Issue #59
Zohran Mamdani's social media campaign, Cory Doctorow's enshittification theory and the (un)surprising truth behind X's MAGA patriots
A year ago we saw the tech elite fawning over newly elected US President (and deregulator-in-chief) Donald Trump. How refreshing to see someone who champions regulation win power! Here’s more on Mamdani and other top stories from November.
Zohran Mamdani campaigns in Brooklyn (Mint)
1. Mamdani’s winning social media campaign
Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani won the New York mayoral elections after building the largest grassroots-driven campaign in New York City history. (Mint)
🇺🇸 People power
2. Tech workers unite against platform decay
Until recently, unions didn’t seem relevant to many tech workers. But redundancies and enshittification have changed all that, according to Cory Doctorow. (My blog)
3. MAGA “patriots” outed as non-American
In an own-goal for Elon Musk, a new X feature shows geolocations of pro-MAGA profiles. Many turn out to be clickbait accounts based overseas. (Agents of Influence)
4. Denmark plans social media ban for under 15s
As Australia’s ban on social media for under 16s comes into force (on 10 December), Denmark’s government also votes to enforce a social media ban. (AP)
5. Where has all the weirdness gone?
Our cultural lives are increasingly driven by algorithms, weirdness is on the wane. Things increasingly look the same, but we need deviance. (Experimental History)