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
(There’s so much crazy stuff going on. Here’s some you may have missed.)
The Supporters Urging Trump to Declare Martial Law for the Midterms
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/09/trump-midterms-2026/688716/
Trump cancels $1B in federal spending in latest challenge to Congress
RT @MikeLevin Russ Vought is Donald Trump’s budget director and the most dangerous person you’ve never heard of. He helped write Project 2025, and he has spent years arguing that a president should be free to ignore spending laws he doesn’t like. Last night, with no vote and no debate, Trump canceled nearly $1 billion that Congress passed and he had previously signed into law. The trick is called a “pocket rescission.” The White House sits on money for months, then sends Congress a cancellation request so late in the fiscal year that the funds simply expire on September 30. Last year they used the same move to wipe out $4.9 billion.
Technology
OpenAI Admits Pirating Books From LibGen Was “Sketchy AF”; Kept A “Central Library” Just Like Anthropic
OpenAI created a library of pirated books for use and sharing outside of its training data, according to a newly unsealed version of the books plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgement. Internal documents also show that employees believed LLMs would create substitutes for books and threatened creative output, echoing what authors have long argued in their lawsuits against LLM companies. The initial filing gave only hints that OpenAI could be vulnerable to the same issue that led to Anthropic’s record-setting copyright infringement settlement—keeping a private library of all the downloaded pirated books and using it for broad purposes, not just AI.
His Novel Had a Shot at a Top Book Prize. Then Someone Ran an AI Test.
“It Was Either That Or Die,” by the Haitian-Canadian author Thélyson Orélien, was the hit of the French literary season. Now it has been pulled from the shortlist for a prestigious prize.
McClatchy Replaces Journos with AI Writers
McClatchy is cutting journalists while building a new AI operation that could shake up its newspapers. “We have a company-wide effort to agentify the entire enterprise.”
https://nypost.com/2026/09/18/us-news/after-sacramento-bee-cuts-mcclatchy-ramps-up-its-ai-strategy/
Prominent art therapist quoted by Vice, Forbes and others is AI-generated
HT @BoSacks
Media execs sound alarm on AI
News publishers recognize that they need to embrace AI to survive the transition to an agentic web, but they refuse to broker deals with companies they feel are illegally scraping their content.
https://www.axios.com/2026/09/16/media-execs-sound-alarm-on-ai
ESPN and NBC Sports Turn to Synthetic Voices for Sports Broadcasting
ESPN and NBC Sports are using licensed AI voices for personalized highlights and historical intros, while OBS deploys AI-powered camera systems for sports broadcasts.
https://aiconnect.media/en/radar/espn-und-nbc-sports-setzen-auf-synthetische-stimmen-fuer-spo-6b629c
Link economy breaks as AI reshapes web traffic
https://www.axios.com/media-trends-membership/2026/09/19/ai-search-traffic-referrals-news-sites
Top AI companies probing tens of thousands of security incidents
https://www.axios.com/2026/09/26/openai-anthropic-thousands-ai-security-incidents
OpenAI’s Systems Meddled With U.S. Government Sites After Going Rogue
Gemini went rogue, hacked three companies, and Google hid it
https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/997795/google-gemini-rogue-ai-hack
TikTok strikes $300M deal to end child safety case
A New Mexico jury found Facebook liable for deceiving users about privacy protections on the social media platform.
A Digital Fly Brain Has Taken Over the Internet
HT @benedictevans Google mapped the fruit fly brain. Folks dropped the model into Minecraft & other environments to get it running as a small ‘computer’. Naturally, it can run Doom.
https://www.404media.co/a-digital-fly-brain-has-taken-over-the-internet/
Spotify Audiobook Creation Tools beta expands to U.S.
Uses ElevenLabs to convert EPUB to audiobooks. Self-pub authors select a voice, preview narration, & approve. No exclusivity requirements. Titles using digital voice narration will be clearly labeled.
https://authors.spotify.com/blog/creationtools
YouTube unveils AI creator tools, shopping features at annual event
ByteDance launches Dramagic, a full-pipeline AI platform for producing short dramas from script to screen
Dramagic is an enterprise AI platform that takes short dramas from scripts through character design, storyboarding and video production.
iOS 27 Adds Impersonation Risk Detection to Help Protect Against Social Engineering Scams
Meta introduces camera-free AI glasses
https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/23/meta-introduces-camera-free-ai-glasses/
Everything new coming to Meta’s AI agent Muse
The Muse agent is designed to handle everyday tasks by connecting to users’ apps and services, including email and calendars. Muse can access the entire Shopify product catalog agentically and use Lync and now Shop Pay to buy almost anything on the internet, according to Wang, who noted that Meta has also added more support for payments with PayPal. Meta announced a string of new partnerships with retailers, including Best Buy, Gap, Sephora, Walmart, and Wayfair. Muse will be able to connect with these retail apps as well as with Expedia and soon, Instacart. Other connectors include GitHub, Granola, and Notion.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/23/everything-new-coming-to-metas-ai-agent-muse/
Spotify Integrates With Meta Muse to Control Music, Podcasts and Audiobooks
Meta to release Muse Charm, a Tamagotchi-like device for the Muse AI agent
https://mashable.com/tech/muse-charm-reveal-meta-connect-2026
Amazon blocks Meta’s Muse and accuses Perplexity of misleading a court
https://thenextweb.com/news/amazon-blocks-muse-perplexity-amended-complaint
It’s Raining Boxes: Amazon Drones Overwhelm a Texas Suburb
The Path to Great Art Is Not Through AI
Publishing & Media
Amazon reduces weekly KDP uploads from 10 to two per format
Undoubtedly as a result of the all the AI slop that’s inundating Amazon.
https://www.thebookseller.com/news/amazon-reduces-weekly-kdp-uploads-from-10-to-two-per-format
Audible is translating European Audiobooks to English
The push to translate Audible Originals from European languages to English was done by humans and not AI. Audible U.K. announced it has quadrupled its output of Audible Originals translated from European languages into English this year, which is a 300% increase. The company will continue the translations well into 2027.
https://goodereader.com/blog/audiobooks/audible-is-translating-european-audiobooks-to-english
Private-Equity Firms Buy Indie-Author Publisher Podium for More Than $400 Million
Shamrock Capital, Flexpoint Ford taking on company that focuses on audiobooks and self-published authors, two industry bright spots.
Resources & Opportunities
Beyond the Byline: Using PR to Drive Book Sales
9/29 12-1pm ET virtual. Free for WMG members; $15 for non-members
Writing a book is only half the battle; getting it into the hands of paying readers is the real work. Designed specifically for authors at every stage, from aspiring to published, this seminar will focus on how an effective public relations effort can support a robust sales campaign. Author Jennefer Witter will discuss how she works with her clients in the pre-sale stage, launch period, and post-publication.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6787787
WMG Job Seekers Weekly Meetup
Are you unemployed, under-employed, or just thinking about a career change? WMG members join our free virtual weekly support group and come when you can to help each other rise.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/events
Finding Your Authentic Voice with Genevieve Piturro and Karen Salmansohn
10/1 5-7 p.m. ET WMG members only; FREE (attendees pay for their own food and beverages), NYC
Join WMG Programming Co-Chair Genevieve Piturro and member Karen Salmansohn for a lively evening discovering your most authentic writing voice-or, as Karen says, how to “be you-ier.” Genevieve and Karen, both successful authors, will teach you how to make your writing more relatable, memorable, and successful. Whether your preference is short-form essays, a Substack, or a memoir or memoir-hybrid, your story and personal voice are what will connect with readers.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6789949
The Responsible Journalist: Practical AI, Ethical Boundaries, and Newsroom Reality
10/7 12-1pm ET via Zoom. Free for WMG members; $15 for non-members
Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how journalists report, write, investigate, and engage with audiences, but questions remain about accuracy, transparency, and ethics. This interactive seminar w Yelena Dzhanova explores how journalists and media creators can incorporate AI into their work while maintaining the core values of the profession. Participants will learn practical ways AI can support reporting, discuss the ethical challenges surrounding its use, and examine where human judgment remains indispensable. Through demonstrations, case studies, and group discussion, attendees will leave with practical strategies for using AI responsibly in their own journalistic work.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6778338
Target Acquired: Creating Custom AI Personas That React Like Your Audience
10/14, 12-1 pm ET via Zoom. Free for WMG members; $15 for non-members
What if you could ask your readers what they think before you publish? In this session w Erin Servais, you’ll learn how to build an “ideal reader assistant,” a custom AI tool trained to respond as your target audience. This allows you to pressure-test story ideas, headlines, and copy while you’re still creating instead of waiting for feedback after launch. Using a simple, repeatable framework, you’ll watch a reader bot come to life from scratch and leave with the tools to build your own, turning audience feedback from slow and reactive into fast, targeted, and available on demand.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6782788
Query Letter 101: How to Land Your Next Agent
10/19 12-1 p.m. ET, via zoom, Free for WMG members; $15 for non-members
Writing a good query letter is essential to finding an agent for your book-but there’s a lot of conflicting advice on how to create the perfect message. During this virtual session, editor Emily Murdock Baker and author Frances McGarry will demystify the querying process through interactive exercises, giving writers the tools they need to craft an attention-grabbing letter.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6844452
Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes
10/21 5:30-7:30pm NYC $20 for WMG members; $25 for non-members
Join moderator Estelle Erasmus and panelists Regina Brooks, Laura Carney, Hyeseung Song, and Bethany Saltman for a lively conversation about the possibilities of memoir and the power of personal stories that contain multitudes.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6805899
LinkedIn Strategies for Career Growth Part 2
10/23 12:30-1:30 p.m. ET, via Zoom, Free for WMG members; $15 for non-members
Join this followup to our popular LinkedIn Strategies for Career Growth virtual event to learn more about advancing your career with simple adjustments to your social profile. Hosted by Lynne Williams, Executive Director of Great Careers Network, this interactive session will recap lessons from Part 1 and include live demos and a Q+A, giving attendees the tools they need to take the next steps on their professional journeys.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6841347
51 Writing Contests in October 2026 — No entry fees!
RT @annerallen This October there are more than four dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes range from $60,500 to publication. None charge entry fees.
Enter Jokes On Her Annual Comedy Prize
https://www.jokesonher.org/submit
Urban Librarians Unite – Romantasy Gala
10/14 7-11pm Brooklyn $100
https://actionnetwork.org/ticketed_events/urban-librarians-unite-romantasy-gala
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