Linked-In tells me today is something called "World Productivity Day." No.

The long-running ideological war on libraries, education, and government workers is not separate from AI boosterism. It is the same ideological war on human knowledge and expertise. In some cases AI is being used to directly supercharge this effort: www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...

Things I learned researching this week's episode on hybrid war (where your social media is a battlefield): *Propaganda spikes predict military actions * Hybrid attacks are calibrated to stay below legal definitions of war * Democracies use the same tools as their adversaries. bit.ly/UnSpunPod

When your tactics get your foe's government to quit coming to work, replacing it with a meme war, something's working for you. I learned a lot researching this, including the concept of "autopropaganda," which seems to be where the US is now.

When your tactics get your foe's government to quit coming to work, replacing it with a meme war, something's working for you. I learned a lot researching this, including the concept of "autopropaganda," which seems to be where the US is now.

New on the UnSpun #Podcast this week: The media's role in hybrid wars and why you may already be a casualty. Find it here or wherever you pod. bit.ly/UnSpunPod

Idle Monday thought: Universities are having a moment thinking about how to deal with generative AI (ban it? teach it? something else?) It feels like whatever is picked, it could be used as a political weapon against institutions.

If you have a grade schooler, maybe throw a couple of extra snacks in their lunchbox this week to give to the teacher, who will know which kids need them.

Sunday sillies: nerdy knowledge edition. IYKYK Art by Aram J. French Find him here: www.patreon.com/cw/mandatory...

It's not all inspiring, but I do recommend Daily Dose of Internet on YT.

I'm personally donating to emergency food programs, because obviously this is bad. If you are on team personal responsibility, wouldn't you be ashamed that your employees need handouts? I'm also wondering where my tax money is presently going.

I teach journalism, so it hurts a little more when I have academic integrity issues with students. Like, if you are willing to cheat because it's hard, civil society can maybe find a different way to use you.

The goal of the News Creator Corps is to "flood social platforms with accurate information." www.niemanlab.org/2025/10/a-ne...

Late October pro-tip from a Comm professor: It's getting monstrous out there. Have a real, face-to-face conversation before the month ends. Find something you have in common You won't change a view if you don't have a relationship.

Change one letter, ruin a candy Reese's Peanut Butter Caps

Do you have gift cards you haven't used that can be used to buy groceries? Grocery stores, WalMart, Target, Amazon (can order to pick up at Whole Foods), warehouse clubs This is a good time to call the social worker at your local school and see if families have need.

Food pantries also really can use MONEY. This lets them buy food they get at a discount and, for some, it lets them have fresh food to offer. And if you want to donate food items, elementary school teachers frequently need healthy classroom snacks. You can just call the school to ask what's best.

Chat, lock in! (as my students would say) Carry your lunch and donate the savings to your local foodbank November challenge. #SackLunch Drop your favorite meal-prep inspo below.

Amen.

Chat, lock in! (as my students would say) Carry your lunch and donate the savings to your local foodbank November challenge. #SackLunch Drop your favorite meal-prep inspo below.

Sunday sillies: Now I'm hungry edition. Cartoon by @loosepartsguy.bsky.social. <-- he shares lots of other fun stuff at this handle.

Sign of the times.

Y'all, I KNOW studies show taking notes has cognitive value. I DID one of those studies. My point: It's a learned skill that used to be taught (usually in middle school) and takes time to learn. For a lot of students, it's not been taught. I get 45 hours to teach a high school year's worth.

Approaching the "time to log off" point but first, to wax curmudgeonly* about the value of the real: Like beefing online? Try real conversation! With humans! Like looking at memes with art in them? Try a museum! Like gold doo dads and ballrooms? Try a European palace! *I know - not an adjective

And in other news, heard a working journalist yesterday talking about how he now uses AI as a search engine. Excellent. No notes. /s www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/...

Mixed feelings. Here's why: 1. Students are less often taught good notetaking skills in grade school. A lot of places (my entire state, for example) dropped formal handwriting instruction entirely more than 15 years ago, and lot of instruction moved to "type in the slides" or "fill in the blanks"

1000 %

Thanks, Google. Architecture edition.

Bridgefy. Signal. Tor. Today’s activists don’t just encrypt for secrecy — they encrypt for survival. Because silence is never safe. And every whisper says: We’re still here. Learn about resistance communication on this week's Unspun. bit.ly/UnSpunPod or wherever you pod.

Y'all... I'm really excited about today's UnSpun podcast! The topic is how resistance movements communicate and it covers from 1770s to 2019 and methods including mesh networks, song tempos and fancy underwear. bit.ly/UnSpunPod or wherever you pod.

Hey, someone read my book! #WeAreAltGov

And I’m always excited to see work looking to design tools that help people navigate information systems by giving them better signals about information (where it was created, how it got to them) to support digital literacy (both in using current skills and improving literacy).

If students fall asleep in class, it just means they're tired. It's not some hideous insult to the faculty.

That's awful about the IRB...they are the folks that make sure things like the Tuskegee and Milgram experiments aren't status quo in academic and medical research.

PR pro-tip: Providing less information and kicking out reporters doesn't usually make your leak issues better.

In social movement studies, we talk about how marches and protests expand the threshold of acceptable risk so that people take more and bigger social risks IN PUBLIC, EN MASSE. This is extremely important for the bourgeois white folks holding signs and building social rapport.

How do media estimate the size of crowds? This is the method I learned in journalism school, although it depends on having a good overall image to work with. www.columbian.com/news/2025/ma....

Saturday thought: You don't always have to engage with bad faith arguments. It wastes your time and weakens your critical thinking. Even if someone important wants to "flood the zone with _h_t" that doesn't obligate you to swim in it.

Yelling at someone for being afraid when the don't do what you want (go on your show, debate you, whatever), as the same vibe as calling a volcano a traitor because it didn't erupt on command.

🚨 Very helpful list of sources! Where to find accurate vaccine information amidst the CDC’s ongoing collapse healthjournalism.org/blog/2025/10... by @tarahaelle.bsky.social 🙏 via @healthjournalism.org 🙏 cc @scienceupfirst.bsky.social #VaccinesWork #ScienceMatters

I was going to send a snarky message, and I didn't. I am killing this being silenced thing. Killing. It. I suppose next I should work on not virtue signaling 🤔

3 reasons why itt's hard for people of faith to write things like this [GIFT LINK] www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...

Saying upcoming events are "hate America" events is poisoning the well. Truly surprised LSU Law doesn't teach logic.

Why you don't rely on AI for factual information: Seen at the Bad Place. Notice Grok's summary is just wrong, given that the data is from 2019/2020. ALSO, I'd love to know a) the base rate before the increase b) external factors like Okla. buying a Bible for every school classroom.

Words like "young" can have a lot of meanings - everything from actual toddlers to 39-year-old men. Context matters.

Hey, y'all: if you're a journalism prof interested in a mid-sized private school in an affordable area with smart students and the world's greatest colleagues, do I have a position for you... bit.ly/ElonJournPro...

Honestly, sometimes the movie IS better.

Sora2: Extremely realistic videos