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Mordechai Rorvig

@mordecwhy.bsky.social

50 followers 93 following 79 posts

Science journalist and writer at Foom Magazine, a new, ad-free, grant-funded website for original reporting on developments in AI safety and ethics.

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Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Pleased to announce today the launch of a new science journalism website called Foom. 1/16

www.foommagazine.org/announcing-f...

Foom

Independent reporting from the edges of AI science

www.foommagazine.org

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 1d

A good point but I mean I doubt anyone engaging with this post also clicked on the NYTimes post. This wasn't driving engagement for them

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 1d

It's saddening when you come to grips with how much this is of the entire internet.

The New York Times seems in a bad place overall right now, they have so much top journalism and journalists, but they are showing major rifts between popularity and profit seeking and serving the public.

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 1d

For my first article for the Foom website/project, I wanted to figure out what researchers have been finding at the intersection of AI alignment and ethics; which led me to this fascinating study by @farnazj.bsky.social et al in creating value-aligned feeds.

www.foommagazine.org/social-media...

Social media feeds 'misaligned' when viewed through AI safety framework, show researchers

Results add to doubts about whether corporations can be expected to voluntarily align powerful incoming AI systems when they do not align existing algorithms. In a study from September 17 a group of ...

www.foommagazine.org

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 1d

This is super disturbing and messed up that Nicolas had to deal with this. Also a great article and impressive the way he systematically went through the mechanisms. I would have been aghast, jesus

AlgorithmWatch @algorithmwatch.org · 5d

Two months ago, an #AIslop farm passing as an online magazine stole the identity of our lead reporter and began publishing AI-generated articles under his name. He was not alone: at least 8 other journalists and influencers were falsely presented as writing for that outlet.

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Aaannnddd I misspelled onomatopoeia, of course. Well, first post out soon—thanks!

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Thanks in advance for any questions, comments, or critiques—and thanks for reading. 16/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Relatedly, if you have an idea of something I could help with; something you'd like to see written about, or looked into, like a new research result from the fields of AI safety or ethics, I'd love to hear it. (Either publicly here, or in private, at [email protected].) 15/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

This will undoubtedly be a tall order, but I'm reasonably confident in my ability to find stories that matter, and I'm also well aware of the great need for more of them. 14/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Nevertheless, it's also clear that the internet is where our society has come (or been driven) to live, and if I want to write articles that serve the public, which is indeed my mission, I need to figure out how to engage with it. 13/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

I have a lot of questions about how to build real communities online and how I should engage with them on a personal and professional level. 12/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

I have mixed feelings about participating in online platforms, as on a personal level, I often find them to be addicting, self-promoting, and engagement-baiting cesspools of epic proportions. I am also somewhat of a lurker by disposition. 11/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

In this case, I'll be looking to connect with readers primarily by sharing articles on online platforms like BlueSky, Reddit, Less Wrong, Twitter/X, and LinkedIn. 10/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Finally, one thing I've come to learn over the past couple years is that journalism doesn't fulfill its purpose without connecting with a readership who stand to benefit. 9/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Although this funding comes from an organization affiliated with the effective altruism movement, to be clear, all my writing for Foom will be editorially independent, with no outside interference. 8/16

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Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

My plan is to publish one article every week or so (as time permits) for at least six-to-twelve months, with initial funding provided by a generous grant from the Effective Ventures Foundation, or more specifically the EA Funds Long Term Future Fund. 7/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

That said, I'm someone who mainly likes to keep my own views out of my writing and focus on exploring and investigating the views of others. 6/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

For me, current impacts can already seem pretty existential, even if they might be less dramatic. Speaking glibly, if you wanted to pigeonhole me as an AI doomer, I would be one who marked the 'all of the above' checkbox. 5/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

With my articles, I'll be trying to serve both the communities concerned about the existential risks of AI as well as the communities concerned about current impacts, and serve them equally, on an even footing. 4/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

My basic goal with the website is to provide an original, high-quality source of news and analysis on the science and technology of AI, which is being pushed through a period of explosive change—especially in its societal impacts. 3/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

The word 'foom' is an onomatopeia that has most famously been used to describe the hypothetical 'hard takeoff' of a recursively self-improving artificial intelligence (AI). 2/16

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 2d

Pleased to announce today the launch of a new science journalism website called Foom. 1/16

www.foommagazine.org/announcing-f...

Foom

Independent reporting from the edges of AI science

www.foommagazine.org

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 3d

I guess the war profiteers have run out of excuses to increase the defense budget and have now turned to domestic militarization to drive spending growth. Or what's the real logic at play here? Raw opportunism? The boundlessness of the greed is just shocking.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Revealed: Pentagon orders states’ national guards to form ‘quick reaction forces’ for ‘crowd control’

Pentagon memo details plan to train over 20,000 national guard members across the US to carry out Trump’s order on subduing civil unrest

www.theguardian.com

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 9d

Feel like the emotions of paranoia and narcissism are surprisingly closely related

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Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 11d

I used Kickstarter to take a stab at trying to fund a book project and the site worked really well. Their employees deserve fair compensation and I support their strike and demands for fair wages

Julie J Lee @jjlee.bsky.social · 29d

NEW: Kickstarter United went on strike yesterday morning over compensation and codifying a four-day workweek.

medium.com/labor-new-yo...

Kickstarter Employees Launch Strike Over Four-Day Workweek, Pay Floor

The union wants the company to pay an $85,000 minimum salary to its workers.

medium.com

Mordechai Rorvig @mordecwhy.bsky.social · 12d

This was a really great event and I learned a lot about what is going on in the labor movement around tech and AI. People are doing some incredible work fighting for their rights as workers and as key contributors to the corporations that now control so much of the planet.

Tech Workers Coalition @techworkerscoalition.org · 14d

Our annual Circuit Breakers conference is live!

300 tech workers spanning the US, Mexico, Philippines, India and Kenya working in different layers of the global value chain gather across 40-different worker-led sessions exchanging strategies and tactics!

Afterwards we will digitize sessions!