S.E.MacRae
@semacrae.bsky.social
Digital sociology ECR researching the interplay between education, politics and the digital. Own views, she/her.
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S.E.MacRae
@semacrae.bsky.social
· May 13
Introduction to special section: the political life of education online | Naomi Barnes
Just published online!
A special collection for Critical Studies in Education titled "The political life of education online" edited by myself, Keith Heggart and Dr Sheena MacRae. https://l...
www.linkedin.com
I have recently been one of the editors led by @drnomyn.bsky.social with Keith Heggart of a special collection for Critical Studies in Education titled "The political life of education online". Naomi has written a great post here about the project and the other papers 1/7
I just saw this on Instagram. Is it too much to wish for a Proustian outbreak of empathy as this stuff starts wafting about the place again? We could do with a bit of the spirit of those times again.
January 21, 2026 at 9:59 PM
I just saw this on Instagram. Is it too much to wish for a Proustian outbreak of empathy as this stuff starts wafting about the place again? We could do with a bit of the spirit of those times again.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
'Linguists argue that language death is a tragedy. “Languages represent thousands of natural experiments: ways of seeing, understanding and living that should form part of any meaningful account of what it is to be human”.' (Ross Perlin)
Linguistics, coproduction, botany, culture & inspiration.
Linguistics, coproduction, botany, culture & inspiration.
‘I thought it was going to perish’: the remarkable revival of an endangered language in Lesotho
Concentrated among 1,000 people in the remote Daliwe valley, siPhuthi has gained a dictionary, a Bible translation and official recognition thanks to intrepid linguists and activists
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:48 AM
'Linguists argue that language death is a tragedy. “Languages represent thousands of natural experiments: ways of seeing, understanding and living that should form part of any meaningful account of what it is to be human”.' (Ross Perlin)
Linguistics, coproduction, botany, culture & inspiration.
Linguistics, coproduction, botany, culture & inspiration.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
New report by @csohate.bsky.social
Remigration: The rise of a fringe idea into the political mainstream
Key findings ⤵️
www.csohate.org/2026/01/20/r...
Remigration: The rise of a fringe idea into the political mainstream
Key findings ⤵️
www.csohate.org/2026/01/20/r...
Remigration: The Rise of a Fringe Idea into the Political Mainstream
This report traces how “remigration” evolved from a fringe far-right concept into mainstream political discourse, mapping its spread across Europe and the US (2010–2025).
www.csohate.org
January 20, 2026 at 7:53 PM
New report by @csohate.bsky.social
Remigration: The rise of a fringe idea into the political mainstream
Key findings ⤵️
www.csohate.org/2026/01/20/r...
Remigration: The rise of a fringe idea into the political mainstream
Key findings ⤵️
www.csohate.org/2026/01/20/r...
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
These people, Labour Party people, have swallowed a vision of complete authoritarian surveillance of society, hook, line and sinker. They WANT to be looking over your shoulder, all the time. They WANT to be in your phone. They WANT to track your kids.
They're DANGEROUS.
They're DANGEROUS.
"When I was in justice, my ultimate vision for that part of the criminal justice system was to achieve, by means of AI and technology, what Jeremy Bentham tried to do with his Panopticon. That is that the eyes of the state can be on you at all times"
Shabana Mahmood here, and the vibes are not getting better.
January 20, 2026 at 9:01 AM
These people, Labour Party people, have swallowed a vision of complete authoritarian surveillance of society, hook, line and sinker. They WANT to be looking over your shoulder, all the time. They WANT to be in your phone. They WANT to track your kids.
They're DANGEROUS.
They're DANGEROUS.
Glasman on Newsnight just rolled out the ‘don’t take him literally take him seriously’ on Trump. So glad on such an important week in global politics to get that searing insightful commentary from Blue Labour.
January 19, 2026 at 10:48 PM
Glasman on Newsnight just rolled out the ‘don’t take him literally take him seriously’ on Trump. So glad on such an important week in global politics to get that searing insightful commentary from Blue Labour.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
On passing through the veil into fascism
January 19, 2026 at 1:28 PM
On passing through the veil into fascism
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
31 January 2025 I first said ""The cloud" isn't just somebody else's computer, it now lives in a rogue state."
Don't make me Cassandra.
Don't make me Cassandra.
January 19, 2026 at 12:34 PM
31 January 2025 I first said ""The cloud" isn't just somebody else's computer, it now lives in a rogue state."
Don't make me Cassandra.
Don't make me Cassandra.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
A little good news story: when I read that Ebooks had been given a top ethics rating by @ethical-consumer.bsky.social, I decided to check it out. Being me, I started at the History page and was horrified to find that the Featured and Bestseller sections included a bunch of really bad Holocaust…
January 17, 2026 at 11:29 AM
A little good news story: when I read that Ebooks had been given a top ethics rating by @ethical-consumer.bsky.social, I decided to check it out. Being me, I started at the History page and was horrified to find that the Featured and Bestseller sections included a bunch of really bad Holocaust…
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
New from @workersobservatory.org, who have launched a set of principles and policies to spur MSP candidates for May’s Scottish Parliament elections.
At their core is a demand for fair pay and workplace safety.
workersobservatory.org/news/gig-wor...
At their core is a demand for fair pay and workplace safety.
workersobservatory.org/news/gig-wor...
Gig Workers' Platform sets out Manifesto Demands
Food delivery workers in Edinburgh are asking candidates in the Scottish Parliament election to advance better working conditions in the gig economy.
workersobservatory.org
January 16, 2026 at 3:45 PM
New from @workersobservatory.org, who have launched a set of principles and policies to spur MSP candidates for May’s Scottish Parliament elections.
At their core is a demand for fair pay and workplace safety.
workersobservatory.org/news/gig-wor...
At their core is a demand for fair pay and workplace safety.
workersobservatory.org/news/gig-wor...
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
This is a real issue that food banks are seeing across the country: people are being forced to get into bed because they can't afford to put the heating on.
Many of them are in receipt of Universal Credit.
It's time for change. Everyone deserves a warm, safe place to call home. 🏠
Many of them are in receipt of Universal Credit.
It's time for change. Everyone deserves a warm, safe place to call home. 🏠
January 12, 2026 at 4:10 PM
This is a real issue that food banks are seeing across the country: people are being forced to get into bed because they can't afford to put the heating on.
Many of them are in receipt of Universal Credit.
It's time for change. Everyone deserves a warm, safe place to call home. 🏠
Many of them are in receipt of Universal Credit.
It's time for change. Everyone deserves a warm, safe place to call home. 🏠
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
“The Trump administration’s dismantling of federal agencies has hit cancer research hard. It has led to budgets being slashed, grants canceled or delayed, while clinical trials – often the final hope for children with terminal illness – have been suspended or closed.”
Kids with brain cancer were already in a life and death struggle. Then came Trump
The US president vowed to ‘end childhood cancer’. But his administration is dismantling the search for a cure and sending families scrambling for treatment
www.theguardian.com
January 16, 2026 at 3:18 PM
“The Trump administration’s dismantling of federal agencies has hit cancer research hard. It has led to budgets being slashed, grants canceled or delayed, while clinical trials – often the final hope for children with terminal illness – have been suspended or closed.”
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
For all of us worried about gAI in higher ed, there is an entire journal issue dedicated to critical perspectives on this topic, which Im sure has been shared before but I missed it, so for others like me, here is @criticalai-journal.bsky.social's special Issue:
read.dukeupress.edu/critical-ai/...
read.dukeupress.edu/critical-ai/...
Volume 3 Issue 2 | Critical AI | Duke University Press
read.dukeupress.edu
January 15, 2026 at 1:43 PM
For all of us worried about gAI in higher ed, there is an entire journal issue dedicated to critical perspectives on this topic, which Im sure has been shared before but I missed it, so for others like me, here is @criticalai-journal.bsky.social's special Issue:
read.dukeupress.edu/critical-ai/...
read.dukeupress.edu/critical-ai/...
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
"Liberal elites often mobilise this ahistorical polarisation narrative because it downplays their involvement in processes of democratic erosion"
@juanroch.bsky.social & @daniel-balinhas.bsky.social discuss our article on polarisation hype on @reacpolrn.bsky.social
1/
reacpol.net/polarisation...
@juanroch.bsky.social & @daniel-balinhas.bsky.social discuss our article on polarisation hype on @reacpolrn.bsky.social
1/
reacpol.net/polarisation...
Interview: On polarisation hype (Juan Roch and Daniel Balinhas) - Reactionary Politics Research Network
This interview is based on Juan Roch and Daniel Balinhas’s article, “A critique of the polarisation narrative: expanding the limits of democracy, parties and political participation.” (2025)
reacpol.net
January 15, 2026 at 3:28 AM
"Liberal elites often mobilise this ahistorical polarisation narrative because it downplays their involvement in processes of democratic erosion"
@juanroch.bsky.social & @daniel-balinhas.bsky.social discuss our article on polarisation hype on @reacpolrn.bsky.social
1/
reacpol.net/polarisation...
@juanroch.bsky.social & @daniel-balinhas.bsky.social discuss our article on polarisation hype on @reacpolrn.bsky.social
1/
reacpol.net/polarisation...
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
🗣️"Six papers accounted for nearly half of all research references across hundreds of articles."
#SocialMedia #SciComm
#SocialMedia #SciComm
Why fear still sells research on screen time - Impact of Social Sciences
Regardless of quality research that deploys fear based framing drives public debate on screen time for children.
blogs.lse.ac.uk
January 14, 2026 at 12:23 PM
🗣️"Six papers accounted for nearly half of all research references across hundreds of articles."
#SocialMedia #SciComm
#SocialMedia #SciComm
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
You don't really understand the USA's language of "liberty" until you understand that 60 years ago they invented out of whole cloth the legal concept of "qualified immunity" to protect armed police from any consequences of their violent actions.
telling the secret police they have immunity to harm & kill citizens really lays bare the hollowness of decades of right-wing GOP screeching about encroaching Big Government - it was never a problem they had with government per se, just that it wasn't being used to harm the people they wanted to
January 14, 2026 at 11:59 AM
You don't really understand the USA's language of "liberty" until you understand that 60 years ago they invented out of whole cloth the legal concept of "qualified immunity" to protect armed police from any consequences of their violent actions.
They starve Universities of resources and then hire this guy.
Wes Streeting asks US expert Jonathan Haidt to address officials on social media ban for under-16s
Wes Streeting asks US expert Jonathan Haidt to address officials on social media ban for under-16s
Exclusive: Health secretary issues invitation in push for UK to consider copying landmark restrictions in Australia
Wes Streeting has asked Jonathan Haidt, a bestselling author and high-profile advocate of banning social media for under-16s, to speak to his officials in his push for the UK to consider following a landmark ban in Australia.
The health secretary has invited Haidt to address an event with staff, charities and MPs after the prime minister, Keir Starmer, said he was open to stricter limits for young people. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 14, 2026 at 9:23 AM
They starve Universities of resources and then hire this guy.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
The remarkable thing here isn't the universal revulsion. Its that two large parties - Reform and the Conservatives - are trying to maintain stances favoured by around 0-1% of the public.
Polling like this also suggests that whenever Labour does develop enough backbone to act, there's no going back
Polling like this also suggests that whenever Labour does develop enough backbone to act, there's no going back
Has there ever been any poll showing the public this united? yougov.co.uk/technology/a...
January 13, 2026 at 1:13 PM
The remarkable thing here isn't the universal revulsion. Its that two large parties - Reform and the Conservatives - are trying to maintain stances favoured by around 0-1% of the public.
Polling like this also suggests that whenever Labour does develop enough backbone to act, there's no going back
Polling like this also suggests that whenever Labour does develop enough backbone to act, there's no going back
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
“It was abrupt, unceremonious, and cruel. But cruelty is the point nowadays, isn’t it?”
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Harvard’s Ouster of Mary Bassett Is a Revolting Act of Cowardice
The public health icon was brutally removed from her job for one reason: her opposition to genocide in Gaza.
www.thenation.com
January 12, 2026 at 12:04 AM
“It was abrupt, unceremonious, and cruel. But cruelty is the point nowadays, isn’t it?”
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Post a pic of the venue where you saw your first concert, and a picture of the band/artist if you'd like
October 1989,
October 1989,
January 11, 2026 at 5:24 PM
Post a pic of the venue where you saw your first concert, and a picture of the band/artist if you'd like
October 1989,
October 1989,
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
When Musk first was announced as planning to buy Twitter, I was working there, on leave from my university post. I tried to sound the alarm that his claim that he would “eliminate censorship,” i.e., do away wifh content moderation was disingenuous nonsense.
Elon Musk calling accountability for nonconsensual sexual images an "excuse of for censorship" perfectly exposes the lie at the heart of his "censorship industrial complex" crusade. When addressing abusive material of women and children is labeled "censorship," the term has lost all meaning.
Preventing the sharing of sexualised images of children is “censorship” according to Elon Musk.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
January 10, 2026 at 2:12 PM
When Musk first was announced as planning to buy Twitter, I was working there, on leave from my university post. I tried to sound the alarm that his claim that he would “eliminate censorship,” i.e., do away wifh content moderation was disingenuous nonsense.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
My senior management has taken option 1, with devastating effects on the institution and the local community.
Three short paragraphs, and you've got the whole mind-bending mess that is #UKHE finance & governance neatly laid out.
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
This is why it's all so exhausting: our managers declare there's only one static frame, while we know their framing is part of the issue.
💡 www.hepi.ac.uk/2026/01/10/w...
January 10, 2026 at 12:39 PM
My senior management has taken option 1, with devastating effects on the institution and the local community.
Reposted by S.E.MacRae
Our special issue with @martinkusch.bsky.social is finally complete and here’s at long last our introduction. I pitched the idea to him in 2019! Thank you for your patience and generosity, Martin. I am proud of this manifesto and hope colleagues will join us in rethinking this old debate #philsci
January 9, 2026 at 9:28 AM
Our special issue with @martinkusch.bsky.social is finally complete and here’s at long last our introduction. I pitched the idea to him in 2019! Thank you for your patience and generosity, Martin. I am proud of this manifesto and hope colleagues will join us in rethinking this old debate #philsci