Emily Bell
@emilybell.bsky.social
Prof Columbia J School. Director Tow Center . Writes Guardian + elsewhere. Lives in airports…views are my own, thank goodness
Reposted by Emily Bell
Honored to serve on Mayor-elect @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social Transition Committee on Technology. For too long, too many New Yorkers have been left behind. NYC deserves governance that centers affordability, equity, and the public good-looking forward to the work ahead. www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news...
NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announces transition committees
New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announced Monday the creation of 17 transition advisory committees made up of more than 400 people.
www.cbsnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:52 PM
Honored to serve on Mayor-elect @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social Transition Committee on Technology. For too long, too many New Yorkers have been left behind. NYC deserves governance that centers affordability, equity, and the public good-looking forward to the work ahead. www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news...
documentation of evidence is a key part of journalism for precisely these reasons..
ICE’s Detention Center outside Chicago was sued on October 30 for allegedly abusing detainees. One day later, a "system crash" lost all video footage that could have shown how detainees were being treated. trib.al/QwT3aqI
November 21, 2025 at 12:27 AM
documentation of evidence is a key part of journalism for precisely these reasons..
Reposted by Emily Bell
Yes but @rdbinns.bsky.social did first so we wrote an article about it : arxiv.org/abs/2412.06356
Reputation Management in the ChatGPT Era
Generative AI systems often generate outputs about real people, even when not explicitly prompted to do so. This can lead to significant reputational and privacy harms, especially when sensitive, misl...
arxiv.org
November 21, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Yes but @rdbinns.bsky.social did first so we wrote an article about it : arxiv.org/abs/2412.06356
‘Dress up’ to get on a plane …you know heels, lots of jewelry, structured suits with big shoulders, belts, that kind of thing…..
Trump's Transportation Secretary on how to improve air travel:
"People dress up like they're going to bed when they fly... We want to push people as we come into a really busy travel season, help people out, be in a good mood, dress up"
"People dress up like they're going to bed when they fly... We want to push people as we come into a really busy travel season, help people out, be in a good mood, dress up"
November 21, 2025 at 12:10 AM
‘Dress up’ to get on a plane …you know heels, lots of jewelry, structured suits with big shoulders, belts, that kind of thing…..
We originally set up an alert to track our mentions @towcenter.bsky.social - but soon found that my name cropped up a great deal, (false ‘Dr’ added), talking about the things I talk about (tech + media) but none of the quotes were real. AI slop me has been pretty busy….
We found AI produces fake ‘expert’ quotes for questionable websites - including our own director… @dmil.bsky.social @cj-robinson.bsky.social @emilybell.bsky.social
www.cjr.org/tow_center/w...
www.cjr.org/tow_center/w...
When the pink-slime researchers become the pink slime.
We love to hear when journalists engage with our research, so in October, we set up an LLM agent to sort through Google Alerts for Tow Center’s work and notify us when our research is cited in news. T...
www.cjr.org
November 20, 2025 at 11:58 PM
We originally set up an alert to track our mentions @towcenter.bsky.social - but soon found that my name cropped up a great deal, (false ‘Dr’ added), talking about the things I talk about (tech + media) but none of the quotes were real. AI slop me has been pretty busy….
Reposted by Emily Bell
It happened here, and how: my latest Nation print column www.thenation.com/article/soci...
The 1935 Novel That Predicted Trump’s Second Term
Sinclair Lewis imagined an American version of the rise of fascism in Europe. His predictions didn’t come true then, but seem eerily familiar now.
www.thenation.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:15 PM
It happened here, and how: my latest Nation print column www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Reposted by Emily Bell
Musk's Grokipedia is a cesspool of white supremacist and Neo Nazi garbage. Cornell researchers: xAI's Grokipedia cites neo-Nazi website Stormfront 42 times, Infowars 34 times, and white nationalist website VDare 107 times
Elon Musk’s Grokipedia cites Stormfront — a neo-Nazi forum — dozens of times, study finds
An analysis by researchers at Cornell University is the first comprehensive look at Grokipedia since Musk launched his project last month.
www.nbcnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Musk's Grokipedia is a cesspool of white supremacist and Neo Nazi garbage. Cornell researchers: xAI's Grokipedia cites neo-Nazi website Stormfront 42 times, Infowars 34 times, and white nationalist website VDare 107 times
Would you hire Palantir to help build your newsroom AI tools? …….me neither. Does make me wonder how many journalists / computational journalists they have on staff. Peter Thiel and Alex Karp don’t strike me as reliable standard bearers of the fourth estate…
www.axios.com/2025/11/18/f...
www.axios.com/2025/11/18/f...
Fox News hires Palantir to build AI newsroom tools
Fox News and Palantir have built three main tools to improve efficiency.
www.axios.com
November 19, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Would you hire Palantir to help build your newsroom AI tools? …….me neither. Does make me wonder how many journalists / computational journalists they have on staff. Peter Thiel and Alex Karp don’t strike me as reliable standard bearers of the fourth estate…
www.axios.com/2025/11/18/f...
www.axios.com/2025/11/18/f...
Three days later he is not
Being reminded Larry Summers is currently on the board of Open AI
November 19, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Three days later he is not
Reposted by Emily Bell
Great to see @alexandrageese.bsky.social on fire. Takeaways:
1. EU capital investing in US tech instead of European
2. Public procurement power not deployed to prefer EU tech
3. The unbelievable admiration(!) in EC circles for big tech.
But momentum building for building OUR tech #EuroSkyLive
1. EU capital investing in US tech instead of European
2. Public procurement power not deployed to prefer EU tech
3. The unbelievable admiration(!) in EC circles for big tech.
But momentum building for building OUR tech #EuroSkyLive
November 19, 2025 at 9:37 AM
Great to see @alexandrageese.bsky.social on fire. Takeaways:
1. EU capital investing in US tech instead of European
2. Public procurement power not deployed to prefer EU tech
3. The unbelievable admiration(!) in EC circles for big tech.
But momentum building for building OUR tech #EuroSkyLive
1. EU capital investing in US tech instead of European
2. Public procurement power not deployed to prefer EU tech
3. The unbelievable admiration(!) in EC circles for big tech.
But momentum building for building OUR tech #EuroSkyLive
Reposted by Emily Bell
NEW: US airlines (Delta, United, American, etc) will shut down a program in which it sold hundreds of millions of your flight records to government agencies, including ICE, FBI, ATF, more. Comes after intense lawmaker-pressure and 404 Media's months-long reporting
www.404media.co/airlines-wil...
www.404media.co/airlines-wil...
Airlines Will Shut Down Program That Sold Your Flights Records to Government
The move comes after intense pressure from lawmakers and 404 Media’s months-long reporting about the airline industry's data selling practices.
www.404media.co
November 18, 2025 at 6:45 PM
NEW: US airlines (Delta, United, American, etc) will shut down a program in which it sold hundreds of millions of your flight records to government agencies, including ICE, FBI, ATF, more. Comes after intense lawmaker-pressure and 404 Media's months-long reporting
www.404media.co/airlines-wil...
www.404media.co/airlines-wil...
Reposted by Emily Bell
"New Fellowship offers £15,000 for public interest investigative journalism."
"Oxford Brookes University is launching a new Fellowship to support journalists pursuing in-depth, public interest investigations."
www.brookes.ac.uk/about-brooke...
"Oxford Brookes University is launching a new Fellowship to support journalists pursuing in-depth, public interest investigations."
www.brookes.ac.uk/about-brooke...
New Fellowship offers £15,000 for public interest investigative journalism - Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University is launching a new Fellowship to support journalists pursuing in-depth, public interest investigations.
www.brookes.ac.uk
November 18, 2025 at 2:14 PM
"New Fellowship offers £15,000 for public interest investigative journalism."
"Oxford Brookes University is launching a new Fellowship to support journalists pursuing in-depth, public interest investigations."
www.brookes.ac.uk/about-brooke...
"Oxford Brookes University is launching a new Fellowship to support journalists pursuing in-depth, public interest investigations."
www.brookes.ac.uk/about-brooke...
Reposted by Emily Bell
In April 2009, the Washington Post asked 10 writers to make the case for something that deserves to be tossed out as part of "spring cleaning."
I chose Larry Summers.
Better late than never.
Unlocked version of my 16-year-old article below.
naomiklein.org/why-we-shoul...
I chose Larry Summers.
Better late than never.
Unlocked version of my 16-year-old article below.
naomiklein.org/why-we-shoul...
November 18, 2025 at 6:20 AM
In April 2009, the Washington Post asked 10 writers to make the case for something that deserves to be tossed out as part of "spring cleaning."
I chose Larry Summers.
Better late than never.
Unlocked version of my 16-year-old article below.
naomiklein.org/why-we-shoul...
I chose Larry Summers.
Better late than never.
Unlocked version of my 16-year-old article below.
naomiklein.org/why-we-shoul...
Reposted by Emily Bell
I like how these guys get to have it both ways
they get to inflate the bubble via broad product misrepresentation and bogus math
then dole out sage warnings about a looming problem they created as if they played no role in it
they get to inflate the bubble via broad product misrepresentation and bogus math
then dole out sage warnings about a looming problem they created as if they played no role in it
Google boss says trillion-dollar AI investment boom has 'elements of irrationality'
In an exclusive BBC interview, Sundar Pichai hailed artificial intelligence as an "extraordinary moment" but said no company would be immune if bubble burst.
www.bbc.com
November 18, 2025 at 1:56 PM
I like how these guys get to have it both ways
they get to inflate the bubble via broad product misrepresentation and bogus math
then dole out sage warnings about a looming problem they created as if they played no role in it
they get to inflate the bubble via broad product misrepresentation and bogus math
then dole out sage warnings about a looming problem they created as if they played no role in it
A financially ruined AI sector is not the threat they think it is. How many people at this point would see a recession as no worse than unregulated, extractive surveillance companies grow ?
AI advocates have warned that if every author in the class action filed a claim, it would "financially ruin" the entire industry.
Authors celebrate “historic” settlement coming soon in Anthropic class action
Advocates fear such settlements will “financially ruin” the AI industry.
arstechnica.com
November 18, 2025 at 2:01 PM
A financially ruined AI sector is not the threat they think it is. How many people at this point would see a recession as no worse than unregulated, extractive surveillance companies grow ?
‘Hanky panky over the internet’ as someone just said
November 18, 2025 at 3:54 AM
‘Hanky panky over the internet’ as someone just said
Reposted by Emily Bell
It is genuinely incredible to me how much evidence there is to support investing in the public good and how much animus there is to do this simple, effective thing.
November 18, 2025 at 3:00 AM
It is genuinely incredible to me how much evidence there is to support investing in the public good and how much animus there is to do this simple, effective thing.
Pandas are going wild for that piece….bamboo overload
November 18, 2025 at 3:10 AM
Pandas are going wild for that piece….bamboo overload
(In fairness bamboo is a bugger to get rid of once it establishes itself )
November 18, 2025 at 3:01 AM
(In fairness bamboo is a bugger to get rid of once it establishes itself )
will nobody think of the copy editors
November 18, 2025 at 2:59 AM
will nobody think of the copy editors
For those of you non believers . Theater of War came to Columbia to talk about AI and writing with a dramatic reading of Hua Hsu’s New Yorker essay on the death of the English essay www.newyorker.com/newsletter/t...
November 18, 2025 at 2:29 AM
For those of you non believers . Theater of War came to Columbia to talk about AI and writing with a dramatic reading of Hua Hsu’s New Yorker essay on the death of the English essay www.newyorker.com/newsletter/t...
Very strong piece of reporting by NYT team including my sometime co-teacher @mhkeller.bsky.social on what the deployment of resources towards immigrant detention really means for US citizen safety www.nytimes.com/2025/11/16/u...
Homeland Security Missions Falter Amid Focus on Deportations
www.nytimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Very strong piece of reporting by NYT team including my sometime co-teacher @mhkeller.bsky.social on what the deployment of resources towards immigrant detention really means for US citizen safety www.nytimes.com/2025/11/16/u...
Thomson Reuters, has a Foundation, focuses on press freedom, funds research, runs a ‘Trust’ conference …and also uses a data brokerage business that helps ICE boost its surveillance capabilities
The Reuters company is also one of the nation’s largest data brokers and they’re yet another corporation exploiting America’s lack of data privacy laws to power ICE surveillance.
This App Lets ICE Track Vehicles and Owners Across the Country
Material viewed by 404 Media shows data giant Thomson Reuters enriches license plate data with marriage, voter, and ownership records. The tool can predict where a car may be in the future.
www.404media.co
November 17, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Thomson Reuters, has a Foundation, focuses on press freedom, funds research, runs a ‘Trust’ conference …and also uses a data brokerage business that helps ICE boost its surveillance capabilities
A lot of sharp analysis around the unnecessary crisis at the BBC, caused essentially by a political attack from those supposedly with the BBC’s interests at heart. This is particularly good at taking the UK/US perspective www.cjr.org/the_media_to...
The Plan to Bring Down a Giant: How right-wing forces struck a coordinated blow to the BBC.
How right-wing forces struck a coordinated blow to the BBC.
www.cjr.org
November 17, 2025 at 3:19 PM
A lot of sharp analysis around the unnecessary crisis at the BBC, caused essentially by a political attack from those supposedly with the BBC’s interests at heart. This is particularly good at taking the UK/US perspective www.cjr.org/the_media_to...