LightNews LightNews
banner
samuelwa.de
@samuelwa.de
2.8K followers 1.1K following 1.4K posts
Vancouver-based editor at @chinadigitaltimes.net, a Berkeley-based nonprofit publishing news and translation about human rights and censorship in China.

Knows changes aren't permanent, but change is. Will stand on the ocean until I start sinking.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
samuelwa.de
samuelwa.de @samuelwa.de · 6d
Editor of account recently revived after a third ban: "What would you do if years of painstaking effort were wiped out in an instant? Cry and wail and curse your fate? Sink into dejection and give up? No. The late Ming historian Tan Qian had an inspiring answer: count to four, and start again."
samuelwa.de
I'm not not enjoying Down Cemetery Road, but the tone is all over the place. The villains feel pasted in from a different show.
November 26, 2025 at 7:56 AM
samuelwa.de
bahahahahaha
338canada.bsky.social Philippe J. Fournier @338canada.bsky.social · 8h
Nanos Research update: Liberals lead CPC by 5 points, Carney leads preferred PM tracker → www.338canada.ca/p/nanos-trac...
November 26, 2025 at 12:41 AM
samuelwa.de
"Report suggest[ed] Washington should urge Taiwan to show restraint and there may be room for negotiation over the South China Sea" www.scmp.com/news/china/d...
November 26, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Reposted
kml.muninn.net
Senior permanent position has opened up in Chinese studies here at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. It is a very nice place. www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPN980/rea...
Reader or Professor in Chinese Studies - AC2219 at University of St Andrews
www.jobs.ac.uk
November 25, 2025 at 10:12 PM
samuelwa.de
Ah, Black Friday Week, the magical season when people who block ads and don't subscribe take a break from complaining about paywalls and gather in comments sections to question the ethics of affiliate links.
November 25, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Reposted
niemanlab.org
An AI translation tool may perform very well for a language pair like English and Spanish, but introduce significant errors when it’s used for less common languages...One article, for instance, mistranslated the English term “street food” into Kiswahili as “food of the road.”

buff.ly/FiAyV9Z
Studies on AI transcription and translation in journalism reveal “low-resource” language gap, new report finds
A new report from the Center for News, Technology & Innovation (CNTI) reviewed over 55 studies to better understand the state of AI translation and transcription in journalism. The global research…
www.niemanlab.org
November 25, 2025 at 9:06 PM
samuelwa.de
Yeah, I do that too.
November 25, 2025 at 8:52 PM
samuelwa.de
Ohhhhhh, this explains a looooooot
cooperlund.online Cooper Lund @cooperlund.online · 12h
Complaining about food discourse is lame. It's the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, nobody is sending any ermail at work. What the hell else do you have to do? I'm still here for over an hour.
November 25, 2025 at 8:40 PM
samuelwa.de
State media promotes online post to showcase the Chinese people's indomitable spirit: "I'm an ordinary sewing machine operator. To counter Sanae Takaichi's provocations, I volunteered for five extra shifts a month without pay." This post, "LOL, Guangming Daily," mocks them for missing the joke:
旧闻评论｜哈哈哈，光明时评
正当展示肌肉与强大的时刻，光明日报却主动暴露了祖国不好的一面，据此认定陈品高的文章属于“低级红”。
chinadigitaltimes.net
November 25, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Reposted
arstechnica.com
China launches an emergency lifeboat to bring three astronauts back to Earth
This is a “successful example for efficient emergency response in the international space industry.”…
arstechnica.com
November 25, 2025 at 6:38 PM
samuelwa.de
WHAT THE
theguardian.com The Guardian @theguardian.com · 14h
MoJ considering ‘extreme’ proposal to scrap jury trials for all but the most serious cases
MoJ considering ‘extreme’ proposal to scrap jury trials for all but the most serious cases
The radical plan from David Lammy has been criticised by senior lawyers, who say it could ‘destroy justice as we know it’ Jury trials for all except the most serious crimes such as rape, murder and manslaughter are set to be scrapped under radical proposals drawn up by David Lammy. In proposals that drew a swift backlash from senior lawyers, who said that they would not reduce court backlogs and could “destroy justice as we know it”, the justice secretary has proposed that juries will only pass judgment on public interest offences with possible prison sentences of more than five years. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 25, 2025 at 6:34 PM
samuelwa.de
"Nirvana? Nevermind" was RIGHT THERE
November 25, 2025 at 7:49 AM
samuelwa.de
A 热心爱国团体, not a 熱心愛國團體。
November 25, 2025 at 7:39 AM
samuelwa.de
Introduce yourself with four spaceships
Iain M Banks sketch of a Plate Class GSV. The other three are inside, with 90,621 others.
November 25, 2025 at 6:45 AM
samuelwa.de
I read earlier about three teachers defending children from a grizzly bear. One of them *jumped onto the bear* and started punching it. Another *repeatedly hit it with her crutches*.

This seems in some ways quite similar; in others, very, very different.
karenho.bsky.social Karen K. Ho @karenho.bsky.social · 1d
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
Isaac Chotiner: "You would have to be brain-dead to read this piece and not immediately wonder who is funding Semafor Gulf." Quote post of Ben Smith saying: "Fascinating @msergie piece on covering a monarchy" about a Semafor article on Saudi Arabia's crown prince Smith responds to Chotiner: "That's a hell of an allegation/implication, Isaac. To figure out the literal answer to your question, you'd either have to look and see who the sponsors are in the email (I haven't checked today!) or read our publicly disclosed list of investors. I believe you're trying to imply that it's the Saudi government? Have you read more of our coverage, or just this tweet? My impression — correct me if I'm wrong — is that you're working on zero information and smearing us in general, and an experienced journalist @msergie whose work I suspect you're totally unfamiliar with in particular." Chotiner responds:"I’m not making any allegation. I’m making a simple point about how an average reader—myself included—might respond after reading this ridiculous piece" Ben Smith: "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge." Noah Kulwin: "The point is not about who funds your reporting/if your colleague is a “stooge”. Isaac’s comment is that the reporting is so bad so as to make a reader wonder who is funding it" Smith: A reader, sure. A journalist who can do very basic homework, kind of lame. Chotiner: "You are right, I’ll do some homework now by perusing Jay Solomon Semafor pieces, and reading Jason Greenblatt Semafor columns. In the meantime, I will formally say that I am making no accusation and was just astonished at how inane the piece was" Chotiner quote-posts with "I see Semafor loves running column after column by this guy (https://semafor.com/author/faisal-j-abbas), who also publishes pro-Saudi conspiracies about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi https://arabnews.com/node/1386291" Ben Smith's post says "I hope I'm not overreacting, but it makes me crazy when people I think of as reporters do this "just asking questions" stuff. Feel free to report it out by googling/asking me/reading our various scoops and reports about the region — these two just now" and links to two Semafor articles Chotiner quote posts Ben Smith: "You might have heard that the UAE is helping destroy Sudan, but at the next Semafor event, all is well." Screenshot says "Held at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Semafor will spotlight insights from the Global Findex 2025 report and the Global Digital Connectivity Tracker, translating global research into actionable, locally relevant conversations. As the third stop on The Next 3 Billion Tour, this edition explores how the Gulf's growing investments in Africa can accelerate digital connectivity and financial inclusion. With Abu Dhabi's focus on sustainable finance, digital transformation, and cross-border collaboration, it offers a strong platform to examine how technology and capital can work together to expand access and opportunity." Ben Smith's post says "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge."
November 25, 2025 at 5:02 AM
samuelwa.de
Ooooh, DualUp's on sale … maybe I need a thi⚡️🦴⚡️💀⚡️🦴⚡️
LG’s 16:18 DualUp is a weird monitor for getting work done
This goofy-looking monitor made me more efficient.
www.theverge.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:04 AM
samuelwa.de
Semafor always did raise a couple of red flags.
lopatto.bsky.social Elizabeth Lopatto @lopatto.bsky.social · 1d
I generally try not to comment on Twitter but Isaac Chotiner is over there giving Semafor body blows right now and I just want to say I find it alarming that he's allowed to come for you without warning (asking for an interview)
November 25, 2025 at 12:51 AM
samuelwa.de
"Your order has been delivered. Good luck finding it."
danhon.com Dan Hon @danhon.com · 1d
This terrible but also "crypto food delivery"
malwaretech.com Marcus Hutchins @malwaretech.com · 1d
Founders on LinkedIn still seem to be struggling with the difference between telling people about their humble beginnings and admitting to straight up committing fraud.
November 25, 2025 at 12:43 AM
samuelwa.de
Perfectly capable of doing that on my own, thank you.
November 25, 2025 at 12:23 AM
Reposted
debcha.bsky.social
"Three teachers fought the bear off: one emptied two cans of bear spray that appeared to have little effect, another jumped on the bear, pummeling it with punches. A third hit the grizzly repeatedly with her crutches before it finally fled back into the woods." www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Grizzly bear that attacked children and teachers in Canada still eludes searchers
Eleven people were injured as three teachers fought the bear during attack on walking trail in British Columbia
www.theguardian.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Reposted
thomascheney.bsky.social
a man in a wig is talking about sensible policies for a happier britain
ALT: a man in a wig is talking about sensible policies for a happier britain
media.tenor.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Reposted
hpeaks.bsky.social
@jamyang.net
November 24, 2025 at 9:54 PM
samuelwa.de
Hougou feat. ralph
YouTube video by DJ Krush - Topic
youtu.be
November 24, 2025 at 9:59 PM
samuelwa.de
Mac version of the excellent Control—"what if X-Files but Severance, and Scully is Neo?"—is on sale for US$8/CA$10. Should run great on recent Macs (but check for older and/or non-Pro/Max/Ultra ones).
Control Ultimate Edition App - App Store
Download Control Ultimate Edition by Remedy Entertainment PLC on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more games like Control…
apps.apple.com
November 24, 2025 at 9:57 PM
samuelwa.de
Canadians, though: really too late.
debcha.bsky.social Deb Chachra @debcha.bsky.social · 1d
American friends, I've seen a couple of IF YOU HAVEN"T STARTED DEFROSTING YOUR TURKEY IT'S TOO LATE posts, so just a reminder that air is terrible for heat transfer and you can also safely and (relatively) quickly thaw a turkey in cold water: www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/...
Turkey Basics: Safe Thawing | Food Safety and Inspection Service
An official website of the United States government
www.fsis.usda.gov
November 24, 2025 at 7:28 PM