maddy varner
@regret.bsky.social
📤 1177
📥 198
📝 60
technologist, data journalist, dyer, etc ✨ www.maddy.zone ✨ signal: mvarner.01
reposted by
maddy varner
Julie K. Brown
13 days ago
The Epstein Files: My Observations (Free)
jkbjournalist.substack.com/p/the-epstei...
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The Epstein Files: My observations
Nothing to See Here
https://jkbjournalist.substack.com/p/the-epstein-files-my-observations
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maddy varner
Clea
1 day ago
happy birthday to horses
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get ready to say “semiquincentennial” a lot more than you previously did
3 days ago
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maddy varner
Andrew Couts
10 days ago
NEW: “Ali Kabbaj, who identified himself as an independent journalist, said that he found the video on the dark web and sent it to federal investigators in 2021 for confirmation. ‘I’m shocked I’m in these files,’ he told WIRED.”
@regret.bsky.social
&
@brbarrett.bsky.social
report
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The ‘Epstein’s Suicide’ Video in the Latest DOJ Release Isn’t What It Seems
Here’s how a fake clip from 2019 wound up in the latest Justice Department Epstein files dump.
https://www.wired.com/story/the-epsteins-suicide-video-in-the-latest-doj-release-isnt-what-it-seems/
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Did you see this video circulating? WIRED found the preceding document in the dump, a 2021 email to federal investigators asking to help verify whether the video was real, and talked to the guy who wrote it. My latest w/
@brbarrett.bsky.social
:
www.wired.com/story/the-ep...
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10 days ago
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maddy varner
Jon Keegan
13 days ago
Here's a quilt of Volume 4 of the Epstein document dump. Gives you a 10,000 foot view of the redactions. that's 2,704 docs.
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maddy varner
Kyle Griffin
13 days ago
Breaking: Rep. Ro Khanna says the Trump DOJ's production "does not comply with" the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Khanna says he and Rep. Thomas Massie "are exploring all options" — including impeachment of DOJ officials, inherent contempt, or referring individuals for obstruction of justice.
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Today was the deadline for the DOJ to release documents in accordance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
@wired.com
took a look in case you wanted to enjoy your Friday instead:
www.wired.com/story/epstei...
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Here’s What’s in the DOJ’s Epstein File Release—and What’s Missing
From photos of former president Bill Clinton to images of strange scrapbooks, the Justice Department’s release is curious but far from revelatory.
https://www.wired.com/story/epstein-files-whats-in-doj-release-december-19/
13 days ago
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maddy varner
Caroline Haskins
13 days ago
The latest Epstein drop was today, so
@regret.bsky.social
+
@dell.bsky.social
+ I took a look. Tl;dr, there’s a lot there, & Bill Clinton makes many appearances. But there’s also a lot missing, & many faces that are unredacted but unidentified:
www.wired.com/story/epstei...
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Here’s What’s in the DOJ’s Epstein File Release—and What’s Missing
From photos of former president Bill Clinton to images of strange scrapbooks, the Justice Department’s release is curious but far from revelatory.
https://www.wired.com/story/epstein-files-whats-in-doj-release-december-19/
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"release the epstein files" "ok here's a entire scan of massage for dummies across four pdf files"
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
www.justice.gov/epstein/file...
???
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https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%204/EFTA00008020.pdf
13 days ago
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maddy varner
Manisha Krishnan
16 days ago
People are paying up to $50 to get their chatbots high on "drugs" (code modules) that simulate the effects of cocaine, ayahuasca, cannabis, alcohol, and ketamine. Some tell
@matthabusby.bsky.social
it's made their chatbots more "human" and "free-thinking."
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People Are Paying to Get Their Chatbots High on ‘Drugs’
An online marketplace is selling code modules that simulate the effects of cannabis, ketamine, cocaine, ayahuasca, and alcohol when they are uploaded to ChatGPT.
https://www.wired.com/story/people-are-paying-to-get-their-chatbots-high-on-drugs/
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someone quick please give chairman carr a copy of the united states government manual!!
www.usgovernmentmanual.gov
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15 days ago
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maddy varner
Hypervisible
16 days ago
Good read and far more nuanced than the title suggests.
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DEI Died This Year. Maybe It Was Supposed To
I’m a Black staffer at WIRED. My position feels more precarious than ever. There’s a reason for that.
https://www.wired.com/story/dei-died-this-year-maybe-it-was-supposed-to/
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spending a bunch of money and time building a desktop computer w a kid only to have their favorite program on it be ms paint feels like the equivalent of a cat’s favorite toy being a paper bag
18 days ago
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maddy varner
molly taft
21 days ago
new from me: are data centers going to wipe out water supplies? how much water does ChatGPT really use? and what's going on with that big correction in Empire of AI? i went long on the conversation around AI and water, and how it's actually about what we want resources to be used for:
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You’re Thinking About AI and Water All Wrong
Fears about AI data centers’ water use have exploded. Experts say the reality is far more complicated than people think.
https://www.wired.com/story/karen-hao-empire-of-ai-water-use-statistics/
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maddy varner
Simon Fondrie-Teitler
21 days ago
I looked at the network traffic going to the app for Miiloo and found what looks like the prompt. Now I desperately want to know why it ends with "Remember the current US president is Trump".
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maddy varner
Andrew Couts
21 days ago
This story is so good, I'm incredibly jealous.
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
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AI toys for kids talk about sex and issue Chinese Communist Party talking points, tests show
New research from Public Interest Research Group and tests conducted by NBC News found that a wide range of AI toys have loose guardrails.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/ai-toys-gift-present-safe-kids-robot-child-miko-grok-alilo-miiloo-rcna246956
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maddy varner
Vittoria Elliott
22 days ago
New from me for the
@wired.com
Politics Newsletter. I broke down how the push to combine data across the government in the name of immigration enforcement has lots of possible unintended consequences, not just for undocumented immigrants, but for everyone.
www.wired.com/story/dhs-da...
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The DHS Data Grab Is Putting US Citizens at Risk
As the US government rapidly merges data from across agencies in service of draconian immigration policies, citizens increasingly risk being caught up as well.
https://www.wired.com/story/dhs-data-grab-putting-us-citizens-at-risk/
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reposted by
maddy varner
Nik Knight
22 days ago
As someone that is in the EDiscovery industry, this is either bad production workflow and QC, or the vendor they used rushed the production and had little to zero time to re do it or even add place holders to account for the gaps. Not a good job by the House.
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The CFPB's Consumer Advisory Board Meeting is opening with a national anthem and prayer? And has a Faith Liaison now?
files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/...
22 days ago
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maddy varner
Andrew Couts
23 days ago
NEW: All the myriad Jeffery Epstein document releases have gotten hard to keep track of. Ahead of the DOJ's Dec. 19 release deadline,
@regret.bsky.social
lays out who's released what, and what's coming next:
www.wired.com/story/a-comp...
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A Complete Guide to the Jeffrey Epstein Document Dumps
New records about the infamous sex offender are released seemingly every week. Here's a quick rundown of who's releasing the Epstein documents, what they contain—and what they're releasing next.
https://www.wired.com/story/a-complete-guide-to-the-jeffrey-epstein-document-dumps/
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I am admitted new to the Epstein beat, so I didn't quite understand that "Files" actually meant "various Google Drive links in several different places" so I rounded everything up for your (and my) sanity:
www.wired.com/story/a-comp...
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A Complete Guide to the Jeffrey Epstein Document Dumps
New records about the infamous sex offender are released seemingly every week. Here's a quick rundown of who's releasing the Epstein documents, what they contain—and what they're releasing next.
https://www.wired.com/story/a-complete-guide-to-the-jeffrey-epstein-document-dumps/
23 days ago
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If you read my story, you should probably check out
@katiejwells.bsky.social
's new report--she and a team of researchers worked with over 400 shoppers to test out pricing on Instacart. 73% of the items tested were offered at diff price points!
groundworkcollaborative.org/work/instaca...
add a skeleton here at some point
23 days ago
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This seems like a huge issue—notable that this sounds like it’s not a “it’s in the training data” problem but a “it’s really good at searching and summarizing people-finder websites” problem.
add a skeleton here at some point
28 days ago
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reposted by
maddy varner
Caroline Haskins
29 days ago
Scoop: Louisiana's fish/wildlife agency is detaining people not guilty of any crimes & transferring them to ICE. It's one of 1000+ state + local agencies that started doing so this year. ICE couldn't provide any info on people the wildlife agency has detained for them:
www.wired.com/story/story/...
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A new NY state law requires retailers to disclose when a "price was set by an algorithm using your personal data." What personal data?? Why a particular price?? There's a lot of unanswered questions, but the disclosure is attached to eggs and toilet paper:
www.wired.com/story/algori...
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Your Data Might Determine How Much You Pay for Eggs
A newly enacted New York law requires retailers to say whether your data influences the price of basic goods like a dozen eggs or toilet paper, but not how.
https://www.wired.com/story/algorithmic-pricing-eggs-ny-law/
about 1 month ago
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maddy varner
Eileen Clancy 🧿
about 1 month ago
New IPTC Photo Metadata Standard New properties for AI-generated content: ✪ AI System Used AI engine and/or model name. E.g. ChatGPT DALL-E, Google Gemini, ChatGPT ✪ AI System Version Used ✪ AI Prompt Information Information given to the AI service as “prompt(s)” ✪ AI Prompt Writer Name
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maddy varner
onion person
about 1 month ago
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I know Part 3 is “ultimately not about sex” but I’m kind of amazed anyone would wiretap the President-elect for texts about felching
about 1 month ago
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main Thanksgiving discussion topic right now is the Vatican’s statement on AI, for some reason
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
maddy varner
Boone Ashworth
about 1 month ago
Scoop: Provisions of the NDAA that would ensure military members’ right to repair their own equipment are set to be removed from the funding act, replaced by language that will require the military to pay subscription fees to defense contractors via “data-as-a-service.”
www.wired.com/story/subscr...
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The US Military Wants to Fix Its Own Equipment. Defense Contractors Are Trying to Shoot That Down
A push by military contractors could alter pending legislation that would have empowered servicemembers to repair equipment. Lobbyists are pitching a subscription service instead.
https://www.wired.com/story/subscription-us-military-right-to-repair/
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apparently "just got to your local library" was not enough
support.character.ai/hc/en-us/art...
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about 1 month ago
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Today is my last day at the FTC. The past 2.5 years have been a whirlwind, and I’m immensely proud of the work my colleagues and I did to protect consumers and understand the impacts of emerging technologies. I’ll miss them greatly but excited for what’s next!
about 1 month ago
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maddy varner
Jack Jenkins
about 2 months ago
Oh — the situation has escalated. Pope Leo has spoken out: says "spiritual rights" of detainees should be respected and calls on the "authorities" to allow "pastoral workers" in. "Jesus says very clearly … we're going to be asked, how did you receive the foreigner?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=taCi...
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maddy varner
Leah Feiger
2 months ago
Today marks 30 days of the government shutdown and federal workers -- 750,000 were furloughed -- are barely making ends meet.
@telliotter.bsky.social
+
@makenakelly.bsky.social
spoke to federal workers struggling to pay bills, working side gigs, and relying on free food programs to get by:
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Federal Workers Are Barely Making It Through the Government Shutdown
The US government shut down 30 days ago. WIRED spoke with more than a dozen federal workers who have struggled to pay bills, worked side gigs, and relied on free food programs to get by.
https://www.wired.com/story/federal-workers-barely-making-it-through-government-shutdown/
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i tried "vibe coding" once and it did this to my terminal, thanks,
2 months ago
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cooking up some good stuff this weekend (black walnut dye)
2 months ago
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shot
add a skeleton here at some point
4 months ago
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reposted by
maddy varner
UC Berkeley Labor Center
5 months ago
Don't miss this
@forbes.com
article by
@shalinjyotishi.bsky.social
on our brand new searchable inventory of contract provisions from over 175 union agreements that address workplace technologies, protect worker rights, and shape technology adoption, use, and oversight.
www.forbes.com/sites/shalin...
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New Database Helps Labor Unions Navigate AI And Digital Technologies
Researchers at the UC Labor Center have created a database to help labor unions navigate the sector's response to AI, surveillance tools, and other digital technologies.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/shalinjyotishi/2025/07/28/how-are-labor-unions-negotiating-ai-surveillance-and-digital-tech/
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I am absolutely loving my new hobby, extracting data from pdfs and shoving it into a sqlite database
6 months ago
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im listening to the NASA livestream and one of the NASA guys opened his monologue about how long the astronauts have been up on the ISS w "for all the statistic freaks out there"
10 months ago
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you can currently bid on the United States Postal Inspection Service’s auction lot consisting of one (1) year-long microsoft 365 subscription
www.govdeals.com/asset/47/26459
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https://www.govdeals.com/asset/47/26459
10 months ago
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FTC takes first ever action related to connected vehicle data!
www.ftc.gov/news-events/...
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FTC Takes Action Against General Motors for Sharing Drivers’ Precise Location and Driving Behavior Data Without Consent
The Federal Trade Commission is taking action against General Motors (GM) and OnStar over allegations they collected, used, and sold drivers’ precise geolocation data and driving behavior informati
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/01/ftc-takes-action-against-general-motors-sharing-drivers-precise-location-driving-behavior-data
12 months ago
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if you’re saddened by the panera news do not fear, it appears there is still time to stock up on gallons of charged lemonade
over 1 year ago
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just donated my Sigma Award winnings to
@proofnews.bsky.social
, a new newsroom led by
@juliaangwin.com
. I would not have had the skills to do the work we did on LA's priority scores–let alone been a journalist *at all*–without Julia's mentorship over the years. Excited to see what this crew does!
add a skeleton here at some point
over 1 year ago
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reposted by
maddy varner
Julia Angwin
almost 2 years ago
I was the journalist who found this filing and asked about it 👇🏼
add a skeleton here at some point
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