Back on my "Meta scam ads" rage platform... The question of why Meta seems incapable of preventing the prolific scam ads that flood its platforms was a curly one. Is it a technical challenge? Are scammers just too good at circumventing controls? Or did it all come down to the dollars?

New Zealand would like to be normal too, please. #nzpol

This is a bit weird though, lots of changes to laws around pornography happening in the UK at the moment. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

An interesting view from the UK on a proposed law restricting protest outside of MPs residential homes (we are considering something similar here). Still clearly reeling from political murders and severe online violence against MPs and candidates, too #nzpol www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Also, note the use of AI (and intersection with Nazi shit) "The searches included AI material, including references to nude toddlers and nude nazi girl. Other words typed included 'slave', 'abuse' and 'extreme'."

It’s important to note that he was the person responsible for protective security during the time period many many people from the PM to me were receiving regular death and rape threats. The past is making more sense to me now.

Yikes, what a screen grab

your regular reminder also that there is excellent scientific evidence that we value research less when marginalised people do it (this paper is specifically about women in US-based research)

I'm sure it's totally coincidental that the AoNZ government's changes to the Marsden Fund have been followed by successful applications led by female investigators dropping from 55% to 33%, and successful applications led by Māori investigators dropping from 13% to 5%. 🫠 🧪

Yikes. Another case that could have benefitted from the new anti stalking law (still sitting in the legislative process!) "He had also been served with a harassment notice from police after becoming infatuated with a 17-year-old girl." #nzpol www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

An interesting piece of research, and includes some reminders that media is not all doom and gloom for our young people www.rnz.co.nz/life/relatio...

Great explainer about nonconsensual sexualised deepfakes with some comments (ie rants) from me. Criminalising the most egregious behaviour will not stop deepfakes. We need regulation too. #nzpol www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

Talking to a nurse at my GP's office today - apparently they're being inundated by people wanting MMR vaccines. Thousands of them, she told me it seems like. Hopefully this means our vaccination rates will get somewhere near where they need to be to stop future outbreaks.

I'm sorry, it's actually embarrassing that a senior minister of the Crown is resorting to op eds to get her point across without critique If your policy is defensible, defend it under questioning by an actual journalist, without a paywall in the way

Misogynist slurs, dis/misinfo whipping up online harassment, threats of violence, death = online gender-based violence. Note also the appearance-based abuse (women are far more likely to be subject to this). When we will we stop expecting women public figures to protect themselves from this?

It’s nuts the crap people believe about me. Someone even thinks I leafleted schools to scare boys into getting vaccinated! That may just sound silly, but misinformation and disinformation like this means some people want me and others like me jailed or even dead. It’s heartbreaking.

Morning peeps! I’ve written a piece for @thespinoff.bsky.social on why I ended up taking legal action against my employer and a little bit about how it played out. The whole story needs a book to tell but this is a good start 😂 thespinoff.co.nz/society/01-1... thespinoff.co.nz/society/01-1...

Tom Hunt missed the most important part of the letter - not that it was merely a lewd rumour (wtf) but that it was gendered disinformation designed to whip up distrust and online violence. Ah!

As a former school board member, this is fucking outrageous. If you are a parent, find the details for your school board members and email them immediately to tell them you expect them to give effect to Te Tiriti whether it's mandated by legislation or not.

Great explainer about nonconsensual sexualised deepfakes with some comments (ie rants) from me. Criminalising the most egregious behaviour will not stop deepfakes. We need regulation too. #nzpol www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day. certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.

Tom Hunt missed the most important part of the letter - not that it was merely a lewd rumour (wtf) but that it was gendered disinformation designed to whip up distrust and online violence. Ah!

Almost 200 emails is pretty significant. I don’t recall ever receiving maybe more than 30 for a particular campaign (city to sea bridge). Well done Dr 💕

I can only read the first 3 paragraphs of this, but calling Emily Writes a "blogger" given her very impressive background is a bit naff. Anyway, ask me why I helped pen the letter template to Andrew Little 🙂 #nzpol www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...

That's not all she is doing...Treaty and schools: Government to remove requirement for boards to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi - NZ Herald share.google/PuillpQnHEzl...

This is so true and so devastating. The current govt is destroying, lives, livelihoods, public services and social infrastructure at an alarming rate. #nzpol

"If the minister is going to use TALIS data, she should also look at the TALIS data that says the biggest cause of stress for New Zealand teachers is government changes, that only 14 percent of teachers believe the government values them."

I’m going to be donating this week because (not that a consumer guarantees situation is comparable in almost any way to this) my experience with my car has also really given first hand experience in how inaccessible and unaffordable justice is

There's a big lesson in this for #Election26: get your people on the electoral roll and make sure their details are correct...

468 special votes were cast, over 22 times the winning margin. Of those, 288 votes (62% of the total) were disallowed. The main reason for 197 votes being binned was that the person was not on the electoral roll or their enrolment details weren't up to date. www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-adv...

Excellent criticism of Autism New Zealand's bizarre "charter school for autists" proposal by Professor Missy Morton. Congrats also to 95bFM for devoting the air time to the issue. 95bfm.com/bcast/concer...

📢 One lawyer said she was quoted nearly $16,000 for a single report – four times the usual amount.

"Sources at Parliament, who wouldn’t speak on the record for fear of retribution, said the letter ...revealed how China’s government monitors New Zealanders ...they believe China is sending people to spy on events organised by Kiwi supporters of Taiwan."

Measles situation 'not easy' for schools to manage - expert

It’s Measles Immunisation Week! 🛡️ 📲 Visit info.health.nz/immunisations/immunisation-clinics for pop up clinics near you where you can get your MMR vaccination. You can also check healthpoint.co.nz. Another option is to book online: info.health.nz/bookavaccine

The safest option is to ignore Ministry of Health advice. How far we have fallen since 2020/2021 #nzpol www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3608...

I was ranting to some undergrads about ChatGPT on Friday. They were mostly onboard and then one said to me “but what are we supposed to do when our professors require us to use it” Absolutely the fuck not

This coming week is a Measles Immunisation Week, launched to raise awareness and boost vaccine uptake www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/corporate-in... 3/3

I really can't emphasize enough that OpenAI is, as Dr. Gilliard has described in the past, a social arsonist enabling racism, and I urge colleagues in education using OpenAI's products - including ed-tech platforms that incorporate its products like Khanmigo and MagicSchool - to stop.

What AI hype, its hour come at last, slouches towards LinkedIn to produce statistically average thought leadership pieces.

Can think of few others as deserving as Siouxsie - who helped protect so many lives, & was NZ'er of the Year in 2021 - of our support now. She won legal case on truly awful online harassment/hate but remains 400k+ out of pocket. Absurd. Time to help her move forward www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7PB...

The internet in a nutshell: I woke this morning to find my crowdfunding campaign has reached over $40,000 in pledges and then spent 30 minutes blocking trolls on FB.

Morning peeps! Two new rewards just dropped for my crowdfunding campaign: a two-hour AI strategy session with @andrewtychen.bsky.social & a two book BWB Texts bundle on digital technology in NZ! www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/852...

The burden to minimise harm shouldn't be on the shoulders of those receiving it. Shocking, shameful,sad. I'm sorry @siouxsiew.bsky.social. I hope one day I can say we made digital spaces better ❤️

Now we know how National would have handled the Covid pandemic. The 20,000 we saved would be dead.

The burden to minimise harm shouldn't be on the shoulders of those receiving it. Shocking, shameful,sad. I'm sorry @siouxsiew.bsky.social. I hope one day I can say we made digital spaces better ❤️

😂 Facebook is a delight for me today. Here’s a small snapshot. The one about viruses not existing is a bit of a worry as the person works for a district health board. 😱

Just a note to say that @rebeccamatthews.bsky.social didn’t get a chair role. Ray did.

Re sharing these posts for a reminder of what Ray Chung did and the impact of this kind of behaviour (from my instagram) #nzpol

The second edition of LensenMcGavin AI's The Reading List is out now. Some really fantastic reads, including New Zealand's own (via Australia) Joshua Yuvaraj. See below: open.substack.com/pub/lensenmc...