JD Shadel
@jdshadel.com
💌 Join the only lifestyle newsletter on the internet ;-) www.esckey.co
Chief Editorial Officer at new media outlet ESC KEY .CO — also the only employee
Work in Condé Nast Traveler (ex-Future of Travel columnist), WaPo, Them, BBC, Vice, more
They/etc
Chief Editorial Officer at new media outlet ESC KEY .CO — also the only employee
Work in Condé Nast Traveler (ex-Future of Travel columnist), WaPo, Them, BBC, Vice, more
They/etc
Pinned
JD Shadel
@jdshadel.com
· May 19
Do you believe in hope after “AI” hype? Emily M. Bender and Alex Hanna make the case
In this extended briefing, “TL;DR” = “Totally Legit; Def. Read” because we review “The AI Con,” the spicy new book ready to rattle the broligarchy. Plus, the authors answer ESC KEY .CO’s questions abo...
www.esckey.co
“If they couldn’t be bothered to write this, why should we be bothered to read it?” ‼️
In their cathartic, broligarchy-rattling new book, “The AI Con,” @emilymbender.bsky.social and @alexhanna.bsky.social are handing out needles so you, too, can burst the hype bubble.
www.esckey.co/do-you-belie...
In their cathartic, broligarchy-rattling new book, “The AI Con,” @emilymbender.bsky.social and @alexhanna.bsky.social are handing out needles so you, too, can burst the hype bubble.
www.esckey.co/do-you-belie...
Reposted by JD Shadel
may have just scolded the lady next to me on this flight for leaving her trash in the seat right before we deplaned. “i don’t think you should leave your trash.” “who cares what you think” [observes she has a copy of the new york times in her hands]
February 13, 2026 at 7:38 PM
may have just scolded the lady next to me on this flight for leaving her trash in the seat right before we deplaned. “i don’t think you should leave your trash.” “who cares what you think” [observes she has a copy of the new york times in her hands]
Reposted by JD Shadel
the Heated Rivalry fandom has done a really remarkable speedrun from a celebration of a fluffy, sexy gay show to calling cast members pedophiles & journalists "klan members" (yes, really) — v excited about @wired.com's blow-by-blow feat interviews w fans on the front lines
The ‘Heated Rivalry’ Fandom Is Tearing Itself Apart
The breakout hockey romance has sparked legions of enthralled fans, along with obsessive, parasocial behavior that’s starting to get called out.
www.wired.com
February 13, 2026 at 6:31 PM
the Heated Rivalry fandom has done a really remarkable speedrun from a celebration of a fluffy, sexy gay show to calling cast members pedophiles & journalists "klan members" (yes, really) — v excited about @wired.com's blow-by-blow feat interviews w fans on the front lines
Reposted by JD Shadel
The elite solution for climate change is mass death and Epstein is why. www.fastcompany.com/91490280/eps...
'A good way of dealing with overpopulation': Epstein files reveal how the rich fuel climate denialism
Jeffrey Epstein and his vast network of elite figures routinely traded in myths that undermine climate progress. Experts say it's not an accident.
www.fastcompany.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:20 PM
The elite solution for climate change is mass death and Epstein is why. www.fastcompany.com/91490280/eps...
is there a german word for this aesthetic longing for television sets made of dark wood
February 13, 2026 at 3:18 PM
is there a german word for this aesthetic longing for television sets made of dark wood
Reposted by JD Shadel
It's nice to see @theflytrapmedia.com republish this 2021 Bitch piece I wrote on sugar! If you like this piece, may I suggest... my forthcoming book ON EATING?! theflytrapmedia.com/sweet-hereafter/?ref=the-flytrap-newsletter&attribution_id=6982c77fcdf957000153cc69&attribution_type=post
Sweet Hereafter
The bitter past and promising future of sugarcane.
theflytrapmedia.com
February 13, 2026 at 12:17 PM
It's nice to see @theflytrapmedia.com republish this 2021 Bitch piece I wrote on sugar! If you like this piece, may I suggest... my forthcoming book ON EATING?! theflytrapmedia.com/sweet-hereafter/?ref=the-flytrap-newsletter&attribution_id=6982c77fcdf957000153cc69&attribution_type=post
Reposted by JD Shadel
Because they think that mass surveillance isn't intimately involved with everything we're concerned about, I guess?
Facebook plans to put facial recognition in its glasses and they think we’re too stupid to fight back.
Their internal memo: “We will launch during a dynamic political environment where many civil society groups that we would expect to attack us would have their resources focused on other concerns.”
Their internal memo: “We will launch during a dynamic political environment where many civil society groups that we would expect to attack us would have their resources focused on other concerns.”
Meta Plans to Add Facial Recognition Technology to Its Smart Glasses
www.nytimes.com
February 13, 2026 at 2:07 PM
Because they think that mass surveillance isn't intimately involved with everything we're concerned about, I guess?
People with Means (PwM): "i'm so sustainable"
People without Means (PwoM): "how tho?"
PwM: "i bought a pre-loved mcmansion"
PwoM: 🥱
People without Means (PwoM): "how tho?"
PwM: "i bought a pre-loved mcmansion"
PwoM: 🥱
February 13, 2026 at 2:15 PM
People with Means (PwM): "i'm so sustainable"
People without Means (PwoM): "how tho?"
PwM: "i bought a pre-loved mcmansion"
PwoM: 🥱
People without Means (PwoM): "how tho?"
PwM: "i bought a pre-loved mcmansion"
PwoM: 🥱
Reposted by JD Shadel
Hate the billionaire paywall. Love your indie paywalls.
February 12, 2026 at 10:56 PM
Hate the billionaire paywall. Love your indie paywalls.
how are we still asking chatgpt what “it” “thinks” and making that a news story???
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/i...
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/i...
Column | See ChatGPT’s hidden bias about your state or city
Researchers uncovered hidden biases in ChatGPT’s assessment of people from different places. See how the chatbot ranked your city, state or country.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 12, 2026 at 11:00 PM
how are we still asking chatgpt what “it” “thinks” and making that a news story???
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/i...
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/i...
my mom visited London a few years ago and after every interaction with a queer barista, she’d be like, “well *someone* was into you; why don’t you give ‘em your number; is that what you do?”
Best advertisement I’ve seen so far at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival
February 12, 2026 at 10:54 PM
my mom visited London a few years ago and after every interaction with a queer barista, she’d be like, “well *someone* was into you; why don’t you give ‘em your number; is that what you do?”
Reposted by JD Shadel
It's really instructive when you replace "Millennials" with "middle-aged adults" in headlines.
'"Middle-aged adults" are swimming in student debt and may never own homes.'
'"Middle-aged adults" are swimming in student debt and may never own homes.'
Gen Zers and millennials are swimming in student debt and may never own homes, but they’re splurging on gut-healthy juices and rotisserie chickens.
The Booming Business of Luxury Grocery Stores
A new crop of gourmet grocers has hit the city, drawing lines of trendy TikTokers, MAHA-curious health fiends and Instacart devotees who want to pop in for a treat.
on.wsj.com
February 11, 2026 at 3:55 PM
It's really instructive when you replace "Millennials" with "middle-aged adults" in headlines.
'"Middle-aged adults" are swimming in student debt and may never own homes.'
'"Middle-aged adults" are swimming in student debt and may never own homes.'
Tech won’t save fashion. But what if craft could?
Safia Minney has spent 30 years advocating that craft is the best way to slow down fashion. anxiety.eco asked the social entrepreneur why hand weaving, knitting, block printing and more are the alternatives we need.
www.anxiety.eco/p/craft-can-...
Safia Minney has spent 30 years advocating that craft is the best way to slow down fashion. anxiety.eco asked the social entrepreneur why hand weaving, knitting, block printing and more are the alternatives we need.
www.anxiety.eco/p/craft-can-...
Can craft be the radical solution to fashion's sustainability crisis?
Challenging the tech-first narrative, Safia Minney argues that craft—hand weaving, knitting, and block printing—offers radical, human-centered solutions to fashion's sustainability crisis.
www.anxiety.eco
February 11, 2026 at 6:08 PM
Tech won’t save fashion. But what if craft could?
Safia Minney has spent 30 years advocating that craft is the best way to slow down fashion. anxiety.eco asked the social entrepreneur why hand weaving, knitting, block printing and more are the alternatives we need.
www.anxiety.eco/p/craft-can-...
Safia Minney has spent 30 years advocating that craft is the best way to slow down fashion. anxiety.eco asked the social entrepreneur why hand weaving, knitting, block printing and more are the alternatives we need.
www.anxiety.eco/p/craft-can-...
Reposted by JD Shadel
This article immediately labels @emilymbender.bsky.social and I as "curmudgeons" because we don't think that the spicy auto complete has a concept of the self.
Experiments conducted with the A.I. system Claude are producing fascinating results—and raising questions about the nature of selfhood. Gideon Lewis-Kraus reports from inside the company that designed it, Anthropic. newyorkermag.visitlink.me/rOfXjg
February 11, 2026 at 3:01 PM
This article immediately labels @emilymbender.bsky.social and I as "curmudgeons" because we don't think that the spicy auto complete has a concept of the self.
Reposted by JD Shadel
The EU is working on a blanket ban of ‘forever chemicals’. Why isn't Britain? | Pippa Neill
The EU is working on a blanket ban of ‘forever chemicals’. Why isn't Britain? | Pippa Neill
I met people living with dangerous levels of Pfas, including in their food. The government is failing them, says environmental journalist Pippa Neill
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 4:06 PM
The EU is working on a blanket ban of ‘forever chemicals’. Why isn't Britain? | Pippa Neill
Reposted by JD Shadel
need one of those german train-car noun constructions for ‘the sense of betrayal a woman suffers when a thinker who was hugely influential to her turns out to be the same bog standard worthless misogynist as everyone else’
“That’s particularly true now with the hysteria that has developed about abuse of women, which has reached the point that even questioning a charge is a crime worse than murder."
-- Noam Chomsky
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
-- Noam Chomsky
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Newly released files shed new light on Chomsky and Epstein relationship
Latest communications undermine Chomsky’s earlier claims that he primarily had financial dealings with Epstein
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 4:02 PM
need one of those german train-car noun constructions for ‘the sense of betrayal a woman suffers when a thinker who was hugely influential to her turns out to be the same bog standard worthless misogynist as everyone else’
Reposted by JD Shadel
Now THIS is service journalism
What it was like to be a bush at Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance
The bushes on the field during the halftime show became a meme after the internet found out they were actually human performers.
www.nbcnews.com
February 10, 2026 at 3:35 AM
Now THIS is service journalism
Reposted by JD Shadel
The announcers just said the music for these ice dancers is AI generated and I'd like to personally disqualify them
February 9, 2026 at 7:56 PM
The announcers just said the music for these ice dancers is AI generated and I'd like to personally disqualify them
Reposted by JD Shadel
you're going to see a LOT of this sort of retconning (I was always on the right side of history) by all the very loud people who were on the wrong side of history. Especially as Trump's health fails. we need a big tent to dismantle fascism, but a little accountability might be nice as a treat
February 9, 2026 at 7:15 PM
you're going to see a LOT of this sort of retconning (I was always on the right side of history) by all the very loud people who were on the wrong side of history. Especially as Trump's health fails. we need a big tent to dismantle fascism, but a little accountability might be nice as a treat
4 Reasons to Never Take Forbes Seriously
4 ChatGPT Prompts To Help You Launch A Side Hustle In 2026
4 ChatGPT Prompts To Help You Launch A Side Hustle In 2026
Four practical ChatGPT prompts to help you choose, validate, and launch a side hustle in 2026—without wasting time building something no one asked for.
www.forbes.com
February 9, 2026 at 8:06 PM
4 Reasons to Never Take Forbes Seriously
every faceless profile on Grindr in London is actually Morgan McSweeney
February 9, 2026 at 1:12 AM
every faceless profile on Grindr in London is actually Morgan McSweeney
Reposted by JD Shadel
"Eventually” Ms. West said, “readers will not care.”
How much disdain must you have for your readers to say something like this and have your name attached?
It's like saying "hey little piggies, come get your romance slop"
How much disdain must you have for your readers to say something like this and have your name attached?
It's like saying "hey little piggies, come get your romance slop"
February 8, 2026 at 5:59 PM
"Eventually” Ms. West said, “readers will not care.”
How much disdain must you have for your readers to say something like this and have your name attached?
It's like saying "hey little piggies, come get your romance slop"
How much disdain must you have for your readers to say something like this and have your name attached?
It's like saying "hey little piggies, come get your romance slop"
Reposted by JD Shadel
I would never argue all self-publishing is bad, but I realized years ago that Amazon designed KDP for exactly this purpose: to incentivize people to adopt new tech to churn out more slop titles in a clear attack on the publishing industry with little regard for readers or even the writers themselves
“If I can generate a book in a day, and you need six months to write a book, who’s going to win the race?” God this is bleak
The New Fabio Is Claude
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 6:06 PM
I would never argue all self-publishing is bad, but I realized years ago that Amazon designed KDP for exactly this purpose: to incentivize people to adopt new tech to churn out more slop titles in a clear attack on the publishing industry with little regard for readers or even the writers themselves
I wrote this in November, before the billionaire boss killed what was The Washington Post.
What we don't talk about during such events is the eliminated freelance budgets.
Freelancers produce much of what you read.
The harm reaches far wider than staff cuts alone. www.esckey.co/the-death-of...
What we don't talk about during such events is the eliminated freelance budgets.
Freelancers produce much of what you read.
The harm reaches far wider than staff cuts alone. www.esckey.co/the-death-of...
RIP freelance journalism: Candid advice to the young writers the world needs to read
Every year, freelance journalism pays less. A typical gig today pays 80% less than the same assignment in 2001. It is no longer a sustainable career. It is, more often, a side-hustle, or the domain of...
www.esckey.co
February 8, 2026 at 3:21 PM
I wrote this in November, before the billionaire boss killed what was The Washington Post.
What we don't talk about during such events is the eliminated freelance budgets.
Freelancers produce much of what you read.
The harm reaches far wider than staff cuts alone. www.esckey.co/the-death-of...
What we don't talk about during such events is the eliminated freelance budgets.
Freelancers produce much of what you read.
The harm reaches far wider than staff cuts alone. www.esckey.co/the-death-of...
beat you to it
[link to my Beehiiv newsletter]
[link to my Beehiiv newsletter]
not to curl the monkey's paw, but how long until the hot new revenue model for journalism is "getting scoops and monetizing them by placing bets on polymarket prior to publication"
February 7, 2026 at 7:54 PM
beat you to it
[link to my Beehiiv newsletter]
[link to my Beehiiv newsletter]
Too many hot takes are setting up a false dichotomy between the fading legacy model and Substack, as if there isn’t a much richer world of independent media out there. The questions we should be asking: how can we make it thrive? How can we find sustainable funding infrastructure for indie media?
February 7, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Too many hot takes are setting up a false dichotomy between the fading legacy model and Substack, as if there isn’t a much richer world of independent media out there. The questions we should be asking: how can we make it thrive? How can we find sustainable funding infrastructure for indie media?