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.)
Postal Service says it will not deliver ballots if states refuse to turn over voter lists under Trump proposal
Under a proposed rule, USPS will refuse to deliver mail-in ballots in states that don’t hand over a list of approved voters to the Trump administration, the postmaster general told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Your Guide to the Last Four Years of Anti-Abortion Attacks
https://jessica.substack.com/p/dobbs-anniversary-attacks-guide
On The Record: Documenting the Trump Administration’s Misogyny Toward Women Journalists
https://www.iwmf.org/on-the-record/
Vietnam moves its dead to make way for Trump golf course
Trump Cut a Billion-Dollar Mining Deal. His Sons Stand to Profit.
MT @Amy_Siskind Trump‘s and Lutnick‘s sons have been involved in 14 rare mineral deals that were collectively financed or will be financed by $8.9 billion US taxpayer money, as Trump seeks to find partnerships to get at these minerals.
Innovation
This robotic self-driving toilet comes to you
Xiaoban is an AI-powered device autonomously navigates to the user, provides a safe & accessible toilet experience, & handles cleaning, disinfection, & waste disposal before returning to its charging station.
https://www.theverge.com/tech/952441/yueban-xiaoban-self-driving-autonomous-toilet
Technology
OpenAI, Microsoft Sued by Publishers for Scraping Articles
Publishers that collectively own & operate 400 newspapers are suing OpenAI & Microsoft for scraping content to build products like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot without permission or compensation.
OpenAI Signs Deal To Show Getty’s Images In ChatGPT Results
https://www.engadget.com/2198633/openai-signs-deal-with-getty-to-show-images-in-chatgpt-results/
Photoshop and Premiere now have AI assistants
Adobe is adding AI assistants to Photoshop, Premiere, and other Creative Cloud apps to automate creative tasks through text prompts.
https://www.theverge.com/tech/952099/adobe-ai-assistants-photoshop-premiere-illustrator-beta-launch
Beehiiv’s new Cloudflare partnership gives indie journalists a new level of control over AI crawlers
A new Beehiiv and Cloudflare partnership will let independent journalists allow or block access for each AI crawler scraping their work.
Full Fact is battling AI-generated elections content with AI tools of its own
Full Fact’s suite of AI tools on a typical day processes about a third of a million sentences — and has been used by over 40 fact-checking organizations across 30 countries.
I watched a 90-minute AI movie made in just two weeks — and Hollywood can stop worrying, for now
This new video editor lets Claude organize, generate, and edit right on your timeline
Palmier Pro open-source video editor integrates AI agents like Claude directly into the editing process, allows you to cut, rearrange, & extend videos w natural language
Esquire AI-Generated A Fake Interview With Live-Action One Piece Actor Mackenyu Because He Was Busy
ICYMI
https://kotaku.com/one-piece-netflix-live-action-mackenyu-interview-esquire-ai-singapore-2000684648
Spotify now lets you stream narrated magazine articles
Over 650 long-form magazine articles from pubs like Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, Vogue, Variety, Billboard, Vibe, GQ, Wired, Vanity Fair, & Pitchfork, use a mix of human & digital voice narration.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/26/spotify-now-lets-you-stream-narrated-magazine-articles-too/
Pinterest launches an experimental AI shopping app called ‘Ask Pinterest’
Pinterest is testing “Ask Pinterest,” an AI app that turns shopping into a personalized, conversational experience while experimenting with new AI-powered ad tools.
Social media’s next evolution: user-controlled algorithms
Social media platforms like Instagram, Threads, & TikTok are using AI to give users more control over their feeds, allowing them to actively shape & personalize recommendation algorithms
https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/17/social-medias-next-evolution-user-controlled-algorithms/
Google Launches Ask Ad Manager, Its First AI Agent For Publishers
Google’s Ask Ad Manager is an AI agent for its advertising platform that generates reports, analyzes issues, and assists users with campaign management.
OpenAI’s ad business has stopped looking like a pilot and started looking a lot like Meta (and Google)
Time and Axios turn AI prominence into advertising revenue
HT @BoSacks Time is working on branded content that goes to markdown pages.
https://pressgazette.co.uk/marketing/time-and-axios-turn-ai-prominence-into-advertising-revenue/
In the Eyes of an AI Agent, We Are All Publishers
HT @BoSacks AI systems treat a retailer’s product page and a newsroom’s investigation as the same raw material. Every brand is now a publisher – extracted from, but with more leverage than it knows.
https://whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com/p/in-the-eyes-of-an-ai-agent-we-are
Hey Publishers: Leave the Door Unlocked, the Silverware Out and Try Not to Complain
HT @BoSacks
Facebook’s new AI Mode search gets its info from public posts
Facebook new AI features includes AI Mode, an AI-powered search experience that generates answers from public posts, as well as creative AI tools for photos and videos designed.
https://www.theverge.com/tech/950264/meta-ai-mode-search-facebook
Meta lobbies Congress for protection from child-harm lawsuits
Meta faces thousands of lawsuits from young ppl/families.Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) could undermine thousands of lawsuits against Meta & online platforms. Meta & Google face $6M in damages
https://www.reuters.com/world/meta-lobbies-congress-protection-child-harm-lawsuits-2026-06-18/
The use of AI chatbots for news is on the rise — but not everywhere
Countries where people already rely more heavily on search engines, social and video networks, and aggregators for news also tend to have higher levels of AI chatbot use for news.
https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/06/the-use-of-ai-chatbots-for-news-is-on-the-rise-but-not-everywhere/
Perplexity Brain: The Self-Improving Memory System Inside Computer
Perplexity’s Brain is a memory system that connects information from past tasks and files, helping AI agents become more effective over time.
https://www.explainx.ai/blog/perplexity-brain-computer-memory-system-2026
OpenAI Launches Full-Scale Effort to Patch Open-Source Bugs as It Takes on Anthropic’s Mythos
Amid concerns about AI models’ cybersecurity capabilities, OpenAI has revealed an improved version of GPT-5.5-Cyber and its “Patch the Planet” initiative to fix open-source software bugs.
What is GLM-5.2? Another open-source Chinese AI model has Silicon Valley’s attention.
Z.AI‘s GLM-5.2 is a free large language model designed for running long coding tasks & agentic workflows w a context window of up to 1M tokens
https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-glm-5-2-chinese-ai-coding-model-2026-6
AI Dark Output: The Visible Cost of Invisible Output
Dark output is AI-enabled economic value that exists but is not reflected in GDP, prices, or labor stats. This includes Substitution Dark Output (work done by AI previously done by humans) and New Dark Output (new work done by AI).
https://newsletter.semianalysis.com/p/ai-dark-output-the-visible-cost-of
AI app NaukNauk wants to bring toys to life
Turns photos of toys and collectibles into short animated videos. Users upload a single image, add a prompt, & create 15-20 second clips w music or voiceovers.
https://www.axios.com/2026/06/17/nauk-nauk-ai-video-toy-app-funding
Publishing & Media
At Beijing Book Fair, Rights Trading Gives Way to IP Licensing
China’s publishing industry has rebuilt itself around streaming commerce, AI-assisted workflows for every stage of editorial process (from subject selection to print production) & transmedia IP
Finding Your Voice as a Writer in the Age of AI
HT @publishingtrend via @JaneFriedman
https://janefriedman.com/finding-your-voice-as-a-writer-in-the-age-of-ai/
Literary scouts targeted by scammers as they ‘aim for author blind spot’
Independent bookshop numbers reach highest level since 2012
ICYMI: The number of independent bookshops in the UK and Ireland has risen in the last year, reaching its highest level since 2012.
https://www.thebookseller.com/news/independent-bookshop-numbers-reach-highest-level-since-2012
Call It a ‘Book-cation’ or a ‘Readaway,’ Literary Travel Is Having a Moment
HT @inkbitspixels Resort book clubs, tour companies, hotel libraries and a growing number of literary festivals are offering readers new ways to indulge their interests.
Reader, I married him: couples tell us how books brought them together
HT @publishingtrend From book club meet-cutes to shared English Literature lectures, romance has blossomed beyond the page for these bibliophiles
Resources & Opportunities
WMG Small Group Socials
Take a look at WMG’s exciting mix of in-person and virtual members-only small group socials! Affinity groups include children’s books, audiobooks/podcasts, and beachgoers. I’m hosting a Power Lunch in July and hope to see you there!!
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/events
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/event-6735264
WMG Monday Happy Hour Meetup
7/13 5:30-7:30 Members Only. NYC.
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6733068
LinkedIn Strategies for Career Growth
8/5 12:30-1:30pm via Zoom. FREE for WMG members, $15 for non-members.
Join this event to learn how to improve your LinkedIn profile and position yourself for new career opportunities. Lynne Williams, Executive Director of the Great Careers Network, will share practical tips for strengthening your personal brand and optimizing your profile. Lynne will cover:
- How to clearly define and communicate your personal brand
- How to effectively incorporate keywords throughout your profile
- How to strengthen your headline with a unique selling proposition
- Where to find free tools and resources to enhance your LinkedIn presence
https://www.womensmediagroup.org/event-6715943
Summer Short Story Award for New Writers
MT @marcelalandres $3000 Masters Review Short Story Award for New Writers, prize includes publication and agency review, submission period 7/1-8/30.
https://mastersreview.com/short-story-award-for-new-writers/
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