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
The White House has an app now, and Trump wants you to report people to ICE on it 
Ben Werdmuller
The White House has an app now, and Trump wants you to report people to ICE on it
Want to report your friends and neighbors for extrajudicial kidnapping? The new White House app wants you to get in touch.
Notable links: March 27, 2026 
Ben Werdmuller
Notable links: March 27, 2026
Progress on the open social web; not so much in the world.
Meta and YouTube found negligent in landmark social media addiction case
Ben Werdmuller
Meta and YouTube found negligent in landmark social media addiction case
The implications of this case could include the effective end of Section 230 protections – and a new wave of attacks on places where people learn...
Earth being ‘pushed beyond its limits’ as energy imbalance reaches record high
Ben Werdmuller
Earth being ‘pushed beyond its limits’ as energy imbalance reaches record high
"Our home planet is struggling with a record energy imbalance, which is warming oceans to unprecedented levels, making weather more extreme and thr...
Histomat of F/OSS: We should reclaim LLMs, not reject them
Ben Werdmuller
Histomat of F/OSS: We should reclaim LLMs, not reject them
"The materialist response isn't to reject the new technology. It's to evolve our licenses to encompass it."
AI is changing the style and substance of human writing, study finds
Ben Werdmuller
AI is changing the style and substance of human writing, study finds
"Teams from Google and leading universities found that large-language models change the voice, tone and intended meaning of human authors."
Democratic Backsliding Reaches Western Democracies, with U.S. Decline “Unprecedented”
Ben Werdmuller
Democratic Backsliding Reaches Western Democracies, with U.S. Decline “Unprecedented”
"Democratic backsliding is now happening in well-established democracies. Democracy in the USA is deteriorating at unprecedented speed, and media a...
Notable links: March 20, 2026 
Ben Werdmuller
Notable links: March 20, 2026
Agentic engineering and burnout.
Four things about Yahoo News that may surprise you
Ben Werdmuller
Four things about Yahoo News that may surprise you
It's one of the most popular news sites in the country, and it's wildly profitable. It might be the right time for Yahoo to bounce back.
Businesses rush to rehire staff after regretted AI-driven cuts
Ben Werdmuller
Businesses rush to rehire staff after regretted AI-driven cuts
"Two in three employers that reduced headcount because of artificial intelligence are already rehiring laid off staff, as most express regret over ...
FCC Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over Iran War Coverage
Ben Werdmuller
FCC Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over Iran War Coverage
Critics say Brendan Carr is positioning himself as a national censor. His threats to broadcasters covering Iran fit the bill.
Trump is using immigration policy to suppress speech, lawsuit claims
Ben Werdmuller
Trump is using immigration policy to suppress speech, lawsuit claims
Researchers who study online safety are being censored and denied entry to the United States. It's having an unconstitutional chilling effect on in...
When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”
Ben Werdmuller
When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”
AI use can lead to burnout - but how you use it really matters.