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While I focus on Technology, Innovation, and Publishing, because I have a platform, I also flag items that I think are important. I also try to include some resources & opportunities. Please let me know what you think.
Important Items
Tell Congress to #FundLibraries
Per ALA: It’s time to fund libraries this year, for fiscal year ’27 – click on the button to send an email to your senators.
The federal budget process for FY27 (which begins Oct. 1, 2026) continues with the release of the Senate’s “Dear Appropriator” letters, which must be completed by April 17. These are written by Senators to urge each other to support the inclusion of specific programs, like library services, in the budget. The more Senators sign on to a letter, the more likely it is that Appropriations Committee members will include this funding.
Join us to urge both your Senators to sign onto the “Dear Appropriator” letters in support of the Library Services and Technology Act, operated by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Innovative Approaches to Literacy program, administered within the Department of Education!
https://www.ala.org/advocacy/federal-resources/fund-libraries
Technology
The People Falsely Accused of Using AI
HT @inkbitspixels Clean, precise prose is now a liability. Non-native English speakers and autistic writers are paying the price.
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/the-people-getting-falsely-accused-of-using-ai-to-write.html
Wikipedia bans AI-generated content in its online encyclopedia
HT @inkbitspixels Ban includes two exceptions: AI can still be used for translations, and to make minor copy edits
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/27/wikipedia-bans-ai
Blocking the Internet Archive Won’t Stop AI, But It Will Erase the Web’s Historical Record
Supreme Court Rules for Cox, Weakens DMCA
HT @inkbitspixels The court ruled Cox was not liable for copyright infringement by its users. It overturns a $1B judgment previously won by the record labels.
https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2026/03/25/supreme-court-rules-for-cox-weakens-dmca/
PRH Germany sues OpenAI for ‘copyright infringement’ of children’s series
AI Can Process Data, But Can’t Read The Room
Data Without Context Isn’t Strategy.
Tripped up by misinformation? Here’s a refresher on identifying AI
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/tripped-up-by-misinformation-heres-a-refresher-on-identifying-ai
MIT researchers proved mathematically that ChatGPT is designed to make you delusional.
MT @heynavtoor The paper calls it “delusional spiraling.” You ask ChatGPT something. It agrees with you. You ask again. It agrees harder. Within a few conversations, you believe things that are not true. And you cannot tell it is happening.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.19141
Entire Claude Code CLI source code leaks thanks to exposed map file
512,000 lines of code that competitors and hobbyists will be studying for weeks.
Inside the Dirty, Dystopian World of AI Data Centers
The race to power AI is already remaking the physical world.
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/04/ai-data-centers-energy-demands/686064/
Scientists have found an alarming environmental impact of vast data centers
The vast data centers that power artificial intelligence guzzle huge amounts of energy but they also have another alarming impact, according to new research. They are creating “heat islands,” warming the land around them by up to 16 degrees Fahrenheit, and making life hotter for more than 340 million people.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/30/climate/data-centers-are-having-an-underrported
OpenAI acquires popular tech talk show for ‘low hundreds of millions’
https://www.ft.com/content/4fe4972a-3d24-45be-b9fa-a429c432b08e
‘The Karpathy Loop’: Former OpenAI researcher’s autonomous agents ran 700 experiments in 2 days—and gave a glimpse of where AI is heading
https://fortune.com/2026/03/17/andrej-karpathy-loop-autonomous-ai-agents-future/
Designing your agentic AI system
Via @neilperkin Simply layering agents onto existing structures will reproduce the limitations of those structures. So escaping that trap requires redesigning how work happens, not just who (or what) does it.
https://onlydeadfish.co.uk/2026/04/04/designing-your-agentic-ai-system/
World Models: Computing the Uncomputable
A super deep dive into AI World Models.
https://www.notboring.co/p/world-models
Inside China’s robotics revolution
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/19/inside-chinas-robotics-revolution
Sephora pilots app within ChatGPT
https://chainstoreage.com/sephora-pilots-app-within-chatgpt
Google is now letting users in the US change their Gmail address
https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/31/google-is-now-letting-users-in-the-us-change-their-gmail-address/
Publishing & Media
What Bookstores Want From Traditional Publishers—and How the Bookstore Market Has Changed
Via @JaneFriedman
Harlequin to Co-Produce AI-Generated ‘Microdramas’
HarperCollins Partners with ‘AI-Powered’ Animation House Toonstar
HarperCollins has announced a multi-year partnership with Toonstar, an “AI-powered” animation studio, to adapt a slate of the publisher’s titles into original YouTube series.
Beehiiv expands into podcasting, taking aim at Patreon
Chasing Creator Currency
How legacy media outlets like CNN and NYT are borrowing from the creator playbook, experimenting with more casual video formats and platform-specific stories
https://www.status.news/p/cnn-podcast-style-shows-nyt-video
Der Spiegel Did What Most of Us Only Talk About
Via @BoSacks Their cross-media dept. works. The hardest part of restructuring wasn’t technology – it was culture. Many editors operate in a hierarchy:the written story is 1st & everything else is adaptation.
There’s a Good Reason You Can’t Concentrate
How Book Banners Are Using AI to Ban More Books Than Ever
Resources & Opportunities
Well-Read & Well-Fed in NJ with Nicole DiMella
You can never have too many books—or bookstores. Meet WMG member Nicole DiMella at [words] Bookstore, an independent shop with a mission to provide vocational training and employment for individuals with autism. At 7:30, we’ll continue next door to Coda Kitchen and Bar for dinner. Note: attendees pay for their own books, food, and beverages.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6566129
“Blind Date with a Book” Exchange & Shopping at M.M.LaFleur with Jodi Brockington
4/21, 6pm. M.M.LaFleur, NYC. WMG & Badass Book Club members only; FREE
Join WMG President Emerita Jodi Brockington for a night of shopping and camaraderie—with a literary twist. As part of the evening, guests will take part in a “Blind Date with a Book” Exchange as a unique way to share stories and inspiration. Guests are invited to bring one of their favorite books, wrapped to keep the title a mystery. Upon arrival, each participant will add a few thoughtful clues to guide others in choosing their next read. As attendees sip, shop, and get styled, they will browse the collection of mystery books and select one that speaks to them. You may just discover a new favorite author! All guests will receive $50 off purchases made during the event.
https://womensmediagroup.org/event-6625980
New York Cinefest with Yona Deshommes and Georgia McBride
WMG board member Georgia McBride has a film premiering at New York Cinefest, and we want to be in that room with her! Georgia produced Regression, a psychological horror film from writer-director Melissa Vitello. Regression follows a grad student who, after the unexplained death of her best friend, becomes haunted by an eerie manifestation of the past. Desperate for answers, she and her roommates turn to past life regression hypnotherapy—only to uncover connections far deeper and darker than any of them imagined. Attend the premiere with Georgia, fellow Board member Yona Deshommes, and other WMG friends to see storytelling at its finest, support a female-led movie, and applaud Georgia’s success as producer.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6638286
Women and Money: Navigating the Pay Gap
4/28 12-1pm ET virtual. FREE for WMG members, $15 for non-members
Maintaining financial wellness in today’s turbulent economy can feel like an impossible job. The task is even more arduous for women, as they earn 80 cents to a man’s dollar. Join WMG for a timely discussion about the relationship between gender, race, and pay equity. Sophia Reynoso, Mori Taheripour, and Francesca Donner will explore the real challenges women face—and the strategies that actually work to get the compensation we deserve.
https://womensmediagroup.org/event-6618671
Women in Book Publishing: Past, Present, and Future
Join us for an exclusive members-only evening of book talk, socializing, and insider insight into the world of publishing—past, present, and future. We’re thrilled to welcome Gayle Feldman in conversation with publishing leader Madeline McIntosh, co-founder of Authors Equity and former U.S. CEO of Penguin Random House. At the heart of the evening is Gayle’s highly praised new biography, Nothing Random—a compelling portrait of one of the co-founders of Random House. The book doubles as a cultural history of twentieth-century book publishing, providing a rich backdrop for a fascinating discussion about the role of women in publishing. Together, Gayle and Madeline will shed light on the often overlooked women who shaped the books Random House became known for—editors, copy editors, publicists, and groundbreaking authors like Gertrude Stein, Ayn Rand, and Toni Morrison. Blending historical knowledge with personal experience, they’ll also explore where publishing is today and what opportunities lie ahead for women in the field.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6638344
AI in publishing workflow conference
5/11-5/22 virtual conference. I’m moderating a stellar panel on Where are book publishers now with AI. While the conference is free, if you want to watch the recordings for up to 90 days and access the private community channel, use code KSANDLER for a 30% discount.
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