What I'm Reading - 4/20/25
Hello and happy Easter Sunday to all who celebrate. I’m on the shore where the morning weather is just warm enough to sit outside on the porch, and the pollen is at least tolerable. I spent two hours yesterday clearing a spot for dahlia tubers and wildflower seeds that included getting rid of a rather pesky Japanese honeysuckle stump. I haven’t felt that much joy and pride in a while. Then I went to the nursery to get some more potting soil and ended up with all sorts of plants. Fingers crossed they grow ok. I can’t wait to have cut flowers this summer.
I’m also reading a new book, Time Anxiety: The Illusion of Urgency and a Better Way to Live by Chris Guillebeau. I feel like all of these books have the same message about setting boundaries and saying no, but there are some good tips in here. It’s possible I haven’t gotten to it yet, but I’m surprised there’s not more in here about using AI to help reclaim some of your time.
Have a great Sunday!
What I’m Reading
Must-Reads
I’m going to be banging on this drum for a while about just how fast our use of things like search and social media are changing in this AI era.
has a great piece this week outlining that even further about Why AI is the New Social Media.AI Developments
AI & SOCIETY: The impacts of companion AI on human relationships: risks, benefits, and design considerations
Stories About Specific Countries
Chatham House: X is taking the Indian government to court over content moderation tools. Expect India to win.
Political & Social Commentary
Disjointed: A simple vision for the future of media organizations
Lawfare: Process as Punishment: An American History of Political Spectacle
Pew Research Report: Most Americans Say They Are Tuned In to News About the Trump Administration
The New York Times: Trump Administration Memo Proposes Cutting State Department Funding by Nearly Half
Financial Times: CNN’s Mark Thompson: ‘Our entire industry is going through a revolution’
Harvard Business Review: How People Are Really Using Gen AI in 2025
The Washington Post: Opinion | Covid created two very divided cohorts of Gen Z
The Up and Up: Special Edition: New Data On The Two Gen Zs
The Free Press: Joe Biden Made 600 Grants to Stop 'Disinformation.' Donald Trump Now Has a Plan for Them
Press Gazette: Facebook increasing as part of social traffic mix after algorithm change, data shows
Legal & Regulatory
MIT Technology Review: The State Department office countering foreign disinformation is being eliminated, officials say
The Verge: FTC v. Meta live: the latest from the battle over Instagram and WhatsApp
The Wall Street Journal: Exclusive | Former Trump Adviser Chris Krebs Vows to Fight After Being Targeted in Executive Action
The Verge: Trump apparently wants to “just delay” a TikTok deal.
Miscellaneous Insights & Reports
Chris Guillebeau: Time Anxiety
Company Announcements