Michael Grass
@mgrass.bsky.social
WA via DC, NYC and MI | Assistant director for communications at @cip.uw.edu | Former journalist | Car-free living | 🚎 🚇 🏊♂️ ✍️ 🌲🗺
Reposted by Michael Grass
If you're interested in seeing how framing contests are taking shape after the ICE killing of another person in Minneapolis, here's a window into the conversation on X this morning.
Link to interactive graph: faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot...
* I put this together quickly. Sorry for any errors
Link to interactive graph: faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot...
* I put this together quickly. Sorry for any errors
January 24, 2026 at 8:56 PM
If you're interested in seeing how framing contests are taking shape after the ICE killing of another person in Minneapolis, here's a window into the conversation on X this morning.
Link to interactive graph: faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot...
* I put this together quickly. Sorry for any errors
Link to interactive graph: faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot...
* I put this together quickly. Sorry for any errors
Reposted by Michael Grass
Our initial analysis is up.
The video footage appears to show that the gun was taken away from the man before he was shot.
He was UNARMED before any of the shots were fired.
The video footage appears to show that the gun was taken away from the man before he was shot.
He was UNARMED before any of the shots were fired.
Federal law enforcement agents shot and killed a man in Minneapolis on Jan. 24 according to local police officials. DHS told Fox News that the man was “armed with a gun”. A video of the shooting appears to show that a gun was taken from the man before the first shot was fired. x.com/BillMelugin_...
January 24, 2026 at 7:10 PM
Our initial analysis is up.
The video footage appears to show that the gun was taken away from the man before he was shot.
He was UNARMED before any of the shots were fired.
The video footage appears to show that the gun was taken away from the man before he was shot.
He was UNARMED before any of the shots were fired.
Reposted by Michael Grass
First-time posters need to be endorsed by an established arXiv author in their own field.
The new rule is mostly to try and discourage people from trying to get something started by sending some rubbish to arXiv.
🦠🧪
www.science.org/content/arti...
The new rule is mostly to try and discourage people from trying to get something started by sending some rubbish to arXiv.
🦠🧪
www.science.org/content/arti...
ArXiv preprint server clamps down on AI slop
First-time posters to venerable platform now need an endorsement from an established author
www.science.org
January 24, 2026 at 8:26 AM
First-time posters need to be endorsed by an established arXiv author in their own field.
The new rule is mostly to try and discourage people from trying to get something started by sending some rubbish to arXiv.
🦠🧪
www.science.org/content/arti...
The new rule is mostly to try and discourage people from trying to get something started by sending some rubbish to arXiv.
🦠🧪
www.science.org/content/arti...
Reposted by Michael Grass
Congrats to @cip.uw.edu co-founder @katestarbird.bsky.social!
HCDE Professor Kate Starbird has been named an ACM Fellow, one of the highest honors in computing. She's recognized for contributions to understanding and improving information ecosystems, including during crisis events and addressing misinformation. www.hcde.washington.edu/news/article...
Professor Kate Starbird named ACM Fellow for advancing research on misinformation and information ecosystems
HCDE Professor Kate Starbird has been named an ACM Fellow, one of the highest honors in computing, for her groundbreaking research on misinformation and online information ecosystems. The honor recogn...
www.hcde.washington.edu
January 22, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Congrats to @cip.uw.edu co-founder @katestarbird.bsky.social!
Reposted by Michael Grass
I told @bloomberg.com that Grok's undressing spree is the inevitable consequence of a concerted effort to roll back digital safety across tech platforms led by self-interested US elites
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
January 21, 2026 at 1:14 PM
I told @bloomberg.com that Grok's undressing spree is the inevitable consequence of a concerted effort to roll back digital safety across tech platforms led by self-interested US elites
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Reposted by Michael Grass
This is the most astonishing graph of what the Trump regime has done to US science. They have destroyed the federal science workforce across the board. The negative impacts on Americans will be felt for generations, and the US might never be the same again.
www.nature.com/immersive/d4...
www.nature.com/immersive/d4...
January 20, 2026 at 10:53 PM
This is the most astonishing graph of what the Trump regime has done to US science. They have destroyed the federal science workforce across the board. The negative impacts on Americans will be felt for generations, and the US might never be the same again.
www.nature.com/immersive/d4...
www.nature.com/immersive/d4...
Reposted by Michael Grass
One of the issues that has come up again and again in my reporting on misinformation and social media is the massive influence social media companies have on research in the field.
Last night a preprint dropped that tries to get at this with some numbers. My piece in @science.org (and 🧪🧵 coming):
Last night a preprint dropped that tries to get at this with some numbers. My piece in @science.org (and 🧪🧵 coming):
Nearly a third of social media research has undisclosed ties to industry, preprint claims
Industry-linked studies were also more likely to focus on particular topics, suggesting these ties may be skewing the field
www.science.org
January 19, 2026 at 3:26 PM
One of the issues that has come up again and again in my reporting on misinformation and social media is the massive influence social media companies have on research in the field.
Last night a preprint dropped that tries to get at this with some numbers. My piece in @science.org (and 🧪🧵 coming):
Last night a preprint dropped that tries to get at this with some numbers. My piece in @science.org (and 🧪🧵 coming):
Our team at the @cip.uw.edu is co-sponsoring the Disinformation Summer Institute this June on Bainbridge Island. Apply by Feb. 15. Learn more in this thread ... ⤵️⤵️⤵️
🧵Applications are now open for the second-ever Disinformation Summer Institute, taking place June 15-18, 2026 on Bainbridge Island, Washington. The deadline to apply is February 15.
Learn more: disinfoinstitute.org
Learn more: disinfoinstitute.org
January 16, 2026 at 10:43 PM
Our team at the @cip.uw.edu is co-sponsoring the Disinformation Summer Institute this June on Bainbridge Island. Apply by Feb. 15. Learn more in this thread ... ⤵️⤵️⤵️
Reposted by Michael Grass
States once relied on CISA for election security. Now officials say politicization and retreating support have shattered that trust.
Election officials say trust with CISA is broken — maybe permanently
States once relied on CISA for election security. Now officials say politicization and retreating support have shattered that trust.
bit.ly
January 15, 2026 at 4:05 PM
States once relied on CISA for election security. Now officials say politicization and retreating support have shattered that trust.
Reposted by Michael Grass
I turned my thread here from yesterday about how the layers of quote posts on X that start with a mundane story increasingly get passed along with ever more unhinged conspiracy theories until Elon Musk shares it with his over 200 million followers.
Elon Musk Plays Disinfo Telephone: How Oregon’s Mundane Voter Roll Cleanup Is Turned Into False Claim Of ‘Fake Voters’
I made the mistake of opening up X yesterday to look something up, and the very first post that appeared in my feed was a perfect, almost pedagogical example of how the game of…
I made the mistake of opening up X yesterday to look something up, and the very first post that appeared in my feed was a perfect, almost pedagogical example of how the game of…
Elon Musk Plays Disinfo Telephone: How Oregon’s Mundane Voter Roll Cleanup Is Turned Into False Claim Of ‘Fake Voters’
I made the mistake of opening up X yesterday to look something up, and the very first post that appeared in my feed was a perfect, almost pedagogical example of how the game of “disinformation telephone” gets played. Let's walk through it, because understanding how this works is important. The game works like this: Someone takes a factual but largely unremarkable story, gives it a slight spin, and passes it along.
www.techdirt.com
January 13, 2026 at 9:28 PM
I turned my thread here from yesterday about how the layers of quote posts on X that start with a mundane story increasingly get passed along with ever more unhinged conspiracy theories until Elon Musk shares it with his over 200 million followers.
Reposted by Michael Grass
Emmett’s thread offers a very succinct summary of our team’s recent “frameworks” paper, which describes our motivation and methodological approach for supporting collective sensemaking thru rapid research in a university setting. We’re planning another full deployment for the 2026 U.S. election.
Last week I wrote about how these rumor disasters happen and a little comms advice on how to prep and respond. But the @cip.uw.edu recently wrote a approach that could be expanded to inoculate communities by covering in real time how rumors spread. 🧵
/1
/1
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵
January 13, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Emmett’s thread offers a very succinct summary of our team’s recent “frameworks” paper, which describes our motivation and methodological approach for supporting collective sensemaking thru rapid research in a university setting. We’re planning another full deployment for the 2026 U.S. election.
Today in stratovolcanoes, Wy'east (Mt Hood), on the way north from LAX to SEA.
January 13, 2026 at 12:31 AM
Today in stratovolcanoes, Wy'east (Mt Hood), on the way north from LAX to SEA.
Thanks for highlighting our recent report, @emmettoconnell.bsky.social!
(Cc: @danielletomson.bsky.social @katestarbird.bsky.social)
(Cc: @danielletomson.bsky.social @katestarbird.bsky.social)
Last week I wrote about how these rumor disasters happen and a little comms advice on how to prep and respond. But the @cip.uw.edu recently wrote a approach that could be expanded to inoculate communities by covering in real time how rumors spread. 🧵
/1
/1
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵
January 12, 2026 at 8:56 PM
Thanks for highlighting our recent report, @emmettoconnell.bsky.social!
(Cc: @danielletomson.bsky.social @katestarbird.bsky.social)
(Cc: @danielletomson.bsky.social @katestarbird.bsky.social)
Reposted by Michael Grass
There's A LOT going on right now in struggle b/w democracy & authoritarianism, so it's hard to keep up. But it's going to be REALLY important that we pay attention to (and keep pushing back against) how election lies (from 2020) are being mobilized in ways that threaten election integrity in 2026.
Judge blocks Trump’s elections order in lawsuit by vote-by-mail states Oregon and Washington
A Trump executive order included new requirements to prove citizenship and a demand that all mail ballots be received by Election Day.
www.seattletimes.com
January 10, 2026 at 7:12 PM
There's A LOT going on right now in struggle b/w democracy & authoritarianism, so it's hard to keep up. But it's going to be REALLY important that we pay attention to (and keep pushing back against) how election lies (from 2020) are being mobilized in ways that threaten election integrity in 2026.
I was nearly killed a few years back by a speeding motorist while I was crossing the incredibly wide (non-arterial) 1st Street in the Bluff Heights area of #LongBeach, California.
It looks like dead palm fronds have been added as a lane divider here at 1st St & Coronado Ave.
It looks like dead palm fronds have been added as a lane divider here at 1st St & Coronado Ave.
January 9, 2026 at 9:04 PM
I was nearly killed a few years back by a speeding motorist while I was crossing the incredibly wide (non-arterial) 1st Street in the Bluff Heights area of #LongBeach, California.
It looks like dead palm fronds have been added as a lane divider here at 1st St & Coronado Ave.
It looks like dead palm fronds have been added as a lane divider here at 1st St & Coronado Ave.
Reposted by Michael Grass
Status scoop: Bari Weiss is subjecting another "60 Minutes" piece to scrutiny that has yet to air: one in the works for months by Anderson Cooper examining Trump's decision to accept white South African refugees. Details in @status.news www.status.news/p/60-minutes...
The Shadow Over ‘60’
As Sharyn Alfonsi's “60 Minutes” report remains shelved, Status has learned that an Anderson Cooper piece is also caught in a prolonged editorial review process, frustrating the veteran producer attac...
www.status.news
January 9, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Status scoop: Bari Weiss is subjecting another "60 Minutes" piece to scrutiny that has yet to air: one in the works for months by Anderson Cooper examining Trump's decision to accept white South African refugees. Details in @status.news www.status.news/p/60-minutes...
Reposted by Michael Grass
not saying it can't get worse but this week really feels like a straightforward depiction of what worst-case 'post truth' information apocalypse ppl were warning of in the late 2010s
January 7, 2026 at 10:43 PM
not saying it can't get worse but this week really feels like a straightforward depiction of what worst-case 'post truth' information apocalypse ppl were warning of in the late 2010s
Reposted by Michael Grass
NEW: Publishers of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette announce they are shutting down the newspaper on May 3, 2026.
Hours ago, the Supreme Court of the US declined to extend a stay on a court order for the paper to pay its journalists following the end of a 3-year strike.
Hours ago, the Supreme Court of the US declined to extend a stay on a court order for the paper to pay its journalists following the end of a 3-year strike.
January 7, 2026 at 6:31 PM
NEW: Publishers of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette announce they are shutting down the newspaper on May 3, 2026.
Hours ago, the Supreme Court of the US declined to extend a stay on a court order for the paper to pay its journalists following the end of a 3-year strike.
Hours ago, the Supreme Court of the US declined to extend a stay on a court order for the paper to pay its journalists following the end of a 3-year strike.
Reposted by Michael Grass
a huge victory for universities, worth billions of dollars: Trump can’t cap indirect-cost rates on NIH grants, appeals court rules
www.chronicle.com/blogs/the-tr... via @andyandy.bsky.social
www.chronicle.com/blogs/the-tr... via @andyandy.bsky.social
Trump Can’t Cap Overhead Rate on NIH Grants to Research Universities, Appeals Court Rules
The ruling is a victory for higher-education associations who challenged the proposed 15-percent cap, calling it illegal and claiming it would devastate the research enterprise.
www.chronicle.com
January 6, 2026 at 6:29 PM
a huge victory for universities, worth billions of dollars: Trump can’t cap indirect-cost rates on NIH grants, appeals court rules
www.chronicle.com/blogs/the-tr... via @andyandy.bsky.social
www.chronicle.com/blogs/the-tr... via @andyandy.bsky.social
Reposted by Michael Grass
What could go wrong for flood-struck communities when the federal agency tasked with managing emergencies loses nearly 20% of its workforce in less than a year?
Regional FEMA offices slashed by DOGE face further cuts; disaster response may suffer | Cascadia Daily News
Federal aid already hampered by Trump administration cuts before NW WA flooding
www.cascadiadaily.com
January 5, 2026 at 8:04 PM
What could go wrong for flood-struck communities when the federal agency tasked with managing emergencies loses nearly 20% of its workforce in less than a year?
Reposted by Michael Grass
In what Reuters called a "mass digital undressing spree,” Elon Musk is provoking outrage after his Grok chatbot responded to user prompts to remove clothing from images of women and to create "sexualized images of children" and post them on X. I spoke to Stanford HAI's Riana Pfefferkorn about it:
The Policy Implications of Grok's 'Mass Digital Undressing Spree' | TechPolicy.Press
A conversation with Riana Pfefferkorn, a policy fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI.
www.techpolicy.press
January 4, 2026 at 3:08 PM
In what Reuters called a "mass digital undressing spree,” Elon Musk is provoking outrage after his Grok chatbot responded to user prompts to remove clothing from images of women and to create "sexualized images of children" and post them on X. I spoke to Stanford HAI's Riana Pfefferkorn about it:
Reposted by Michael Grass
Places that were habitable in previous generations are no longer habitable in today’s climate as rising seas threaten low-lying coastal communities.
www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/f...
www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/f...
‘Worst I’ve ever seen it’: Bay Area flooding strands motorists, threatens homes
Flooding caused by powerful tides inundated coastal communities and disrupted traffic Saturday as residents struggled to protect their homes from rising water.
www.sfchronicle.com
January 3, 2026 at 9:06 PM
Places that were habitable in previous generations are no longer habitable in today’s climate as rising seas threaten low-lying coastal communities.
www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/f...
www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/f...
Reposted by Michael Grass
One thing I wrote about here is how technology has made buses *way* more convenient while techno-futurists were obsessed with flying taxis and self-driving cars.
January 2, 2026 at 2:17 PM
One thing I wrote about here is how technology has made buses *way* more convenient while techno-futurists were obsessed with flying taxis and self-driving cars.
Reposted by Michael Grass
Birmingham revellers turn out for non-existent fireworks – for second new year in a row
Birmingham revellers turn out for non-existent fireworks – for second new year in a row
Hundreds of people gather in Centenary Square to see in 2026 after false claims online promise ‘dazzling’ display
The new year got off to an anticlimactic start for hundreds of people in Birmingham who were tricked into attending a New Year’s Eve fireworks display that didn’t exist.
Crowds of revellers gathered in the city’s Centenary Square, hoping to catch a glimpse of a pyrotechnics display to welcome in 2026. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 1, 2026 at 5:37 PM
Birmingham revellers turn out for non-existent fireworks – for second new year in a row
Reposted by Michael Grass
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵
January 1, 2026 at 4:02 PM
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵