🤝 Get to Know New_ Public’s Newsletter Writers
Plus: Announcing our Flash Fiction Contest!
This week we mark the start of a new era for the New_ Public newsletter. I, Josh Kramer, am taking over as Newsletter Editor, with Wilfred Chan coming on to assist. Wilfred is the newest New_ Public staffer, and as you’ll see, he brings a lot of exciting experiences and skills. Unless otherwise identified, it’s safe to assume that what you read here is written by one of us.
And while we’re fascinated by everything adjacent to New_ Public — platforms, communities, parks, design, regulation, much more — we are not experts. We’re still learning, and in the process of creating this newsletter, we want to learn with you and from you, our readers. This space is very much a work in progress, and we welcome your thoughts about what you’d like to see here. (This is the last week we’ll bug you about the survey, I promise). So, let’s start to get to know each other! Like the hard-hitting shoe-leather reporters we’ve both been at different times in our careers, Wilfred and I asked some questions of each other:
Josh and Wilfred have entered the chat
Josh Kramer: Wilfred, why don't you introduce yourself to the newsletter? Where are you coming from and how did you find your way to New_ Public?
Wilfred Chan: Hi Josh! Happy to be here. I come to this space from a few different angles. I think the primary one is as a journalist in the age of the internet — my first job out of college, nearly a decade ago, was working at CNN International in Hong Kong as a writer and social media editor. This gave me a fascinating and terrifying understanding of how social media was reshaping the news, and how readers were responding in real time. I saw how stories emphasizing conflict and nationalism were dramatically overperforming on platforms like Facebook and Twitter, and how that influenced our editorial decisions. I noticed how audiences were not closely reading or even clicking into the stories at all, but often jumping to conclusions in the comments, or spreading conspiracy theories. And I realized that journalism was in a lot of trouble if this was the way things were going.
I left CNN with a lot of questions about how tech platforms are changing our lives. When I moved back to New York a few years ago, I did a stint as a copywriter for a decentralized software startup, which, if anything, helped me realize that the solutions to the problems of tech platforms cannot be solely technological. Around that time I started working part-time as a bicycle courier for platforms like UberEats and DoorDash, partly to make money, partly for exercise, and partly to understand the physical experience of being managed by an algorithm. And through that experience, and getting to know other gig workers, I’ve come to believe that labor needs to be a bigger part of our conversation about tech platforms.
So I’m very excited to join New_ Public because it’s approaching the conversation about digital platforms from a number of different disciplines — which is how I want to think about these things.
JK: That’s great! You’re going to fit right in here. I come from a journalism background as well. When I was in journalism school, they literally trained us to make audio slideshows, which were all the rage at the time. I’m no stranger to how technology has changed news and newsgathering.
Working as a freelancer, I have written about lots of topics, but most recently I focused on urbanism and cities, specifically transportation. I love systems, and have always been fascinated with technology. I’m as excited for self-driving cars as the next Utopian, but I’m just as hopeful that we can get more people on buses and densify more suburbs.
I also have a background as an artist and work as a graphic designer and illustrator. I’ve been designing and drawing for print, web and mobile for a long time and bring that to everything we’re doing on the editorial side of New_ Public. I’ve been working behind the scenes for over a year and I’m excited to take over the newsletter, which we’ll talk more about.
Share three examples of your work so we can get a sense of your interests
WC: I’ve written a fair amount about gig workers. In May I did an interview with James Farrar, a driver who successfully took Uber to the UK Supreme Court and won — and something he said really stuck with me: in thinking about tech platforms, we need to start treating digital rights as worker rights. I also wrote a piece in June that takes a broader look at how platform workers are self-organizing around the world. I’m also known for my writing on Hong Kong. I wrote this piece last May, shortly after the government there introduced a “national security” law that effectively criminalizes dissent. People there are being arrested now for writing the kinds of online posts about politics that we take for granted in the West. To me it underscores the importance of thinking about the relationship between tech and democracy.
JK: We’re really excited to have you, especially because of your experiences reporting on — and living through — these stories in Hong Kong and in gig work. I’ve got a couple of different pieces to share here: This 2019 article about Tulsa’s plan to lure remote workers is more topical than ever, with a closer look at billionaire motivations and the evolving nature of remote work. I also thought I’d share one of my nonfiction comics, which was my niche as a comics journalist for about a decade. For readers interested in our urban space metaphor, this personal piece about biking gets into the importance of public safety infrastructure. Finally, I have a short drawn infographic, because I love experimenting with different kinds of charts, drawings, and storytelling and I hope we can do more of that here.
What’s your background with computers and being online?
JK: Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think we’re in the same ‘generational cohort.’ I grew up in suburban Philadelphia, and came up using the family desktop computer. I have fond memories of making friendships on AIM and going to computer camp where I only learned a little about HTML but a lot about networking computers for LAN gaming. Later, I was drawn to blogs and eventually communities of link-sharing like Twitter. Now, I still lean on trusted aggregators like Jason Kottke and my other RSS feeds.
WC: Yep — I have fond memories of using Netscape Navigator on my dad’s old PC as a kid. When I was in middle school I was a prolific blogger and forum poster. I think I basically learned how to write just by spending a ton of time on the web. As an adult I’ve given far too much of my life to Twitter. I’ve cut back a lot in the last year, which has overall been a positive thing for my mental health.
JK: Oh, God, me too. Working with New_ Public has helped me reckon with the negative effects of ‘context collapse’ on Twitter. It’s a big reason why we decided to go #TuesdaysOnly, which has worked out really well.
What are some things you hope to do in the newsletter going forward?
JK: I want to talk more about design, both in terms of theory, but also process and practice. It’s one thing to talk about how much we all want flourishing digital public spaces, but it’s quite another to figure out how we can actually make them, and we should talk more about that. I think we can continue to surface more unusual, outside voices and really experiment with the content and structure of this newsletter. Some of it will work, some of it will not, and we appreciate you being along for the ride, dear reader.
WC: For sure. I’m excited to experiment with you, and bring my own interests into the mix. I think I’m always wondering: what are the structures of power that make it hard for well-meaning people to create the kinds of spaces we need? Who are the rebels trying to do it anyway, and how can we help them?
What are your priorities for foregrounding accessibility, feminism and diversity?
JK: I think Marina, the previous newsletter editor, did a great job at this. I want to pick up that baton and find a great range of contributors/interview subjects from many different backgrounds and communities. You’ll see this not just in our interview subjects and guest writers, but also the topics we write about and the news links we share with you.
WC: 100% — we should highlight people who not only have a diversity of identity but diversity of experience in how they relate to digital platforms. There are no one-size-fits-all answers in the work we’re doing.
What signal feels most like this moment?
JK: As Talia talked about last week, once you know the signals, you start seeing them all the time in your own life. But it’s undeniable that Showing Reliable Information is a big concern right now, as highlighted by the Surgeon General’s health misinformation Advisory. Many people, including the president of the United States, have voiced their concerns about false information about COVID circulating on social media. I’m hopeful this situation will improve, but it’s possible that it will get worse before it gets better. Although I’ll admit it is hard to sort out signal from noise on this topic. What do you think?
WC: Showing Reliable Information is definitely top of mind. I remember being on Twitter during the first few weeks of the pandemic and seeing someone in my replies saying the virus was being spread by 5G towers funded by Bill Gates, and thinking it was just a troll or a joke. Then I did a quick search and realized this is something a lot of people believed as real. It was a pretty sobering moment. I think things are going to get worse before they get better.
Do you have a favorite past edition of the newsletter?
JK: It’s hard to pick, but I have a soft spot for the Afrofuturism one. I love it when we get speculative and get to learn about someone’s vision for the future (more on this below).
WC: Yes, there are a lot! One that stands out to me is the recent interview with social worker and scholar Desmond Patton on using machine learning to reduce violence. I’m thinking about his insight into the limitations of data: “‘Neighborhood,’ ‘love,’ ‘joy,’ and ‘relationships’ all get coded, but they were coded ‘other’ because they weren’t in the predominant codes. There’s so many other behaviors and dynamics that are happening on social media within Black and brown youth that aren’t about aggression, loss, and substance use.”
JK: Oh yeah, that was great, and a great example of something we’re fascinated by that isn’t just the topic that’s making everyone angry on Twitter.
Wilfred, you’re Editor of our new digital magazine, currently in production. Tell us about the theme of the first issue: Decentralization.
WC: Decentralization is a term that’s been invoked by different generations of tech activists to refer to sometimes pretty different things, and while it’s a very attractive concept — especially as a reaction to the very real excesses of tech platforms or governments — it’s a term that can suffer from a lack of conceptual and practical clarity. I’m looking forward to producing this issue to try and provide more texture to the idea of decentralization and how it can emerge across a variety of practices. And we can’t wait for all of you to read it when it’s out in late September.
Josh, we’re doing a flash fiction contest in the newsletter?!?!!
JK: Yes! Full details are below. I really love when people get truly imaginative about the future of all kinds of technology. I’ve started reading a lot more Sci-Fi in recent years, and also writing and drawing a bit of it myself. I suspect we have a lot of creative readers who might want to get in on the fun, so we’re launching a little contest for flash fiction (really short writing) on the loose topic of ‘social media.’ The best three submissions will be reprinted here for thousands of interested readers accompanied by an original illustration by yours truly. (More below.) I really can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Rapid-fire!
Favorite platform you no longer use and are nostalgic for:
JK: Google Reader!
WC: I’m nostalgic for early Facebook. You used to be able to customize your wall with a lot of interesting add-ons, and I loved this one called “Graffiti” where you could draw colorful pictures directly onto your friends’ walls or your own wall. I made some pretty impressive doodles.
Favorite technology that we don’t always think about as tech:
JK: My bike. I read somewhere that the fastest way to get anywhere within three miles here in DC, where I live, is by bike. I think that’s true, and it feels amazing to do it with your own leg power.
WC: Oh, you took mine. Instead, I’ll say the face mask. I’m amazed at what a difference this simple item has made for humanity during the pandemic, and also fascinated by the incredibly complex politics and economics around its distribution and usage.
JK: True! Cotton or disposable? I use re-washable cotton even if they’re worse.
WC: I actually use a kind of apocalyptic-looking one made of soft plastic, with replaceable N95 filters. It gets a lot of stares.
Underrated contemporary platform:
JK: Reddit. Frugal Men’s Fashion has transformed the way I shop for clothes.
WC: Google Docs? I’m a little scared to think about how much of the world is run on it.
Best book you’ve read lately, related to tech or not:
JK: “A Moveable Feast”. I’ve never read Hemingway before, but now I believe the hype!
WC: I’m reading “A Prehistory of the Cloud” by Tung-Hui Hu. Very into it so far.
Thing you’re looking forward to in a world with fewer covid worries:
JK: Being in the middle of an amped-up blockbuster movie audience.
WC: I really miss indoor dining in the wintertime.
We’re seeking very short pieces of fictional writing — including science fiction, speculative fiction and historical fiction — on the theme of ‘social media,’ however you’d like to interpret that. We’ll publish the best three entries right here on the newsletter over a few weeks. And we do mean ‘short!’ The word limit is 500 words and anything much longer than that will not win. To give you an idea, this paragraph is 161 words. The deadline is Wednesday, September 1, 2021. There is no monetary prize, but the three winning stories will be illustrated by Newsletter Editor Josh Kramer, an award-winning illustrator, and the author will be given the rights to use the image however they choose. By submitting your story, you grant us the right to publish it here on the newsletter, and on our site, but you retain all other copyrights. Email us your stories at hello@newpublic.org with ‘Flash Fiction’ in the subject line. Good luck!
Deadline: 9/1/21
Theme: Social Media
Word Limit: 500 words
Prize: Original illustration, publication on newsletter
Last Call on the Survey
Soon, we’ll dig into the results of the new survey here in the newsletter. Some of the answers are very thoughtful and objectively excellent and helpful, which is why we’re greedy for more. The average response has taken 12 minutes.
Work with us
Maybe you’re thinking, “Hey, those guys seem nice. I’m a detail-oriented person who’s great at building relationships and getting things done. I wonder if I could ever work there?” The answer is absolutely, and you could be perfect for the role we’re hiring for right now! We’re seeking a Partnerships and Operations Lead, so please check the listing and inquire if you’re interested.
Next week
A deep dive on the design of a specific algorithm (no, not this guy). From analog, pre-digital recommendation engines to modern, spookily-specific ones, IF you’re interested in algorithms, THEN you’ll enjoy reading next week.
Not scrolling Twitter today,
Josh and Wilfred,
Design by Josh
New_ Public is a partnership between the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas, Austin, and the National Conference on Citizenship, and was incubated by New America.