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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
What to know about AI political campaign ads during election season
How AI-generated ads are shaping the political landscape, as candidates from both parties increase deepfake use in ads
COVID probably killed 150,000 more people in its first two years than official U.S. tolls show
London, San Francisco and Beijing achieve ‘remarkable reductions’ in air pollution
Technology
Meta will pay Instagram, TikTok and YouTube creators with big followings to post on Facebook
The Creator Fast Track will pay $1,000 a month to those with at least 100,000 followers on Instagram, TikTok or YouTube, and $3,000 a month to those with more than 1 million followers.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/18/meta-creator-pay-instagram-tiktok-youtube-facebook.html
Actors, musicians and writers welcome UK U-turn on AI use of copyrighted work
Government no longer has ‘preferred option’ on copyright, technology secretary says, after backlash from artists.
ByteDance reportedly pauses global launch of its Seedance 2.0 video generator following legal pressure from major Hollywood studios.
Val Kilmer in ‘As Deep As the Grave, His Performance was AI Generated
The late Val Kilmer will appear in a new movie through an AI-generated performance approved by his family
https://variety.com/2026/film/news/val-kilmer-ai-film-as-deep-as-the-grave-1236691042/
Peacock expands into AI-driven video, mobile-first live sports, & gaming
“Your Bravoverse” features an AI-powered digital avatar of host Andy Cohen, which guides viewers through a personalized feed of Bravo clips. Behind the scenes, Peacock says the system uses computer vision to identify key storylines and moments across its library. AI agents trained on Bravo fan behavior help determine what viewers care about most, while the platform stitches clips together across seasons and franchises. The result, according to Peacock, is more than 600 billion possible viewing variations. There’s also an AI “Law & Order” mystery game & daily “Jeopardy!” trivia.
BMG Sues Anthropic, Entering AI Copyright Battlefield: ‘Egregious Law-Breaking’
https://www.billboard.com/pro/bmg-ai-song-copyright-lawsuit-sues-claude-maker-anthropic/
The dictionary sues OpenAI
https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/16/merriam-webster-openai-encyclopedia-brittanica-lawsuit/
WordPress.com now lets AI agents write and publish posts
https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/20/wordpress-com-now-lets-ai-agents-write-and-publish-posts-and-more/
Canva may have just cracked one of the biggest issues with AI images
Canva’s Magic Layers can break down any AI-generated image into editable layers, allowing users to modify backgrounds, text, and elements easily.
Gamma adds AI image-generation tools in bid to take on Canva and Adobe
Create visuals directly within presentations & docs. Enter prompts to generate images and insert them into layouts.
Picsart now allows creators to ‘hire’ AI assistants through agent marketplace
Rebel Audio is a new AI podcasting tool aimed at first-time creators
Users input raw audio or ideas, + it turns them into organized episodes, handling tasks such as segmenting content, cleaning up recordings, and preparing files for publishing.
X adds Grok-powered audio option to long-form articles
X has a Grok-powered “Listen” button that converts long-form articles on the platform into AI-generated audio so users can listen while scrolling or using other apps.
OpenAI releases new ChatGPT model for working in Excel and Google Sheets
https://www.axios.com/2026/03/05/openai-gpt-54-chatgpt-office
How to use the new ChatGPT app integrations, including DoorDash, Spotify, Uber, and others
Google is testing AI headline rewrites in Search using similar language to the earlier Discover test that became a feature
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-ai-headlines-in-search/570208/
Google Maps is getting an AI ‘Ask Maps’ feature and upgraded ‘immersive’ navigation
Roblox to take revenue share from game sponsorships in policy overhaul
A.I. Chatbots Want Your Health Records. Tread Carefully.
Meta is having trouble with rogue AI agents
https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/18/meta-is-having-trouble-with-rogue-ai-agents/
World launches tool to verify humans behind AI shopping agents
https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/17/world-launches-tool-to-verify-humans-behind-ai-shopping-agents/
Perplexity: Everything is computer, everything is AI, computer is everything, AI is us
Pinterest Is Drowning in a Sea of AI Slop and Auto-Moderation
https://www.404media.co/pinterest-is-drowning-in-a-sea-of-ai-slop-and-auto-moderation/
New MiniMax M2.7 proprietary AI model is ‘self-evolving’ & can perform 30-50% of reinforcement learning research workflow
Video: US humanoid robot picks, sorts and tidies cluttered living room in new demo
Living rooms are highly unstructured – objects appear in unpredictable locations & many actions require coordinated two handed manipulation while navigating tight spaces.
https://interestingengineering.com/ai-robotics/video-figure-humanoid-tidies-cluttered-room
Leading Human/AI Hybrid Teams
https://onlydeadfish.co.uk/2026/03/18/leading-human-ai-hybrid-teams/
Microsoft is ending the Windows Update nightmare — and letting you pause them indefinitely
Publishing & Media
Anthropic Settlement: The Claims Deadline Is March 30
Per @AuthorsGuild Authors: Make sure to file a claim even if your publisher is filing one. Filing yourself is the only way to ensure that you will receive the amounts you are entitled to.
https://mailchi.mp/authorsguild/campaign-7854170?e=fa8fc572e7
Horror Novel ‘Shy Girl’ Canceled Over Suspected A.I. Use
This was a self-published book, which got picked up by a major publisher. One thing to note is that the author is a black woman, who was targeted on a Reddit thread. A previous target for an AI-authored book was non-binary. However, James Frey boasts that he used AI to write, and his book is still for sale – can we address this double standard?
Its publisher, Hachette, will not release the novel in the United States and will discontinue its U.K. edition, citing its commitment to “original creative expression and storytelling.”
ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Grok are all bad at crediting news outlets, but ChatGPT is the worst (at least in this study)
ChatGPT, one of the most widely used models, covered distinctive content in 54% of responses but almost never credited the originating newsroom.
RISJ’s AI and the Future of News symposium
The conference tackled topics like live fact-checking, AI-powered tag pages, and computer vision–based investigations. “We’re not going to do a chatbot anytime soon.” One team of journalists has been using satellite imagery analysis to cover global conflicts and human rights abuses. “We can go through huge amounts of data even faster than we could’ve imagined.”
What keeps journalists up at night? Funding, disinformation, and “unchecked” AI
Publishers at Press Gazette US conference agree blocking is best strategy for bots
HT @BoSacks Block AI access for training, but allow some RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) to ensure publisher content still appears in real-time news-related results
The AI stories we tell – and the ones we don’t
https://www.journalism.co.uk/the-ai-stories-we-tell-and-the-ones-we-dont/
PinkNews to move to a ‘reporter-free newsroom’ with its journalists facing redundancy
PinkNews, which touts itself as the “world’s largest and most influential LGBTQ+ led media brand” is to move to a ‘reporter free newsroom’
An Aural Companion for Decades, CBS News Radio Crackles to a Close
A stalwart of the mass media century, the longstanding network that launched the careers of journalists like Edward R. Murrow will air its final broadcast in May, thanks to Bari Weiss.
Book Output Topped Four Million in 2025
GlobalComix Closes $13M Round, Acquires INKR
Obamas, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush Among 1,500 Books Banned in TX School District
Barack and Michelle Obama, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Britney Spears, & Ron Burgundy (yes, a fictional character) banned in TX school district.
https://pen.org/1500-books-banned-in-texas/
The Nationwide Book Ban Bill Moves to the House: How to Take Action Now
Also, there is no acknowledgement of the differences between kindergarteners and high school seniors in this bill. It’s an anti-intellectual bill, intended to flatten the developmental and educational needs of young people. And several representatives of color noted that this bill would mean that historical atrocities would not be taught in schools.
Begin or continue contacting your House representative via phone or email today. 5 Calls has an easy-to-use script available here.
https://bookriot.com/hr7661-advances-to-house/
Resources & Opportunities
Built to Belong: Creating Impact Through Connection & Purpose
LAST CHANCE TO SIGN UP FOR ONLY $20 W CODE WMGPARTNER
3/24, 5:30-7:30 pm, Penguin Random House, NYC
We’re often told that impact requires independence and hustle. But the truth is simpler—and more powerful: the most meaningful legacy is built together. Aiko Bethea (Author, Anchored, Aligned, Accountable), Allison Gilbert (Co-Author, The Joy of Connections), Genevieve Piturro (Speaker & Founder, Pajama Program), and Karen Salmansohn (Author, Your To-Die-For Life), join Moderator Ann Shoket (CEO, The Li.st) for an extraordinary discussion you won’t want to miss! Come for inspiration and insight; leave activated with a plan to build connection, lead in harmony with your values, and shape a legacy rooted in community (and maybe make a new friend).
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6573185
Annual Business Meeting
3/25 12-12:30pm ET; WMG members only; FREE (Zoom)
Spend 30 minutes with Co-Presidents Jane Wesman and Jodi Brockington, and members of the Board, in a brief virtual meeting to vote in the new Board and review highlights of the past year.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6573950
Well-Read & Well-Fed in NJ with Elisa Ung and Nicole DiMella
You can never have too many books—or bookstores. Meet WMG members Elisa Ung and 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
Women and Money: Navigating the Pay Gap
4/29 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
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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