Ben Werdmuller
benwerd@nos.social
npub183ng...4n09
I lead technology at ProPublica and write speculative fiction. This is a personal account.
Every day, I write about tech, democracy, and society at https://werd.io.
More about me: https://about.werd.io
Australia's ban on social media for teens is a mistake 
Ben Werdmuller
Australia's ban on social media for teens is a mistake
[Mathew Ingram]
As Mathew Ingram points out, Australia's new social media law is a well-intentioned error.
He quotes an Australian human rights c...
Threads takes an important baby step toward true fediverse integration
Ben Werdmuller
Threads takes an important baby step toward true fediverse integration
[Wes Davis at The Verge]
Threads added a little more fediverse support:
"While fediverse posts won’t show in feeds, Instagram head Adam Mosseri...
FTC Bans Location Data Company That Powers the Surveillance Ecosystem
Ben Werdmuller
FTC Bans Location Data Company That Powers the Surveillance Ecosystem
[Joseph Cox at 404 Media]
This is good to see:
"The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced sweeping action against some of the most important c...
These Tech Firms Won’t Tell Us If They Will Help Trump Deport Immigrants
Ben Werdmuller
These Tech Firms Won’t Tell Us If They Will Help Trump Deport Immigrants
[Sam Biddle at The Intercept]
In the face of Trump's promise to conduct mass deportations, The Intercept set out to find out who in tech would be ...
The Twitter Board made a historic mistake and the World will pay the price.
Ben Werdmuller
The Twitter Board made a historic mistake and the World will pay the price.
[Ricardo Mendes]
Ricardo argues that Twitter's sale to Elon Musk was one major factor that led to the rise of extremism worldwide, and that it sho...
I wrote a long blog post this morning, then read a big chunk of novel while my child slept curled up in one arm, and now I’m going to have a big cup of tea. Maybe later: a playground. This has been a very nice vacation week so far.
Bluesky, AI, and the battle for consent on the open web
Ben Werdmuller
Bluesky, AI, and the battle for consent on the open web
Why public data needs private consent
AI notification summaries are so bad (whether they’re accurate or not). If anyone ever does this to my email inbox or my feeds I’m going to be so mad. I’ll pay more for a service that doesn’t do it.
Tired: Building new cities in the North San Francisco Bay.
Wired: Getting like 25-50 people together and each buying one of those $1 houses in Sardinia.
Once again, the new Trump administration looks like it’ll effectively be a pen test for the US government. 
ProPublica
How Trump Plans to Seize the Power of the Purse From Congress
The second-term president likely will seek to cut off spending that lawmakers have already appropriated, setting off a constitutional struggle with...
Immigrants’ Resentment Over New Arrivals Helped Boost Trump’s Popularity With Latino Voters
Ben Werdmuller
Immigrants’ Resentment Over New Arrivals Helped Boost Trump’s Popularity With Latino Voters
[Melissa Sanchez and Mica Rosenberg at ProPublica]
Important resentments coming to the surface here:
"Her anger is largely directed at President ...
I’m not a resolutions guy, but this year it’s not even Thanksgiving yet and I’ve got a list. Determined to get through 2025 with intention.
I don’t love that they feel like they need this, but what a 21st century approach to this problem. Need shelter in all-out global war? There’s an app for that. 
the Guardian
Germany draws up list of bunkers amid Russia tensions
App planned for public to find emergency shelter in places including underground train stations and car parks