Ex Vice Motherboard.
The author seems full of hubris and the subject matter is a reformulated “tech journalism is broken” is comically late by, oh, about a decade. The author seems to be unaware that this isn’t a new thing.
Then there’s some cringeworthy stuff like unironically using the word normie before conjuring an irrelevant excuse to proudly remind everyone how easy political writing was in his corner of the society where there is only one correct candidate to support.
Author is also selling a paid subscription to an AI magazine. In one of the free articles he coins the phrase “singularism” (and used it in multiple articles) being oblivious to the fact that singularitarianism has existed for 30 years and means the same thing as his “catchphrase”. As the saying goes, “if you can’t pronounce singularitarian, you can’t be one”. https://www.understandingai.org/p/why-im-not-worried-about-a...
It’s alright folks, AGI is not a risk because the world isn’t a chessboard.
It just seems like a grift festival in there.
Getting good tech writing, and even good tech policy writing, done is harder every year.
There's fewer ad dollars and lots more low-quality writing and outlets. So there's no a lot of money out there to pay reporters who know tech, have a good nose for news, and who can file decent copy.
Techcrunch recently shutdown its paid product because it couldn't afford the writers who could do the in depth work:https://www.luxcapital.com/securities/techcrunch-plus-termin...
The industry has lost so many good ones due to layoffs or just people deciding there are easier ways to make money.
There are still some great tech reporters employed in the industry or running their own publications. The NYT snapped up some great ones, like Cade Metz and Mike Isaac.
Kim Zetter is an outstanding computer security reporter still making it as a freelancer.
Ars Technica had a stable of great policy reporters, who understood the nuances of patents, copyright, etc.
Even Ars is barebones now. Jon Brodkin does great work.
The 404 Media folks, Vice Motherboard ex-pats, are pioneering a worker-owned subscription-centered site and are breaking all kinds of news. But the economics are still hard.
If you want good tech reporting, there are two things you can do personally: one, subscribe to good sites, and two, learn to be a good source, whether by leaking news, just sharing what's new and cool, or teaching a reporter.
It's not all bleak, but times is tough and if you want good journalism, you got to support it.
https://www.nytco.com/press/a-statement-from-the-new-york-ti...
Their response for being too lax on Trump and overly focusing on irrelevant issues on Biden (eg. age) is to get angrier that Biden isn't giving them enough interviews.
Very nice! We know that all they stand for is a good horserace so their articles get clicks. Not information, democracy, or anything else.