Erica Weintraub Austin
ericawaustin.bsky.social
Erica Weintraub Austin
@ericawaustin.bsky.social

Originator of the Media Literacy Theory of Chge, baker of award-winning Cougar Gold Cheese Coins, and fortunate family partner of talented musicians, a statistician, theoretical physicist and ball-chasing pup. My views may not reflect those of my employer. .. more

Communication & Media Studies 25%
Education 16%

Hoping all who see this have had a wonderful holiday!

Our dog, Latke, has enjoyed chasing many balls today, but she had to content herself with supervising this dough ball on its way to becoming almond crescent cookies.

Former Twiitter trust and safety exec Yoel Roth @yoyoel.com, quoted by In Covid's Wake, says this book quotes him inaccurately (that he said the opposite). He questions the rest of the book's evidence base.

Discussion thread considers role of AI in book writing.

#medialiteracy
A small (personal) example of this book’s intellectual dishonesty:

My father-in-law is reading In Covid’s Wake, and excitedly told me he found a passage where I’m quoted. The quote in question is me saying the FBI worked to censor speech on social media.

Huh? When did I say that?!
A small (personal) example of this book’s intellectual dishonesty:

My father-in-law is reading In Covid’s Wake, and excitedly told me he found a passage where I’m quoted. The quote in question is me saying the FBI worked to censor speech on social media.

Huh? When did I say that?!

... And the next step would be to determine what recourse consumers have to decline to have these unsafe generics substituted?

According to ProPublica, the FDA provides oversight of the foreign factories that make generic drugs but keeps drug names secret when problems are found.

They have released this tool so consumers can see if meds came from factories that used dirty water, were infested by insects or birds, etc

Thanks for this!

Even if this year's flu shot isn't perfect at keeping you from getting infected, it can:

Reduce disease severity

Keep you out of the hospital

Speed your recovery time

Reduce your spread of it to others, bc getting vaxed cuts shedding of the virus.

It's not too late to get your flu shot! 💖
What You Should Do About H3N2 Flu
There's a lot to worry about right now on the winter virus front, but get your flu shot anyway. Seriously. Get your flu shot.
rasmussenretorts.substack.com

May we find a way to honor the blessing of his memory 💔

On a weekend of so much loss and grief, the kindness and heroism of individuals who make communities by supporting one another demonstrate the miracle of Hanukkah and give me hope.

🎶
Goodnight Waltz, by Shpilkis!
from the album Tsuzamen in Golus/Together in Exile
shpilkis.bandcamp.com

Thanks for the recommendation!

Bravo! I (stupidly) used to think a sports media curriculum was optional. Now I understand how, as a central aspect of our news, health, and culture, sports issues matter hugely and critical thinking about them can help engage people in everything else.

Yes I've seen that sort of thing 🙁. Wondering what might be amiss.

For ...

Cascadia Daily News is reporting on the effects of potentially record-breaking flooding in Whatcom and Skagit counties in Wash State.

Rivers were still rising this am Pacific time, and these fields are in the flood plain under flash flood watch throughout today.
Despite an evacuation order, some farmworkers were still at work as of Thursday morning, concerning community organizers.
Organizers raise alarm after spotting farmworkers in fields in Skagit County amid floods | Cascadia Daily News
During disasters, laborers get put in positions of 'risking their lives or not getting paid'
www.cascadiadaily.com

For example, one expert noted: Some young people could become cut off from communities and information that help them preserve their own domestic safety. “This is particularly true for young people from marginalised communities."

Unfortunately, banning social media won't fix this.

The Al Jazeera report linked in this piece lists unintended consequences (experts), & others note how young people and tech will find a way around the ban.

We need #medialiteracy along with enforced corporate transparency and accountability...
‘Grand social experiment’: Australia’s social media ban turns heads globally, with mixed results
From a live blog on the BBC to cautious reaction in the New York Times, here’s how the world’s media covered the ban
www.theguardian.com

Nasal Spray 2 go? ✈️

Azelastine is a 2nd-gen histamine H1-receptor antagonist & OTC nasal spray to treat allergies. Recent research shows it helps prevent a range of respiratory viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza A (H1N1).

Masks, vax good too.
🧪

Well this is cool.

Absolutely remarkable Livestream of Kilauea eruption 🧪
Now THAT is going down in a blaze of glory... just watch the last few minutes/seconds of this stream as the eruption gets closer and closer until eventually it kills the camera.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqmp...
Now THAT is going down in a blaze of glory... just watch the last few minutes/seconds of this stream as the eruption gets closer and closer until eventually it kills the camera.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqmp...

Reporter Rachel Sun writes that Ric Boyce, co-director of the Idaho Association of Community Providers says half of their patients statewide may drop off w transition to "not evidence-based" outpatient mental health counseling.

“These are people who can barely answer their door consistently to us.”

Clear, stark report about effects of Medicaid cuts on mental health care in Idaho, starting right now.

Tax cuts largely benefit Idaho’s wealthiest residents & tax credits for nonpublic education.

Trade-off: evidence-based services that keep fragile people out of hospitals, jails, homelessness.
Providers: Expensive changes due in mental health care
Medicaid cuts will cost the state millions: officials
www.dnews.com

Amazing photography

"Three celestial spectacles at different distances"

Closest are the snowcapped Meili Mountains, part of the Himalayas in China. In the middle is Comet Lemmon, and far in the distance on the left is the central plane of the Milky Way Galaxy.
Comet Lemmon and the Milky Way apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap25112...
What did Comet Lemmon look like when it was at its best? One example is pictured here, featuring three celestial spectacles all at different distances. The closest spectacle is the snowcapped Meili Mountains of the Himalayas in China.
Comet Lemmon and the Milky Way apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap25112...
What did Comet Lemmon look like when it was at its best? One example is pictured here, featuring three celestial spectacles all at different distances. The closest spectacle is the snowcapped Meili Mountains of the Himalayas in China.

🚲 roll 🚲 models ❤️
“Once, after the group bought out a tamale vendor’s cart, that man found them days later to say immigration agents were spotted on his block just hours after. ‘You saved my life,’ Rosales said the man told them.” apnews.com/article/chic...
Chicagoans buy out street vendors amid a federal immigration crackdown
Across Chicago’s Latino neighborhoods, fear of a federal immigration crackdown has emptied the streets.
apnews.com