Wesley Edits
@wesleyedits.bsky.social
Producer/Editor • Emmy & Grammy nominated • Audie winner • Writer • Media/AI critic
Pinned
Wesley Edits
@wesleyedits.bsky.social
· Mar 12
Excited to share that 'When the Sea Came Alive' won an Audie Award for Multi-Voice Performance!
www.audiopub.org/2025audies-1...
This D-Day oral history was a team effort with an incredible cast. Congrats to all nominees & winners!
Listen: amzn.to/4iovv2J
#booksky #audieawards
www.audiopub.org/2025audies-1...
This D-Day oral history was a team effort with an incredible cast. Congrats to all nominees & winners!
Listen: amzn.to/4iovv2J
#booksky #audieawards
"Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. - Plato
November 16, 2025 at 6:15 PM
"Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. - Plato
It appears to be America's Enshittification era.
November 15, 2025 at 6:00 PM
It appears to be America's Enshittification era.
Was talking to the head of an AI video marketing company yesterday. He told me that AI isn't creative. Glad we are willing to say that out loud.
November 12, 2025 at 1:52 AM
Was talking to the head of an AI video marketing company yesterday. He told me that AI isn't creative. Glad we are willing to say that out loud.
The measure of a man is what he does with power." - Plato
November 4, 2025 at 9:04 PM
The measure of a man is what he does with power." - Plato
"The ultimate hidden truth of the world is that it is something that we make, and could just as easily make differently." - David Graeber
November 3, 2025 at 9:04 PM
"The ultimate hidden truth of the world is that it is something that we make, and could just as easily make differently." - David Graeber
I feel dirty even posting this: Just finished Filterworld by Kyle Chayka. He shows how the Algorithm pushes sameness & reinforces why doing the hard work of finding culture on your own is so important - not just for the artists themselves, but for society
www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Wesley Edits (Jackson Heights, NY)’s review of Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture
4/5: Does a great job of showing how the Algorithm pushes sameness and reinforces why doing the hard work of finding culture and supporting artists is so important - not just for the artists themselves,...
www.goodreads.com
November 3, 2025 at 5:01 PM
I feel dirty even posting this: Just finished Filterworld by Kyle Chayka. He shows how the Algorithm pushes sameness & reinforces why doing the hard work of finding culture on your own is so important - not just for the artists themselves, but for society
www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
A lady yesterday at the dog park told me that Christopher Columbus "discovered" the Americas by climbing mountains to get to Hispaniola.
November 2, 2025 at 6:00 PM
A lady yesterday at the dog park told me that Christopher Columbus "discovered" the Americas by climbing mountains to get to Hispaniola.
Something surprising can't be generated by pattern-matching machines.
November 1, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Something surprising can't be generated by pattern-matching machines.
Remember AI isn't replacing jobs. Companies are making decisions to cut the role. They are using AI as an excuse.
October 30, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Remember AI isn't replacing jobs. Companies are making decisions to cut the role. They are using AI as an excuse.
Thinking of opening a bar with a social media corner specifically designed to post boring, algorithm-friendly content that makes the place look "authentic" as hell. What should I call it? The Algorithm? User-Generated Content? The Lie?
October 26, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Thinking of opening a bar with a social media corner specifically designed to post boring, algorithm-friendly content that makes the place look "authentic" as hell. What should I call it? The Algorithm? User-Generated Content? The Lie?
AI recombines what already exists. To be genuinely surprised requires breaking the pattern, not optimizing within it.
October 25, 2025 at 5:08 PM
AI recombines what already exists. To be genuinely surprised requires breaking the pattern, not optimizing within it.
Love Is Blind Season 9 had a franchise first: ZERO marriages!
I analyzed all 9 seasons and the data is clear — the show's marriage success rate has collapsed by 50% since early seasons.
Full breakdown and charts on why (and how this is making the show worse) 👇
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
I analyzed all 9 seasons and the data is clear — the show's marriage success rate has collapsed by 50% since early seasons.
Full breakdown and charts on why (and how this is making the show worse) 👇
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
Fun Friday: Can We Admit Love Isn't Blind?
The data says no + a catchup on some books I'm reading
open.substack.com
October 24, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Love Is Blind Season 9 had a franchise first: ZERO marriages!
I analyzed all 9 seasons and the data is clear — the show's marriage success rate has collapsed by 50% since early seasons.
Full breakdown and charts on why (and how this is making the show worse) 👇
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
I analyzed all 9 seasons and the data is clear — the show's marriage success rate has collapsed by 50% since early seasons.
Full breakdown and charts on why (and how this is making the show worse) 👇
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
If AI search makes all the revenue disappear from content creators, where will future AI get content from?
October 23, 2025 at 8:08 PM
If AI search makes all the revenue disappear from content creators, where will future AI get content from?
New newsletter. Workshopping a book on the death of trust in media from a historical perspective & how it's pushing us to believing AI is the answer even though it's trained on the same stuff we claim to not trust.
Today's newsletter is the thesis/Intro of sorts.
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
Today's newsletter is the thesis/Intro of sorts.
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
The Most Trusted Man in America Never Existed — And We’re Falling for the Same Scam with AI
Plus some personal updates and showing Netflix's use of AI in marketing
open.substack.com
October 23, 2025 at 1:09 PM
New newsletter. Workshopping a book on the death of trust in media from a historical perspective & how it's pushing us to believing AI is the answer even though it's trained on the same stuff we claim to not trust.
Today's newsletter is the thesis/Intro of sorts.
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
Today's newsletter is the thesis/Intro of sorts.
open.substack.com/pub/wesleyed...
Walter Cronkite — "The Most Trusted Man in America" — never actually was.
His legendary status was built on a bogus poll and CBS marketing.
We're making the exact same mistake with AI.
My @Medium piece on why the golden age of journalism never existed:
medium.com/actuallythou...
His legendary status was built on a bogus poll and CBS marketing.
We're making the exact same mistake with AI.
My @Medium piece on why the golden age of journalism never existed:
medium.com/actuallythou...
The Most Trusted Man in America Never Existed — And We’re Falling for the Same Scam with AI
Cronkite’s legendary status was built on a bogus poll and desperate hope — and we’re making the same mistake with AI
medium.com
October 22, 2025 at 8:04 PM
Walter Cronkite — "The Most Trusted Man in America" — never actually was.
His legendary status was built on a bogus poll and CBS marketing.
We're making the exact same mistake with AI.
My @Medium piece on why the golden age of journalism never existed:
medium.com/actuallythou...
His legendary status was built on a bogus poll and CBS marketing.
We're making the exact same mistake with AI.
My @Medium piece on why the golden age of journalism never existed:
medium.com/actuallythou...
AI can recombine the known, but Montesquieu understood - true aesthetic surprise comes from the genuinely unfamiliar
October 18, 2025 at 5:08 PM
AI can recombine the known, but Montesquieu understood - true aesthetic surprise comes from the genuinely unfamiliar
You win some, you lose some. Long-time client ghosted me today. But a juicy new prospect just slid into my inbox. Such is the game in a freelancer's life.
October 16, 2025 at 8:02 PM
You win some, you lose some. Long-time client ghosted me today. But a juicy new prospect just slid into my inbox. Such is the game in a freelancer's life.
I edited Susan Orlean's audiobook for Joyride (out today)
Somewhere between removing the 347th mouth click, I learned more about craft than most workshops teach
7 lessons that apply whether you're writing, producing, or building anything creative.
On @medium: 👇
medium.com/books-are-ou...
Somewhere between removing the 347th mouth click, I learned more about craft than most workshops teach
7 lessons that apply whether you're writing, producing, or building anything creative.
On @medium: 👇
medium.com/books-are-ou...
7 Writing Tips I Learned Editing Susan Orlean’s New Audiobook
From finding ideas to building confidence: Writing advice from the author of The Orchid Thief and The Library Book
medium.com
October 14, 2025 at 8:04 PM
I edited Susan Orlean's audiobook for Joyride (out today)
Somewhere between removing the 347th mouth click, I learned more about craft than most workshops teach
7 lessons that apply whether you're writing, producing, or building anything creative.
On @medium: 👇
medium.com/books-are-ou...
Somewhere between removing the 347th mouth click, I learned more about craft than most workshops teach
7 lessons that apply whether you're writing, producing, or building anything creative.
On @medium: 👇
medium.com/books-are-ou...
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Plato
October 12, 2025 at 5:15 PM
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Plato
I was just thinking… Wild how Facebook and these other social platforms trained us to think giving them free content was the same as maintaining friendships or having real human connection.
October 10, 2025 at 8:04 PM
I was just thinking… Wild how Facebook and these other social platforms trained us to think giving them free content was the same as maintaining friendships or having real human connection.
My first sizzle of 2025 just sold to series. After working on multiple pitches this year, here's what's actually getting bought right now (and what's dying in development):
October 9, 2025 at 8:04 PM
My first sizzle of 2025 just sold to series. After working on multiple pitches this year, here's what's actually getting bought right now (and what's dying in development):
LLMs tell you what humans would probably say based on training data. They don't think.
Do your own thinking.
Do your own thinking.
October 8, 2025 at 8:04 PM
LLMs tell you what humans would probably say based on training data. They don't think.
Do your own thinking.
Do your own thinking.
Just turn off your brain and let the slop keep coming. That's what #AI social media wants.
Scan your face. Give them your voice. Scroll forever.
Is this cash burn and further erosion of humanity worth the slop? I’m going with no.
Full thoughts on Medium 👇
medium.com/actuallythou...
Scan your face. Give them your voice. Scroll forever.
Is this cash burn and further erosion of humanity worth the slop? I’m going with no.
Full thoughts on Medium 👇
medium.com/actuallythou...
AI Social Media Is Here Whether You Like It or Not
And all they want is your biometric data forever. In exchange we get deepfakes and misinformation
medium.com
October 7, 2025 at 8:04 PM
Just turn off your brain and let the slop keep coming. That's what #AI social media wants.
Scan your face. Give them your voice. Scroll forever.
Is this cash burn and further erosion of humanity worth the slop? I’m going with no.
Full thoughts on Medium 👇
medium.com/actuallythou...
Scan your face. Give them your voice. Scroll forever.
Is this cash burn and further erosion of humanity worth the slop? I’m going with no.
Full thoughts on Medium 👇
medium.com/actuallythou...
First cut anxiety on a new series never gets easier. Tony Bennett said something while I worked on his Zen of Bennett doc that stuck with me: if you're anxious, it means you care. That pressure? Just your standards showing up.
October 6, 2025 at 8:04 PM
First cut anxiety on a new series never gets easier. Tony Bennett said something while I worked on his Zen of Bennett doc that stuck with me: if you're anxious, it means you care. That pressure? Just your standards showing up.
Spoke on a writer panel at Medium's company offsite yesterday about my experience on the site.
Rare to find a platform that tries to compensate writers + wants feedback. That's why I keep writing there & think they're one of the best in the game!
Follow me for media/tech analysis: @wesleyedits
Rare to find a platform that tries to compensate writers + wants feedback. That's why I keep writing there & think they're one of the best in the game!
Follow me for media/tech analysis: @wesleyedits
October 3, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Spoke on a writer panel at Medium's company offsite yesterday about my experience on the site.
Rare to find a platform that tries to compensate writers + wants feedback. That's why I keep writing there & think they're one of the best in the game!
Follow me for media/tech analysis: @wesleyedits
Rare to find a platform that tries to compensate writers + wants feedback. That's why I keep writing there & think they're one of the best in the game!
Follow me for media/tech analysis: @wesleyedits