What I’m Reading - 2/23/25
I’m back on the Eastern Shore, where we have the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I’m still getting over jetlag, so I’m getting up early in the morning and going to sleep earlier. I like it; I might try to keep this going.
Have a great Sunday! Happy Election Day to my friends in Germany.
What I’m Reading
Must-Reads
My must-read this week is a story that might have slipped your radar amongst everything else going on. Last week, Truth Social and Rumble sued Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes - the person in Brazil with the legal authority to ask platforms to take down content or suspend users - for a recent order he had made to Rumble to take action on content that he says was spreading misinformation and threatening judges.
Reading the filing is wild as there are a lot of facets to this case, including whether or not Moraes’ ruling was global or just for Brazil, if Rumble and Truth Social can geoblock (meaning not show content in just one country), can a foreign court do to block Moraes’ ruling, the fact the person Moraes wants to be taken down has asked for political asylum in the U.S. and so much more. Daphne Keller has two excellent threads on Bluesky about this if you want to nerd out. But keep an eye on this one.
Trends
International Journalists Network: 5 key insights from the World Press Trends Outlook 2024-2025
Reuters Institute/Oxford: People are turning away from the news. Here’s why it may be happening
Pew Research: How Americans view Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg
Pew Research: No consensus on who comes to mind when Americans are asked to name a news influencer
Pew Research: What we know about TikTok content creators
AI Developments
New York Times: A.I. Is Changing How Silicon Valley Builds Start-Ups
Stories About Specific Countries
Bloomberg: Meta Is Ready to Bring Trump Into Play in Fight Against EU Rules
Bloomberg: Trump Eyes Tariffs to Counter Digital Taxes Big Tech Loathes
The Financial Times: Silicon Valley fights EU tech rules with backing from Donald Trump
The Financial Times: EU scales back tech rules to boost AI investment, says digital chief
The Associated Press: Mexico awaits new response from Google on dispute over Gulf of Mexico name before filing lawsuit
DFRLab: The Musk Effect: Assessing X’s impact on Germany’s election discourse
Political & Social Commentary
Bloomberg: Trump’s FTC Chief Ferguson Targets ‘Big Tech Censorship’ of Users
FTC: Federal Trade Commission Launches Inquiry on Tech Censorship
Financial Times: Meta’s ‘free speech’ revamp divides oversight board
Semafor: Democrats, influencers huddle for a new new media strategy
The New York Times: Venting at Democrats and Fearing Trump, Liberal Donors Pull Back Cash
Pirate Wires: The Terrorist Propaganda to Reddit Pipeline
Tony Blair Institute for Global Change: How Leaders in the Global South Can Devise AI Regulation That Enables Innovation
Doomscrolling Babel: Does TikTok Amplify Republican Content?
The Atlantic: Trump, Ukraine, and the End of the Postwar World
Big Technology: Apple Tried To Destroy Meta’s Ad Business. Here’s How It Emerged Stronger Than Ever.
Lawfare: The Rise and Fall of America’s Response to Foreign Election Meddling
Legal & Regulatory
Tony Blair Institute for Global Change: How Leaders in the Global South Can Devise AI Regulation That Enables Innovation
Miscellaneous Insights & Reports
Business Insider: Netflix is eyeing video podcasts and once courted 'Call Her Daddy' star Alex Cooper
Axios: Exclusive: Knight Foundation invests $25M in American Journalism Project
Career Advice
Justin’s Substack: Transition manual from the Federal Government
Anna Mack's Stack: 20 ideas that changed the trajectory of my life
Company Announcements
Knight Foundation on YouTube: Knight Media Forum 2025: Combatting Censorship and the Chilling Effect in Civic Institutions
Knight Foundation on YouTube: Knight Media Forum 2025: In Conversation with Jay Graber, CEO Bluesky, and Maribel Pérez Wadsworth