Ben Werdmuller
@werd.io
Senior Director of Technology at ProPublica. I write speculative fiction and think about the future of news and technology at https://werd.io.
Pinned
Ben Werdmuller
@werd.io
· Mar 22
There is no such thing as neutral technology.
I kind of miss the era of the tech industry when everyone loved a guy who made a bingo card creator because he made something people found useful and turned it into a tidy indie business for himself.
November 26, 2025 at 4:13 AM
I kind of miss the era of the tech industry when everyone loved a guy who made a bingo card creator because he made something people found useful and turned it into a tidy indie business for himself.
I think the EFF has an outsized role to play in ensuring technology doesn’t become an instrument of powerful people to subjugate the rest of us. I wrote about how it can meet the current moment: werd.io/the-eff-we-n...
The EFF we need now
Why the next era of digital civil liberties requires a tighter mission, a bolder strategy, and a clearer view of how power works.
werd.io
November 25, 2025 at 10:39 PM
I think the EFF has an outsized role to play in ensuring technology doesn’t become an instrument of powerful people to subjugate the rest of us. I wrote about how it can meet the current moment: werd.io/the-eff-we-n...
"Civil rights and weapons experts cite the consequences of federal agents’ use of crowd control weapons: religious leaders shot with pepper balls and noxious chemicals. A nurse nearly blinded by tear gas. Protestors trapped, struggling to breathe." www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
Trump’s Immigration Forces Deploy “Less Lethal” Weapons in Dangerous Ways, Skirting Rules and Maiming Protesters
Civil rights and weapons experts cite the consequences of federal agents’ use of crowd control weapons: religious leaders shot with pepper balls and noxious chemicals. A nurse nearly blinded by tear g...
www.propublica.org
November 25, 2025 at 9:03 PM
"Civil rights and weapons experts cite the consequences of federal agents’ use of crowd control weapons: religious leaders shot with pepper balls and noxious chemicals. A nurse nearly blinded by tear gas. Protestors trapped, struggling to breathe." www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
Reposted by Ben Werdmuller
"Viola Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died at 111. In the final years of her life, she and other survivors shared their stories publicly, bringing a more nuanced awareness about the legacy of that day." More: 19thnews.org/2025/11/viol...
Viola Fletcher, oldest survivor of 1921 Tulsa massacre, dies at 111
“I have been blessed with a long life – and have seen the best and worst of this country. I think about the horrors inflicted upon Black people in this country every day.”
19thnews.org
November 25, 2025 at 5:02 PM
"Viola Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died at 111. In the final years of her life, she and other survivors shared their stories publicly, bringing a more nuanced awareness about the legacy of that day." More: 19thnews.org/2025/11/viol...
Reposted by Ben Werdmuller
This is what I spent most of last week working on with other people who cannot leave this stuff alone. Gotta put the facts in order in a stable place and then see what meaning emerges.
The fight against authoritarianism has many fronts. At Unbreaking, we choose to work against information overload and for collective understanding. On our Immigration timeline, we track major and representative events from across the US—now filterable by legal case:
unbreaking.org/issues/immig...
unbreaking.org/issues/immig...
November 25, 2025 at 4:48 PM
This is what I spent most of last week working on with other people who cannot leave this stuff alone. Gotta put the facts in order in a stable place and then see what meaning emerges.
The threats to digital civil liberties aren’t secret rooms in AT&T buildings anymore. They’re AI systems, data brokers, and privatized surveillance sold as products.
The EFF has spent 35 years fighting for rights and freedoms. Here’s my take on how it should evolve to fight back.
The EFF has spent 35 years fighting for rights and freedoms. Here’s my take on how it should evolve to fight back.
The EFF we need now
Why the next era of digital civil liberties requires a tighter mission, a bolder strategy, and a clearer view of how power works.
werd.io
November 25, 2025 at 3:52 PM
The threats to digital civil liberties aren’t secret rooms in AT&T buildings anymore. They’re AI systems, data brokers, and privatized surveillance sold as products.
The EFF has spent 35 years fighting for rights and freedoms. Here’s my take on how it should evolve to fight back.
The EFF has spent 35 years fighting for rights and freedoms. Here’s my take on how it should evolve to fight back.
These Mamdani transition committees are seriously impressive. Hiring @ruha9.bsky.social for the technology committee is very smart. And so many more. 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 11:09 PM
These Mamdani transition committees are seriously impressive. Hiring @ruha9.bsky.social for the technology committee is very smart. And so many more. www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news...
"This year ICE has sent more immigrant children into the federal shelter system than in the previous four years combined. New data suggests families are being separated." www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
ICE Sent 600 Immigrant Kids to Detention in Federal Shelters This Year. It’s a New Record.
Under a zero tolerance policy, the first Trump administration separated immigrant children from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border. New data suggests separations are happening all over the count...
www.propublica.org
November 24, 2025 at 7:54 PM
"This year ICE has sent more immigrant children into the federal shelter system than in the previous four years combined. New data suggests families are being separated." www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
"These days people use the term "web" to mean basically something you can view in a web browser. But that does not mean it is *of* the web." werd.io/of-the-web/
Of the web
"These days people use the term "web" to mean basically something you can view in a web browser. But that does not mean it is *of* the web."
werd.io
November 24, 2025 at 3:12 PM
"These days people use the term "web" to mean basically something you can view in a web browser. But that does not mean it is *of* the web." werd.io/of-the-web/
Adding Tab Wrangler to Zen. Some people keep and garden their tabs. I want them gone at the end of the day.
November 24, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Adding Tab Wrangler to Zen. Some people keep and garden their tabs. I want them gone at the end of the day.
62 years. Nice work, Sydney, Verity, Waris, Bill, Carole, Jacqueline, William, Delia, Ron, Anthony, David, and everyone else who worked on An Unearthly Child - and everyone who has followed them ever since. Still the best show ever made.
November 23, 2025 at 3:07 PM
62 years. Nice work, Sydney, Verity, Waris, Bill, Carole, Jacqueline, William, Delia, Ron, Anthony, David, and everyone else who worked on An Unearthly Child - and everyone who has followed them ever since. Still the best show ever made.
Just got an email from Boardy Boardman asking me to join the seed round for a startup making an AI dog collar that translates from dog into English
The hell list did I make it onto this time
The hell list did I make it onto this time
November 23, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Just got an email from Boardy Boardman asking me to join the seed round for a startup making an AI dog collar that translates from dog into English
The hell list did I make it onto this time
The hell list did I make it onto this time
I actually like this a lot. Don’t hire jerks. (I’ll save you a click: she asks the receptionist whether the candidates treated them well. I agree that it speaks volumes.) www.cnbc.com/2025/11/05/f...
Former Netflix chief talent officer: The No. 1 red flag that signals a 'disastrous' hire
"How'd they treat you?" Former Netflix chief talent officer Jessica Neal asked the receptionist this question about every candidate after they interviewed.
www.cnbc.com
November 22, 2025 at 11:32 PM
I actually like this a lot. Don’t hire jerks. (I’ll save you a click: she asks the receptionist whether the candidates treated them well. I agree that it speaks volumes.) www.cnbc.com/2025/11/05/f...
It turns out I have one more “if I ran …” post in me.
While I put that together, here’s the series:
While I put that together, here’s the series:
November 22, 2025 at 5:50 PM
It turns out I have one more “if I ran …” post in me.
While I put that together, here’s the series:
While I put that together, here’s the series:
Interesting to revisit our 9 month baby stack at the 3+ years mark. We haven’t bought anything new. Same car seat, same stroller. We’ve added some potties; that’s it. But we don’t track via Huckleberry, use silicone tableware, etc. Changing pad still in occasional use. werd.io/the-baby-sta...
The baby stack at 9 months
Here's what we use to care for our 9 month old baby.
werd.io
November 22, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Interesting to revisit our 9 month baby stack at the 3+ years mark. We haven’t bought anything new. Same car seat, same stroller. We’ve added some potties; that’s it. But we don’t track via Huckleberry, use silicone tableware, etc. Changing pad still in occasional use. werd.io/the-baby-sta...
I wish I could read the Republican Signal group chats right about now.
November 22, 2025 at 12:10 AM
I wish I could read the Republican Signal group chats right about now.
Seeing a lot of criticism of this. I won't comment on that for now, but I think it would be a valuable exercise to create a version of the linked document for the hypothetical organization people would like to see. blog.mozilla.org/en/mozilla/r...
Rewiring Mozilla: Doing for AI what we did for the web | The Mozilla Blog
AI isn’t just another tech trend — it’s at the heart of most apps, tools and technology we use today. It enables remarkable things: new way
blog.mozilla.org
November 21, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Seeing a lot of criticism of this. I won't comment on that for now, but I think it would be a valuable exercise to create a version of the linked document for the hypothetical organization people would like to see. blog.mozilla.org/en/mozilla/r...
I wonder what it would look like to create one single donation point that sends money to a mix of Mastodon, SWF, Free Our Feeds, and other non-profit open social web projects.
November 21, 2025 at 2:48 PM
I wonder what it would look like to create one single donation point that sends money to a mix of Mastodon, SWF, Free Our Feeds, and other non-profit open social web projects.
Generally I think of Europe and even the UK as being far more employee friendly - humane PTO policies, none of this rationed sick days nonsense - but in my entire US career I’ve never worked in a company that doesn’t give dads proper parental leave. In my UK jobs it was two weeks.
November 21, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Generally I think of Europe and even the UK as being far more employee friendly - humane PTO policies, none of this rationed sick days nonsense - but in my entire US career I’ve never worked in a company that doesn’t give dads proper parental leave. In my UK jobs it was two weeks.
A lot of the new vibe coding platforms lock you in by using proprietary back-ends and other non-portable code. Claude Code etc don’t, but there are a lot of downstream, dedicated platforms using very dark patterns. Another reason to avoid.
November 21, 2025 at 4:17 AM
A lot of the new vibe coding platforms lock you in by using proprietary back-ends and other non-portable code. Claude Code etc don’t, but there are a lot of downstream, dedicated platforms using very dark patterns. Another reason to avoid.
It has begun. Someone we know has vibe coded an app and has asked me to debug it because it does not work.
November 19, 2025 at 5:58 PM
It has begun. Someone we know has vibe coded an app and has asked me to debug it because it does not work.
Podcast pitch: Last Week Tonight but about the Internet. Same pointed humor, same sense of outrage, same scripted writing, but specifically about the web, the tech industry, underlying power dynamics and egos.
November 19, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Podcast pitch: Last Week Tonight but about the Internet. Same pointed humor, same sense of outrage, same scripted writing, but specifically about the web, the tech industry, underlying power dynamics and egos.
The consequences of “pro life”. www.propublica.org/article/texa...
“Ticking Time Bomb”: A Pregnant Mother Kept Getting Sicker. She Died After She Couldn’t Get an Abortion in Texas.
Walker is one of several women ProPublica found with underlying health conditions who died when they couldn’t access abortions.
www.propublica.org
November 19, 2025 at 2:31 PM
The consequences of “pro life”. www.propublica.org/article/texa...
I like remote. Toddler care and eldercare mean I can’t be in-office daily. But.
I was in the office yesterday and it was so productive. So many unplanned but useful side conversations. So much information density and relationship-building.
If everyone had the same rhythms hybrid would be awesome.
I was in the office yesterday and it was so productive. So many unplanned but useful side conversations. So much information density and relationship-building.
If everyone had the same rhythms hybrid would be awesome.
November 19, 2025 at 2:24 PM
I like remote. Toddler care and eldercare mean I can’t be in-office daily. But.
I was in the office yesterday and it was so productive. So many unplanned but useful side conversations. So much information density and relationship-building.
If everyone had the same rhythms hybrid would be awesome.
I was in the office yesterday and it was so productive. So many unplanned but useful side conversations. So much information density and relationship-building.
If everyone had the same rhythms hybrid would be awesome.
Just published a deep look at where open social networks stand in 2025: Mastodon’s leadership change, Bluesky’s trajectory, AT Protocol, ActivityPub, cross-network tools, and more. For newsrooms and public service orgs, this moment really matters. werd.io/the-state-of...
The State of the Open Social Web
A comprehensive look at Mastodon, Bluesky, and the growing ecosystem of open, interoperable social networks.
werd.io
November 18, 2025 at 11:52 PM
Just published a deep look at where open social networks stand in 2025: Mastodon’s leadership change, Bluesky’s trajectory, AT Protocol, ActivityPub, cross-network tools, and more. For newsrooms and public service orgs, this moment really matters. werd.io/the-state-of...