Ian G. Williams
@igraywill.bsky.social
Personal account. #socialwork, PhD student @thegraduatecenter.bsky.social @gcsocialwelfare.bsky.social. Read & think about tech ethics, digital literacy, innovation, inequality, & social change. Find refuge & inspiration in #humanities & #openscience.
Pinned
Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance
Social Innovation, Social Enterprise, and Social Entrepreneurship in Social Work and Human Services. Volume 49, Issue 5 of Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance
www.tandfonline.com
Neat! The full collection of the Social Work Innovation Network special issue of Human Service Organizations that I was a guest editor for is now out: www.tandfonline.com/toc/wasw21/4...
Going to enjoy chatting about this over the next few days at #10EMESConf.
@thegraduatecenter.bsky.social
Going to enjoy chatting about this over the next few days at #10EMESConf.
@thegraduatecenter.bsky.social
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
Relatives Gather From Across The Country To Stare Into Screens Together https://theonion.com/relatives-gather-from-across-the-country-to-stare-into-1819575960/
December 24, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Relatives Gather From Across The Country To Stare Into Screens Together https://theonion.com/relatives-gather-from-across-the-country-to-stare-into-1819575960/
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
Bari’s complaint was “there’s nothing new here” and while that’s untrue it’s also irrelevant
“we intentionally sent people to be tortured in a hellhole and bragged about it and The Hague is too good for everyone involved” is a story that simply cannot be told enough
“we intentionally sent people to be tortured in a hellhole and bragged about it and The Hague is too good for everyone involved” is a story that simply cannot be told enough
December 23, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Bari’s complaint was “there’s nothing new here” and while that’s untrue it’s also irrelevant
“we intentionally sent people to be tortured in a hellhole and bragged about it and The Hague is too good for everyone involved” is a story that simply cannot be told enough
“we intentionally sent people to be tortured in a hellhole and bragged about it and The Hague is too good for everyone involved” is a story that simply cannot be told enough
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
📢 NASW-NY C.A.R.E.S. Presents: Ending Solitary & Ending Complicity — A Social Work Dialogue on Health Care, Torture & Abolition Behind Bars
🗓 Jan 26, 2026 | ⏰ 6–7 PM ET | 💻 Zoom
🔗 Register: https://loom.ly/zbR5XTU
⚠️ No CE credits. Not recorded.
🗓 Jan 26, 2026 | ⏰ 6–7 PM ET | 💻 Zoom
🔗 Register: https://loom.ly/zbR5XTU
⚠️ No CE credits. Not recorded.
December 22, 2025 at 4:05 PM
📢 NASW-NY C.A.R.E.S. Presents: Ending Solitary & Ending Complicity — A Social Work Dialogue on Health Care, Torture & Abolition Behind Bars
🗓 Jan 26, 2026 | ⏰ 6–7 PM ET | 💻 Zoom
🔗 Register: https://loom.ly/zbR5XTU
⚠️ No CE credits. Not recorded.
🗓 Jan 26, 2026 | ⏰ 6–7 PM ET | 💻 Zoom
🔗 Register: https://loom.ly/zbR5XTU
⚠️ No CE credits. Not recorded.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
The part I'm hung up on is "able to have contentious disagreements." People fetishize "being able to disagree" when they've spent their life being the one obnoxious asshole everyone else in the room has to argue with until they leave.
Not to get hung up on one small part of this but “advance the ball” is pissing me off. Journalism isn’t sports. Not everything is fucking sports.
December 22, 2025 at 3:35 PM
The part I'm hung up on is "able to have contentious disagreements." People fetishize "being able to disagree" when they've spent their life being the one obnoxious asshole everyone else in the room has to argue with until they leave.
It's fun to be part of a thoughtful community like @metagov.bsky.social, and get to weigh in on projects like this.
Hot off the Substack press!
Collective Governance for AI: Points of Intervention (Digital Zine Release)
Check out our latest community-led research output and learn about how to leverage Metagov's community infrastructure for collaborations.
metagov.substack.com/p/collective...
Collective Governance for AI: Points of Intervention (Digital Zine Release)
Check out our latest community-led research output and learn about how to leverage Metagov's community infrastructure for collaborations.
metagov.substack.com/p/collective...
Collective Governance for AI: Points of Intervention (Digital Zine Release)
Check out our latest community-led research output and learn about how to leverage Metagov's community infrastructure for collaborations.
metagov.substack.com
December 22, 2025 at 3:57 PM
It's fun to be part of a thoughtful community like @metagov.bsky.social, and get to weigh in on projects like this.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
a big part of the issue surrounding the use of chatgpt/LLMs in academic research comes down to process vs. product. a lot of us know that the process of doing research matters because that's where intellectual work is done; but some "academics" and lots of techies only care about a fast product
December 21, 2025 at 2:49 PM
a big part of the issue surrounding the use of chatgpt/LLMs in academic research comes down to process vs. product. a lot of us know that the process of doing research matters because that's where intellectual work is done; but some "academics" and lots of techies only care about a fast product
December 19, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
We're hiring interns in the Computational Social Science group at Microsoft Research NYC!
If you're interested in designing AI‑based systems and understanding their impact at both individual and societal scales, apply here by Jan 9, 2026: apply.careers.microsoft.com/careers/job/...
If you're interested in designing AI‑based systems and understanding their impact at both individual and societal scales, apply here by Jan 9, 2026: apply.careers.microsoft.com/careers/job/...
Research Intern - Computational Social Science | Microsoft Careers
Research Interns put inquiry and theory into practice. Alongside fellow doctoral candidates and some of the world's best researchers, Research Interns learn, collaborate, and network for life. Researc...
apply.careers.microsoft.com
December 15, 2025 at 4:33 PM
We're hiring interns in the Computational Social Science group at Microsoft Research NYC!
If you're interested in designing AI‑based systems and understanding their impact at both individual and societal scales, apply here by Jan 9, 2026: apply.careers.microsoft.com/careers/job/...
If you're interested in designing AI‑based systems and understanding their impact at both individual and societal scales, apply here by Jan 9, 2026: apply.careers.microsoft.com/careers/job/...
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
The science behind gender-affirming care has been endorsed by every major medical organization. This isn't about science or medicine. It's about the discomfort many non-trans people feel over the *existence* of trans people.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to announce a package of measures that would together ban gender-affirming care for minors. A press conference is set for 11 a.m. Thursday. n.pr/44xQKdD
RFK Jr. and Dr. Oz to announce moves to ban gender-affirming care for young people
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to announce a package of measures that would together ban gender-affirming care for minors. A press conference is set for 11 a.m. Thursday.
n.pr
December 18, 2025 at 7:45 PM
The science behind gender-affirming care has been endorsed by every major medical organization. This isn't about science or medicine. It's about the discomfort many non-trans people feel over the *existence* of trans people.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
Have you ever wanted to read a PhD dissertation, but been turned off by how long and boring they are? Honestly, that's fair!
So I turned my anthropology dissertation into a YouTube video to make it more interesting. Enjoy!
So I turned my anthropology dissertation into a YouTube video to make it more interesting. Enjoy!
Explaining my PhD dissertation dressed like a pirate
YouTube video by Dr. Hilary Agro, PhD
youtu.be
December 16, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Have you ever wanted to read a PhD dissertation, but been turned off by how long and boring they are? Honestly, that's fair!
So I turned my anthropology dissertation into a YouTube video to make it more interesting. Enjoy!
So I turned my anthropology dissertation into a YouTube video to make it more interesting. Enjoy!
Slopocalypse now
Grading and googling hallucinated citations, as one does nowadays, and now that LLMs have been around for a while, I've discovered new horrors: hallucinated journals are now appearing in Google Scholar with dozens of citations bc so many people are citing these fake things
December 17, 2025 at 6:22 AM
Slopocalypse now
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
Oh wow, photos of the damage from the M7.0 earthquake in Alaska (originally Yukon Geological Survey on FB, via Dan Shugar). #earthquake #alaska
December 16, 2025 at 1:47 AM
Oh wow, photos of the damage from the M7.0 earthquake in Alaska (originally Yukon Geological Survey on FB, via Dan Shugar). #earthquake #alaska
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
For those working on next semester's syllabi: www.aaup.org/about/progra...
Academic Freedom Syllabus Language
Academic Freedom Syllabus LanguageOne way to develop a greater understanding of academic freedom is to introduce the concept into our classes. That is, to explain to students what academic freedom mea...
www.aaup.org
December 15, 2025 at 9:23 PM
For those working on next semester's syllabi: www.aaup.org/about/progra...
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
To see the preliminary guidelines (NOT FINALIZED), download them here: indigenousdatalab.org/2024/11/27/p...
Guidelines for the Governance of Indigenous Data in Scholarly Publishing
Preliminary Recommendations Guidelines for the Governance of Indigenous Data in Scholarly Publishing Download Citation: Jennings, L.L., Jones, K., Lazrus, H., Maldonado, J., Martinez, A., Taitingfo…
indigenousdatalab.org
December 15, 2025 at 7:44 PM
To see the preliminary guidelines (NOT FINALIZED), download them here: indigenousdatalab.org/2024/11/27/p...
Having been a part of two instances of Digital IDEAS (2023: Digital Physical Entanglements: Environments, Bodies, and Space & 2025: At The Intersections of Brokenness & Survivalism) - if this stuff interests you, apply! Go have a blast thinking critically with amazing folks about tech & culture.
The 6th Annual Digital IDEAS Summer Institute returns May 31–June 5, 2026! 💡💻✨This year’s theme: AFTER — exploring aftermaths, afterlives, afterworlds & the hereafter.
Details + apply: myumi.ch/rAP6M
#DigitalStudies #DigitalIDEAS2026 #CriticalTech
Details + apply: myumi.ch/rAP6M
#DigitalStudies #DigitalIDEAS2026 #CriticalTech
December 15, 2025 at 6:59 AM
Having been a part of two instances of Digital IDEAS (2023: Digital Physical Entanglements: Environments, Bodies, and Space & 2025: At The Intersections of Brokenness & Survivalism) - if this stuff interests you, apply! Go have a blast thinking critically with amazing folks about tech & culture.
Snowfall in Prospect Park today. Grateful for these simple yet magical pleasures that still make me feel like a kid who experiences wonder in the world around me, especially in these times.
December 15, 2025 at 5:39 AM
Snowfall in Prospect Park today. Grateful for these simple yet magical pleasures that still make me feel like a kid who experiences wonder in the world around me, especially in these times.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
a wealth tax is a winning issue.
"For the first time, a majority of Americans believe billionaires are a threat to democracy. A remarkable 71 percent believe there should be a wealth tax. A majority believe there should be a cap on how much wealth a person can accumulate."
Opinion | The Billionaires Have Gone Full Louis XV
www.nytimes.com
December 15, 2025 at 3:07 AM
a wealth tax is a winning issue.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
Is it possible I just saw a snowy owl fly over Prospect Heights in Brooklyn?? Maybe I’m just too enchanted by this snow, but that’s sure what it looked like, swooping over these beautiful branches as I walked through the neighborhood (bird not pictured, couldn’t grab my phone fast enough)
December 14, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Is it possible I just saw a snowy owl fly over Prospect Heights in Brooklyn?? Maybe I’m just too enchanted by this snow, but that’s sure what it looked like, swooping over these beautiful branches as I walked through the neighborhood (bird not pictured, couldn’t grab my phone fast enough)
I am so disgusted with this administration, on so many levels.
Armed ICE agents trapped US citizens in a restaurant and demanded their papers. Federal agents walked into East African restaurants in Cedar-Riverside, MN. They closed and blocked the doors. Then they demanded to see everyone’s papers. Every person present was a US citizen.
Federal agents use chemical irritant on crowd in Somali neighborhood of Minneapolis amid Trump crackdown
Federal agents have used chemical irritant to disperse a crowd in a heavily Somali neighborhood in Minneapolis. This happened Tuesday during a identification checks amid the Trump administration's cra...
www.mprnews.org
December 14, 2025 at 7:29 PM
I am so disgusted with this administration, on so many levels.
Got to try this last night; tonight is their closing night for a refresh. Delicious food and a great experience in my old neighborhood.
Mark Bittman’s NYC Community Kitchen Doesn’t Care About Profit
https://www.newsbeep.com/us-ny/14705/
It’s been decades since the East Village was an edgy New York City enclave of punk rock, poetry…
https://www.newsbeep.com/us-ny/14705/
It’s been decades since the East Village was an edgy New York City enclave of punk rock, poetry…
Mark Bittman’s NYC Community Kitchen Doesn’t Care About Profit - New York News Beep
It’s been decades since the East Village was an edgy New York City enclave of punk rock, poetry and artists like Andy Warhol. Today it’s more of a New York
www.newsbeep.com
December 14, 2025 at 2:47 AM
Got to try this last night; tonight is their closing night for a refresh. Delicious food and a great experience in my old neighborhood.
"Wherein Newsletter Guy is aghast to discover" <--- I want this on a coffee mug.
Wherein Newsletter Guy is aghast to discover, a few decades late, that libraries accommodate knwldg production + (social) learning in myriad forms! But if you give college kids ☕️, they’ll forget how to read!! Non-📚-centric things are pro-illiteracy! These are spaces of “necessity,” not FUN, dammit!
What Happened to the Library?
And why we need physical books more than ever
www.honest-broker.com
December 13, 2025 at 10:52 PM
"Wherein Newsletter Guy is aghast to discover" <--- I want this on a coffee mug.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
I got to pet a stray cat in my backyard today. I call that a win.
December 13, 2025 at 12:50 AM
I got to pet a stray cat in my backyard today. I call that a win.
Reposted by Ian G. Williams
“…these influencers are not that different from the people in the White House. And political access journalism is not that different from inserting yourself into YouTube drama.”
Everything on the margins makes it way to the center.
Everything on the margins makes it way to the center.
I, too, am sick of hearing about Olivia Nuzzi and Ryan Lizza. But that's a side effect of one of the little-examined parts of this story: the medium itself. The incentive structure of newsletters has helped propel journalism into its YouTube drama channel era.
spitfirenews.com/p/olivia-nuz...
spitfirenews.com/p/olivia-nuz...
Nuzzigate is journalism's ‘Bye Sister’
This never-ending media saga mirrors the implosion of beauty YouTube.
spitfirenews.com
December 13, 2025 at 8:35 PM
“…these influencers are not that different from the people in the White House. And political access journalism is not that different from inserting yourself into YouTube drama.”
Everything on the margins makes it way to the center.
Everything on the margins makes it way to the center.
This book looks really awesome and I plan to read it soon. Check it out below, and check out more of Mattie's work here: mattielubchansky.com
doing promo is physically painful for me but i really would love it if you bought or read my newest book that came out a few months ago. i think it’s the best thing i’ve ever made and im so immensely proud of it. simplicitybook.xyz
December 13, 2025 at 7:21 PM
This book looks really awesome and I plan to read it soon. Check it out below, and check out more of Mattie's work here: mattielubchansky.com
From @beta.nyc's updated list of tech related policy proposals for @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social:
"How can NYC lead the way in treating data like infrastructure that redistributes both the political and economic power of data back to New Yorkers?"
jamilellis541631.substack.com/p/the-mamdan...
"How can NYC lead the way in treating data like infrastructure that redistributes both the political and economic power of data back to New Yorkers?"
jamilellis541631.substack.com/p/the-mamdan...
The Mamdani Administration Must Treat Data as Infrastructure for a Community-First City
By Jamil Ellis, Wil Jones, Zoe Voss Lee, and Todd Whitney
jamilellis541631.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 8:59 PM
From @beta.nyc's updated list of tech related policy proposals for @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social:
"How can NYC lead the way in treating data like infrastructure that redistributes both the political and economic power of data back to New Yorkers?"
jamilellis541631.substack.com/p/the-mamdan...
"How can NYC lead the way in treating data like infrastructure that redistributes both the political and economic power of data back to New Yorkers?"
jamilellis541631.substack.com/p/the-mamdan...