Scholar

Victor Pickard

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Victor Pickard is an American media studies scholar. He is a professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the… more

H-index: 27
Communication & Media Studies 46%
Political science 18%
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Anna O. Law, Alan Richardson , and 2 more

jamellebouie.net
thank you brett kavanaugh!
dlknowles.bsky.social
Daniel Knowles @dlknowles.bsky.social · 11h
Good reporting on the South Shore raid from South Side weekly here.

Confirms one thing I was told but didn't put in my own piece because I didn't have a second source and it seemed too insane: border agents segregated arrested residents by race

southsideweekly.com/federal-agen...
Federal Agents Storm South Shore Building, Detaining Families and Children
Families were woken by flashbangs and helicopters as hundreds of federal agents raided their homes. Days later, neighbors are still searching for the missing.
southsideweekly.com
76 1.7K 6.3K

by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
Rick was an excellent journalist and super smart analyst of the news industry. RIP.
dankennedy.net
Dan Kennedy @dankennedy.net · 1d
Very sorry to learn that Rick Edmonds of @poynterinstitute.bsky.social has died. Rick's incisive analysis of the business side of journalism has been of great value to many of us in our own work over the years. (Last item.) www.poynter.org/commentary/2...
Today is MSNBC’s first day apart from NBC. Here is its new code of principles. - Poynter
The new network’s 10 core principles emphasize fairness, accuracy, transparency and firm limits on AI
www.poynter.org
5

by Victor Pickard — Reposted by: Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
Important new research into the contradictions of US broadband policy by two leading political economists.
ppopiel.bsky.social
Pawel Popiel @ppopiel.bsky.social · 1d
🚨 New article out, great colab w/ @davidberman.bsky.social, assessing the primary U.S. response to the digital divide: the corporate subsidy. Using mixed methods, we show how networked "digital equity" reinforces network monopoly. @miccenter.bsky.social
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/2BPFG...
ABSTRACT This study examines the political economy, discursive legitimations, and effectiveness of the primary U.S. policy response to narrowing the digital divide: public subsidies for internet service. Using Philadelphia as our case study, we analyze municipal efforts to enroll low-income communities in low-cost commercial broadband plans supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Like many other U.S. cities in the neoliberal era, Philadelphia sought to organize its digital equity initiative as a decentralized network of public agencies, commercial broadband providers, and nonprofits. Drawing on expert interviews, focus groups with ACP-eligible subscribers, and policy documents, we find that despite the city’s goal of achieving universal service, the networked initiative ultimately advanced the economic interests and market position of Comcast, the city’s monopoly broadband provider – with only minimal gains in connectivity. We argue that the evolving relationship between Comcast and the city of Philadelphia exemplifies what we refer to as the dialectic of the network. While often assumed as opposing forms of economic and social organization, the monopoly – centralized, vertically organized, hierarchical – and the network – decentralized, horizontal, leaderless – actively reinforce and legitimize one another as part of the neoliberal conquest of America’s communication infrastructure.
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard

ppopiel.bsky.social
🚨 New article out, great colab w/ @davidberman.bsky.social, assessing the primary U.S. response to the digital divide: the corporate subsidy. Using mixed methods, we show how networked "digital equity" reinforces network monopoly. @miccenter.bsky.social
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/2BPFG...
ABSTRACT This study examines the political economy, discursive legitimations, and effectiveness of the primary U.S. policy response to narrowing the digital divide: public subsidies for internet service. Using Philadelphia as our case study, we analyze municipal efforts to enroll low-income communities in low-cost commercial broadband plans supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Like many other U.S. cities in the neoliberal era, Philadelphia sought to organize its digital equity initiative as a decentralized network of public agencies, commercial broadband providers, and nonprofits. Drawing on expert interviews, focus groups with ACP-eligible subscribers, and policy documents, we find that despite the city’s goal of achieving universal service, the networked initiative ultimately advanced the economic interests and market position of Comcast, the city’s monopoly broadband provider – with only minimal gains in connectivity. We argue that the evolving relationship between Comcast and the city of Philadelphia exemplifies what we refer to as the dialectic of the network. While often assumed as opposing forms of economic and social organization, the monopoly – centralized, vertically organized, hierarchical – and the network – decentralized, horizontal, leaderless – actively reinforce and legitimize one another as part of the neoliberal conquest of America’s communication infrastructure.
1 2 10

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

dankennedy.net
Very sorry to learn that Rick Edmonds of @poynterinstitute.bsky.social has died. Rick's incisive analysis of the business side of journalism has been of great value to many of us in our own work over the years. (Last item.) www.poynter.org/commentary/2...
Today is MSNBC’s first day apart from NBC. Here is its new code of principles. - Poynter
The new network’s 10 core principles emphasize fairness, accuracy, transparency and firm limits on AI
www.poynter.org
4 7

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

miccenter.bsky.social
Local news plays a vital role in helping people stay safe, healthy, and connected to their communities.

@theine.bsky.social and Carlotta Verita look at how well Philly’s local news media keep residents informed about the issues that matter most in this new report: buff.ly/jJO22o8
Informing Philadelphia: Strengths and Gaps in Local Media's Coverage of Critical Information Needs Title in white text on red backdrop next to an image of the Philadelphia skyline.
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by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
We must hold the line against this extortion. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/o...
Opinion | Trump’s ‘Compact’ With Universities Is Just Extortion
www.nytimes.com
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by Victor Pickard — Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Anna O. Law

victorpickard.bsky.social
This conversation was very good and well worth watching:
www.youtube.com/live/RB1FLkR... @aaup-penn.bsky.social @aaup.org @chenjerai.bsky.social @proftwolf.bsky.social
Breaking Down Trump's New Higher Ed Loyalty Oath Compacts and Why We Must Resist
YouTube video by TheAAUP
www.youtube.com
9 19

by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
These are dark times and we must hold fast against this bullshit. Solidarity!
aaup.org
AAUP @aaup.org · 5d
The Trump admin’s offer to give preferential treatment to institutions that toe the party line reeks of bribery in exchange for allegiance to a partisan ideological agenda.

This is corruption.

Adherence to ‘loyalty oaths’ would usher in a new era of thought policing in American higher education.
Universities Must Reject Trump Admin 'Loyalty Oath' Compacts
The AAUP and AFT warn that the Trump administration’s offer to give preferential treatment to colleges and universities that court government favor in exchange for allegiance to a partisan ideological...
www.aaup.org
4 13

Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Michael Jones‐Correa

veenadubal.bsky.social
“This is extortion, plain and simple.

It is not hyperbole to say that the future of higher education.. requires that every university reject it…The only solution is solidarity and collective action against this effort at federal control over higher education.”

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/o...
Opinion | Trump’s ‘Compact’ With Universities Is Just Extortion
www.nytimes.com
2 67 160

Reposted by: Victor Pickard, David Lazer, Scott L. Greer , and 9 more

aaup.org
The Trump admin’s offer to give preferential treatment to institutions that toe the party line reeks of bribery in exchange for allegiance to a partisan ideological agenda.

This is corruption.

Adherence to ‘loyalty oaths’ would usher in a new era of thought policing in American higher education.
Universities Must Reject Trump Admin 'Loyalty Oath' Compacts
The AAUP and AFT warn that the Trump administration’s offer to give preferential treatment to colleges and universities that court government favor in exchange for allegiance to a partisan ideological...
www.aaup.org
3 250 470

by Ryan Enos — Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Anna O. Law, Efrén O. Pérez , and 2 more

ryanenos.bsky.social
Loyalty oaths for universities. The thing of the Third Reich. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/u...
Trump Administration Asks Colleges to Sign ‘Compact’ to Get Funding Preference
www.nytimes.com
11 150 290

Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Brian Keegan, Blair Fix , and 1 more

noupside.bsky.social
Let's be clear a what's happening here: the "censorship" and "bias" narrative is being extended to Wikipedia bc the far right knows that getting bullshit into LLMs is how to shape reality as "answer engines" replace search engines.

Wikipedia is core to that fight so the grievance blitz is here.
160 1.1K 3.8K

by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
Important new @miccenter.bsky.social research by @theine.bsky.social & Dr. Carlotta Verita that examines local media's coverage of Critical Information Needs in Philadelphia: www.asc.upenn.edu/research/cen...
Publications
www.asc.upenn.edu
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard

econaturalist.bsky.social
Can we just have healthcare?
59 87 570

by Victor Pickard — Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Aurélien Mondon, Nathan P. Kalmoe

victorpickard.bsky.social
The ongoing consolidation of our media infrastructure by a handful of right-wing oligarchs poses a profound threat to any hope for democracy in the U.S. Read this piece by @sulliview.bsky.social:
The TikTok deal puts even more media in the hands of the super-rich | Margaret Sullivan
Trump is clearing the way for US investors to control a wildly popular platform where millions get their news
www.theguardian.com
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Juan Cole, Pádua Fernandes

chrisgeidner.bsky.social
BREAKING: The Supreme Court allows the Trump administration to withhold $4 billion in foreign aid funds b/c of Trump’s “pocket rescission” argument and b/c enforcing the injunction would affect foreign affairs. The Democratic appointees dissent. More to come at Law Dork: www.lawdork.com
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES No. 25A269 DEPARTMENT OF STATE, ET AL. . AIDS VACCINE ADVOCACY COALITION, ET AL. ON APPLICATION FOR STAY [September 26, 2025] On September 3, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia entered a preliminary injunction directing the Executive to obligate roughly $10.5 billion of appropriated aid funding set to expire on September 30. Of that $10.5 billion, $4 billion was proposed to be rescinded in a "special message" transmitted pursuant to the Impoundment Control Act. See 2 U. S. C. §681 et seq. After the District Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied stays of that order, the Government filed this application to stay the District Court's injunction. The application for stay presented to THE CHIEF JUSTICE and by him referred to the Court is granted. The Government, at this early stage, has made a sufficient showing that the Impoundment Control Act precludes respondents' suit, brought pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, to enforce the appropriations at issue here. The Government has also made a sufficient showing that mandamus relief is unavailable to respondents. And, on the record before the Court, the asserted harms to the Executive's conduct of foreign affairs appear to outweigh the potential harm faced by respondents. This order should not be read as a final determination on the merits. The relief granted by the Court today reflects our preliminary view, consistent with The District Court's September 3, 2025 order granting a preliminary injunction in case Nos. 1:25-cv-400 and 1:25-cv-402 is stayed as to the funding subject to the President's August 28 special message, pending the disposition of the Government's appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and disposition of a petition for a writ of certiorari, if such writ is timely sought. Should the petition for a writ of certiorari be denied, this stay shall terminate automatically. In the event certiorari is granted, the stay shall terminate upon the sending down of the judgment of this Court. JUSTICE KAGAN, with whom JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR and JUSTICE JACKSON join, dissenting from the grant of the application for stay. This emergency application raises novel issues fundamental to the relationship between the President and Con-gress. It arises from the refusal of the President and his officers to obligate and spend billions of dollars that Congress appropriated for foreign aid. Prospective beneficiaries of those funds challenged the decision to withhold them as an unlawful impoundment-essentially, a Presidential usurpation of Congress's power of the purse. The main legal question presented in this application involves the meaning and effect of a statute concerning impoundments: More specifically, the question is whether that statute precludes the beneficiaries' suit to make the Executive comply with appropriations laws. This Court, before today, has dealt with the statute only in passing; neither have lower courts much addressed it. Deciding the question presented thus requires the Court to work in uncharted territory. And, to repeat, the stakes are high: At issue is the allocation of power between the Executive and Congress over the expenditure of public monies. As even that much suggests, this case is not a likely candidate for a grant of emergency relief. … … So the standard for granting emergency relief is supposed to be stringent. The Executive has not come close to meeting it here. And the consequence of today's grant is significant. I appreciate that the majority refrains from offering a definitive view of this dispute and the questions raised in it. But the effect of its ruling is to allow the Executive to cease obligating $4 billion in funds that Congress appropriated for foreign aid, and that will now never reach its intended recipients. Because that result conflicts with the separation of powers, I respectfully dissent.
42 180 490

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

hypervisible.blacksky.app
The reason they create devices is not to solve a problem but instead to build something that makes you a more perfect stream of data for them to monetize.

www.cnet.com/tech/computi...
One potential use is as a TV remote. "Once you start using it regularly, you put it on your wrist and you just start using it every day, it becomes infuriating that you're not using it for more things like picking up a TV remote," Bosworth says. "We think the opportunity for this to be a bigger input platform over time is really big." We also talked about the possibilities for typing, something Meta's research groups have discussed in the past. Bosworth says two neural bands would be needed, but it's being explored. "A really fun thing happens when you have two of these, you could also do typing. That's not a guarantee. We can do typing with downward-facing cameras pretty effectively, but [they're] expensive," he adds.
9 77 230

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

nicholsuprising.bsky.social
Robert Redford set out, 53 years ago, to alert America to the disruption of elections by big money, self-dealing interest groups, media-driven campaigns and contenders who sacrificed values for style. With “The Candidate,” he anticipated almost everything that has corrupted contemporary politics.
Robert Redford Sounded the Alarm About Our Corrupted Politics Over 50 Years Ago
The late legend's 1972 classic The Candidate was an urgent warning about how money-driven, TV-obsessed campaigns would devastate democracy.
www.thenation.com
1 76 180

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

briefingwithpsaki.bsky.social
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez explains the serious financial interest media conglomerate Nexstar has in sucking up to Donald Trump, including on matters like Jimmy Kimmel's suspension.
25 260 660

by Brendan Nyhan — Reposted by: Victor Pickard, David R. Miller, Brian Jm Quinn

brendannyhan.bsky.social
Mobster government; Trump always wants a taste. Literally demanding "a fee" that could amount to billions.
54 290 840

by Stephen I. Vladeck — Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Anna O. Law, Richard S.J. Tol , and 25 more

stevevladeck.bsky.social
#BREAKING: Over dissents from Justices Sotomayor, Kagan & Jackson, #SCOTUS grants a stay in the Slaughter case (allowing President Trump to remove the last Dem member of the FTC), *and* grants certiorari "before judgment" to decide whether to formally overrule its 1935 ruling in Humphrey's Executor.
290 1.2K 2.8K

by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
This was really inspiring to watch:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe1V...
Mayor to Mayor: a conversation between Bernie Sanders and Zohran Mamdani
YouTube video by Zohran Mamdani for NYC
www.youtube.com
1 5

Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Jan W. Mueller, Richard S.J. Tol , and 43 more

atrupar.com
There is no world in which it is normal for the president to publicly call upon his attorney general to hurry up and prosecute his political foes. It’s like the Watergate tapes but posted on social media. Let’s get a grip on what’s happening here.
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Juan Cole, David Darmofal

karlbode.com
While people are suddenly and uncharacteristically paying attention to media regulation, please take a moment to notice all the massive harm Brendan Carr has done to consumer protection and public safety as well

me, back in April:
Brendan Carr’s FCC is an anti-consumer, rights-trampling harassment machine
The White House’s personal censor.
www.theverge.com
25 670 1.7K

Reposted by: Victor Pickard

theintercept.com
In his effort to bring the media to heel, Trump could not invent a better ally than FCC Chief Brendan Carr. interc.pt/46zp4VT
A photo of Brendan Carr, commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission, speaking during a House hearing in Washington on May 21, 2025, overlaid with the headline, "Why FCC Chief Brendan Carr May Be the Most Dangerous Man in Media," and the DEK, "Carr’s most pronounced quality is his total fealty to Donald Trump — and he’s been busy weaponizing the FCC for the cause."
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Reposted by: Victor Pickard, Kim L. Scheppele

freedom.press
FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who intends to monitor bias while wearing the president's bust as a lapel pin, is the poster child for why the Constitution bars the government from meddling in newsrooms' editorial decisions.

www.cbc.ca/news/worl...
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by Victor Pickard — Reposted by: Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
So many of our media institutions and information infrastructures are owned and controlled by right-wing oligarchs. And it promises to only get worse.
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by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
I cover the longer intellectual history in this essay from a few years ago that provides some context for how structural questions about media ownership and control--and why they matter for democracy--were pushed to the margins of communication research: misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/unse...
Unseeing propaganda: How communication scholars learned to love commercial media | HKS Misinformation Review
A new disinformation age is upon us—or so it seems. But much of what appears to be unprecedented isn’t new at all. Concerns about misinformation’s effects on democracy are as old as media. The many sy...
misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu
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by Victor Pickard

victorpickard.bsky.social
A group of scholars--mostly within the political economy tradition of media research (esp Bob McChesney) tried to warn us about these structural problems for decades. They were too often dismissed as unduly alarmist, hyperbolic, pessimistic, reductionist, over-determined, or, worst of all, Marxist.
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