Puck gonna Puck

tbh at this rate all of the established players are just making it too easy for new publications like @thebulwark.com to grow exponentially because the caliber of available reporting talent is off the charts

Having kids rules. Our individualistic / sink or swim culture does not rule. And it’s wild thinking about how much harder it was for a lot of Gen X and Boomer parents.

In today’s email, @teamziller.bsky.social captures something I’m hoping to be true! NBC will to be my favorite spot to watch the NBA! Combo of the broadcast team, production design, and most importantly they will evolve TNT’s sitcom of Chuck, Kenny, and Shaq www.teamziller.com/giannis-ante...

Those are just outfits you can unlock in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

As one of the handful of Tampa Bay fans on this app, fire them cannons! (This is really a dual appreciation post of both Egbuka’s absurd start to the season and JJ consistently posting to this app - he remains one of the best)

$150 million for a media business with sub 200k paying subscribers and a circulation business of sub 2m readers is 100% a “you gonna get fired in 18 months” type of move for anyone else… (Yes I know the why here but also it’s worth sitting with the absurd economics of this deal)

Trying hard to not feel like Kurt Severing this morning (and not wind up as fatalistic) Evergreen recommendation to spend time with Jason Lutes Berlin drawnandquarterly.com/books/berlin...

Disclaimer: Sheil’s NFL podcast is my favorite thing (my wife listens so we can discuss eps) It’s both wild and wonderful that NFL podcasters all join each others shows regardless of who pays for their healthcare. This is what fans want! Yahoo, Ringer, ESPN, The Athletic, etc are all connected.

Ultimately I probably believe that this format of short form microblogging layered on top of massive networks is probably breaking our brains and too open to manipulation. And yes I am terminally addicted and rely on these types of feeds to soothe, entertain, and inform me!

The core idea of "vibe coding" is to quickly build software that is low quality but kinda usable. It's built in a way where you have no idea how it works. It's a fast. It's kinda usable. It's ultimately crap. Cue Microsoft's "vibe working" vision! www.theverge.com/news/787076/...

Also: Yes, @jaredweissnba.bsky.social has a new gig covering Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. I know a lot of folks have asked about more coverage of that team and player over the past couple years. You're all in great hands. Really excited for what he has cooked up this season.

Wait... Sister Jean is 106 and was still on the payroll? Props. www.nytimes.com/athletic/665...

Gotta love the team that thought... well, let's show them a 15 second promotional sizzle reel featuring clips from Family Guy to convince you to NOT cancel that Disney+ / Hulu subscription!

Everything is glass as @zachseward.com put it (checks notes) 11 years ago theverge.com/news/780757/... Or in other words... everything is ads on glass...

This is an intentional choice! AI deepfake videos on Facebook to a near infinite supply of pirated movie clips on TikTok to literal fake nonfiction books for sale. There’s a key distinction between free speech and businesses who profit off of junk (or worse). Doesn’t have to be this way.

It’s now so d*mn obvious when someone shares a doc that was either drafted by AI or punched up by AI. It’s like auto tune or an early Instagram filter, at first glance it’s not the worst thing but after 5x you roll your eyes. AI is all too often a limiting force for creativity and thinking.

I remember when my elementary school got a computer lab in ~1996 and machine had Descent pre-installed. Our teacher had no idea how to control the 3rd grade LAN party that ensued.

$1,000 a year to follow your NBA team is just wild www.nytimes.com/athletic/662... I love my Orlando Magic and will pony up to follow them this year b/c THIS IS OUR YEAR but oof

This “infinite AI podcasts” company reads pretty cleanly an ad tech company where they want to use AI to reduce costs for host reads www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/dig... Like most things - stand in solidarity with voice actors from podcast ads to audiobooks to video games

This was the first album I ever purchased. I was 11 on a school field trip to a mall (there was an indoor skating rink... Tampa!) Twentieth century, go to sleep Really deep We won't blink

If I squint - hiring the Browser Company team is a decent bet if Jira wants to compete with Linear But it feels like the new “flipping properties” is to start an AI company with zero distribution and then sell it to get stock from an incumbent www.theverge.com/web/770947/b...

Need a break? It was pretty rad that I got to make a small contribution towards @markcooperjr.bsky.social's latest magnum opus: 32 specially themed Connections: Sports Edition game boards for each NFL team www.nytimes.com/athletic/659...

defector.com/defector-and... REMEMBER SOME GUYS!!!

One of these is a Zero and one of these is a Cheerio

For most of my adult life I've accepted that I am rarely in control and when in doubt, just accept what's going on, do my best to ride the wave, and default to kindness and assume good intent from everyone else This works well with work & family but outside of that... I feel lacking for this moment

Spotify launching DMs is one of those "is there anything left in the roadmap" type of moments www.theverge.com/news/765771/... Attempts to be the "best one-stop shop to share music" is not a problem anyone actually wants solved, but this will be an amazing vector for abuse and harassment

Imagining a world where the CNN, the Washington Post, or Wall Street Journal were locked in a carriage dispute with Meta or YouTube over payments... www.nytimes.com/athletic/657...

my title for this @newyorker.com essay is: Labubu C'est Moi www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...

How long did the NYT Games editors sit on today’s Wordle?

With The Argument launching today on Substack & YouTube, I want to take it seriously as a product idea www.theargumentmag.com/p/introducin... What if the idea of an "argument" was the "atom" structuring a product? How would a newsroom plug in and make this product worth visiting weekly (daily)?

The lasting success of KPop Demon Hunters this summer feels like we're peaking into the future (or the future is already here?). * Global audience * Genre but familiar * One of the few Netflix movies that truly broke out * Now... the hit single Golden first KPop song to top Billboard

I remember in high school when a teacher shared with us that Beowulf is meant to be listened to and not just read. Listening to Seamus Heaney's audiobook was eye-opening. I can see how Hidden Door can achieve something similar -- especially in this world of remixing the classics with genre fiction

The Safdie brother sports movie Oscar race will be a fun narrative this winter

Area Critic (Me) Needs New Job. Reach out if you want me to write for you! Doesn't have to be reviews!

Google's new "select your preferred news sources" feature feels like an inevitable AI table stakes thingamajig -- pick your sources will both improve utility but also create more fragmentation www.theverge.com/news/757979/...

“‘The sexualization of women is what’s used to hold women down, and this is no different,’ Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said.” ding ding ding

I love how @theverge.com is actually on the path to "turn a publisher into a platform" by embracing federation and putting its journalists front & center. From their new homepage (blogging! following!) to their paywall to more newsletters (Regulator! Stepback!)... it's a place to habitually visit

Listening to Simmons this morning and he was questioning why the heck ESPN purchased NFL Media www.nytimes.com/athletic/653... I get it -- on paper this deal has a lot of question marks but taking a step back, this deal helps ensure the NFL always works with ESPN as YouTube, Netflix, Amazon circle

I do believe that the folks behind Jubilee are (were?) well intentioned but this Surrounded debate format is fuel for propaganda and misinformation. Similar to Cocomelon or Mr. Beast, it’s designed to hijack attention at all costs and now serves to fuel bad faith actors

IMO @watchduty.org is the most important (and impressive) mobile app / website of the 2020s

This is an ITYSL sketch youtu.be/cK7BXQu0klE?...

I was a high school & college debater circa 1999-2007 during that period emerged arguments about competitive debate itself being built on a racist & discriminatory foundation It’s wild how many VCs, Substackers, podcasters, etc are making arguments that would wouldn’t stand a chance against a 19yo

Sigh... if you are unaware (though you already on BSky) @bernstein.bsky.social's 2018 reporting is sadly all too relevant www.buzzfeednews.com/article/jose...

Like some of y'all -- I subscribe to too many d*mn newsletters but there are a handful I actually am excited to read. Top of the list is @kneelingbus.bsky.social's writing and today's is one I'll be revisiting for days / months / etc to come kneelingbus.substack.com/p/here-comes...

Sometimes you know the answer but it’s more fun to make silly jokes and see if there’s a 1% chance Wordle went toddler brain Wordle 1,482 6/6 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛🟩🟩⬛ ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩