards and to @anew.social, @dandelion.events, @stream.place, @leaflet.pub and Bonfire Networks for being recognised as Honourable Mentions. Let's keep pushing each other to build better!

Just launched at Public Spaces in Amsterdam, The European Social Stack Open Declaration! A set of common principles agreed by complementary technology leaders 🫶 Read the declaration, add your signature, and share: european.social #EUSocialStack #Europe

Lovely to meet so many journalists and social web builders at our lunchtime @newsmastfoundation.org event at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia - including the brilliant @rose.bsky.team

If you're in London on the 31st of March, head to The Sir Christopher Hatton for an evening of tech and journalism. Our very own @saskiakezia.com will be there talking about our work with @thebristolcable.bsky.social which was recently featured in The Local Media Action Plan.

Three years of the Social Web 😱 forbetter.ghost.io/three-years-...

“Newsrooms are not just delivering news, they are delivering communities.” @saskiakezia.com Protocols for Publishers London

To become more than an empty room, platforms have to try. Just think about early Bluesky, the people posting here 24/7 were the staff! forbetter.ghost.io/platforms-as...

I'm no LinkedIn prophet, but I have hope for the year ahead. forbetter.ghost.io/looking-to-26/ #SocialMedia #Blog #YearAhead

As Freddie, @playawfulthings.bsky.social, comes to the end of his time with the Newsmast Foundation team, we'd like to take a moment to celebrate all he's achieved. Freddie has been with us since the start, from the original idea and through the many evolutions that have grown Newsmast.

A new case study looking at how we're building for good, with information sharing and news at the heart, has been published by Good Commons today! Check it out here: goodcommons.world/casestudies/... #SocialMedia #Journalism

🎉 We've launched The Bristol Cable app – a world first! Independent investigative journalism meets open social networking. **What makes it different:** • No algorithms – you control what you see • No data harvesting • No advertising • Connects to Mastodon, Bluesky, Threads & beyond

Really looking forward to this today! #SFSCon

There's a lot to look forward to at the #Fediverse track at #SFSCon but @saskiakezia.com and @michaelfoster.bsky.social talk on growing the open social web, in the context of liberalism's crisis.

#SFSCon and #Bolzano - here we come!

"There’s a clear imperative for those of us working on the Social Web to act in this emergency." @michaelfoster.bsky.social breaks down the threats we face in the digital landscape and thinks about how we can channel our inner badass and fight back 💪 www.blog-pat.ch/the-end-of-l... #SocialMedia

Me when I do my monthly check to see if I've aged enough to get access to my DMs again

"It would be simple to say that we have built a social media app. We have. But we've also built something more." @saskiakezia.com looks at how we define our latest step-forward before the first launch 👀 Check it out 👇 forbetter.ghost.io/defining-a-n... #SocialMedia #LocalNews

What do you call a news AND social app? Rethinking definitions with @thebristolcable.bsky.social before the launch of their new mobile app 👀 forbetter.ghost.io/defining-a-n... #SocialMedia #Journalism #Tech

Yesterday, we visited @thebristolcable.bsky.social for their AGM to announce our exciting partnership. The Bristol Cable is a co-op, 100% locally-owned publication and we're very proud to be developing new ways to help them connect with their community away from Big Tech. #LocalJournalism

Things are coming together at @newsmastfoundation.org. Here’s the big idea we’re working on: What if every community could have their own social platform, driven by an own-branded mobile app, as easy to build as Facebook Groups? #Fediverse #SocialMedia #Community www.blog-pat.ch/building-app...

"Bluesky" is now derogatory. In the comments, they confirmed that "Bluesky" as an adjective meant woke and performative...

"At the end of the day, no matter how good and ethical something is, it has to feel right to the user." @saskiakezia.com looks at how the Social Web, including Bluesky, is perceived through 'vibes' by young people. forbetter.ghost.io/whats-the-vi... #SocialMedia #Bluesky #SocialWeb

The vibe of the Social Web is putting young people off. forbetter.ghost.io/whats-the-vi... #Blog #SocialMedia

A new report by @amnesty.org calls for the dismantling of concentrations of power to make way for rights-respecting digital ecosystems. Social technology should not be manipulated to keep you scrolling and your time the currency funding Big Tech. Link below. #SocialMedia #BigTech #Democracy

@newsmastfoundation.org has many moving parts, and it hasn’t always been clear how it all fits together. Now we’re aiming to simplify things. Slow down, become comfortable with what we’re doing, and fit it all together in one #SocialWeb onboarding programme. www.blog-pat.ch/newsmast-unp...

The most piratical thought at FediCon was presented by @j12t.org Stop battling oligarch-owned big-tech walled gardens in their own space, where they have all the power. Move away, to open, unexplored territories. Third Spaces mix this growth with a grassroots vibe. www.blog-pat.ch/third-spaces...

Today, Amnesty International have shared their report into X's part in the UK 'Race Riots' last year. Unsurprisingly, their findings highlighted a number of failings by the platform. Please, take a look at the report below and share it with your friends who still, solely, use X. #LeaveX #Twitter

Newsmast × Bonfire We’re excited to share that Newsmast and @bonfire.indieweb.social.ap.brid.gy are working together! #Announcement #SocialWeb #Fediverse

"It's so hard to get a message out across a decentralised network. It's so hard to apply something like the OSA to a decentralised network. But, whether we want to or not, we have to work this out for the future of the Open Social Web." forbetter.ghost.io/mastodon-def... #Mastodon #OnlineSafetyAct

Media Revolution is a campaign by @media-revolution.bsky.social to transform the global media landscape and we are so proud to be involved 🙌 Launching today, the campaign aims to build coordinated awareness and action for 100 days. Learn more here: mediarevolution.org #MediaRevolution

Aura

CHLOE KELLY

Unfortunately I won't be able to attend @atproto.london tonight but, if you're in the area, I'd highly recommended popping along. It's run by some really cool people and gives you the opportunity to learn more about the growing network on ATProto. #ATProto #Bluesky #London

FRIDGE CHART UPDATE

I've got my England WEuros 'Home' socks on. When do the nerves kick in?

My nerves will never recover. Holy hell

I had a great time on Sunday at Byline Fest, organised by @bylinetimes.bsky.social It was amazing to go in person and support @mediarevolution.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy - a project which will hopefully cause a stir here on the OSW! More on that soon 👀 #Bylines #MovementMedia #SocialFuture

It's great that it's raining again here in the UK. Yay for the plants. But man, it was kinda nice when there was no pollen 🥀

Really looking forward to attending Byline Festival on Sunday! If you're going to be there, lmk #Byline #Journalism #Activism

This industry gives me a headache sometimes.

I would love to study social media from a theology perspective one day. What makes people worship others? What makes people act like gods online?

After spending the last part of the season on loan at Arsenal, Chloe Kelly has now made the move to the Gunners✍️

I'm biased but Channels can be so much fun. Giving the Fediverse the ability to create custom feeds just as you can here on Bluesky. I've talked through the experience and why I love it so much on my latest blog, featuring @trees.channel.org forbetter.ghost.io/channel-magic/ #CustomFeeds #Fedi

Lionesses WEuros send off game on a pitch that looks similar to the local park 😒

Had a great time at @atproto.london last night! Thanks again @aendra.com and @davenash.com - lovely to meet you both and everyone else who attended 🥰

We're really excited to be attending @atproto.london‬ this evening! @playawfulthings.bsky.social and @saskiakezia.com ‬ will both be there to chat decentralised social media, learn more about AT protocol, and enjoy the drinks very kindly provided by @graze.social 🥂 See you soon!!

It was an honour to talk about Channel.org and @fediforum.org on the Decentered podcast last week! If you haven't checked it out already, you can catch the latest episode on the link below or wherever you get your podcasts 🤠 Thanks to @wedistribute.org for having me! #Podcast #SocialMedia

Is Bluesky being betrayed by it's left-lean? Or are we just forgetting our manners online? It's been over a month since my last blog post (oops), but here are my thoughts... forbetter.ghost.io/is-bad-behav... #SocialMedia #Bluesky #Echo