kayti burt
LightNews LightNews
banner
kaytiburt.bsky.social
kayti burt
@kaytiburt.bsky.social
140 followers 360 following 53 posts
pop culture ✍🏼: @time-magazine.bsky.social @rollingstone.com @polygon.com @vulture.com @latimes.com @pastemagazine | transformative fandom fan | poor country kid | she/her | black lives matter |
@fspnwu.bsky.social | TCA member
Posts Replies Media Videos
kaytiburt.bsky.social
If we were living in a better timeline, Hwang Dong-hyuk would have had less inspiration for the final seasons of Squid Game: time.com/7298235/squi...
A screenshot of the article reads: For the Squid Game creator, the VIPs' more active Season 3 role stems from his real-world observations. “In the past, those that really controlled the system and maintained power, they were hidden behind the curtain, almost like this big unseen conspiracy. However, it's no longer the case, especially in America," Hwang says. "We talk a lot about oligarchy these days, but these so-called big tech owners, they step up, telling everyone who they're backing with their money. The people who really control the power and the system, they no longer hide behind a curtain. They willingly take their masks off, almost as if to declare, ‘We're the ones running everything. We're the ones in control.’"
June 28, 2025 at 6:14 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
I've really been getting a lot out of these exit interviews Pete has been doing with the laid-off Polygon staff, including this piece, in which copy editor Kallie talks about the immense work and skill that goes into games/entertainment journalism.
A bolded heading reads: "What’s your wish for the future of gaming journalism?" The following answer reads: "I wish more people would consider it important. A lot of us will joke like I have a cousin who's a doctor, and clearly their job is more important than mine. Part of me agrees with that, and part of me is like, well, we can't all be doctors. There are different jobs for different people, and I still think that media criticism and investigative journalism and service journalism provide a reader service. They do matter. Especially when a lot of people get their news, not just entertainment news, from people who are not trained in journalism, who do not have standards of ethics or standards of reporting, or don't know what a leading question is. There's a lot of training that goes into being able to do this, and not everybody we work with has a background in journalism, certainly, but you learn a lot on the job about how to handle it properly and how to do justice to the material. Our skills do matter, and the void that is left with the slow decimation of gaming media does result in a cultural vacuum that is not easily filled."
May 15, 2025 at 5:39 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
I'm also proud of this piece discussing how fandom was processing the latest wave of Gaiman allegations, w/ insight from the Gaiman subreddit mods & fandom researcher Simone Driessen. Again, this piece never would have happened if @tasharobinson.bsky.social hadn't reached out, asked, and trusted me.
A Polygon.com article from January 2025 with the headline "Across social platforms, Neil Gaiman's fans are struggling: 'People are grieving in a very public way.'" The screenshot includes a photo of author Neil Gaiman with fans at a public event.
May 6, 2025 at 6:35 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
This work environment has resulted in some of my very best articles, including a piece linked below on K-dramas' popularity in the U.S. It never would have happened if @petevolk.bsky.social hadn't come to me, asking for big ideas. Up until the Polygon sale, it was linked it in my email signature.
A screenshot of an article on Polygon.com from November 2023 with the headline "How K-dramas came to and dominated America." A collage of images from various K-dramas follows.
May 6, 2025 at 6:35 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
If you're in NYC this Thursday, I am hosting a casual @fspnwu.bsky.social meetup to take part in the rate-sharing challenge. It will be from 4-6pm at Spring Cafe Aspen. Bring your laptop to enter rates into the challenge's Google form, and get to know fellow freelance workers!

RSVP: bit.ly/41OXdjg
A digital flier with information about the event says "FSP Rate-Sharing Meet-Up! New York City Edition" at the top of the page. When: Thursday, March 20th from 4-6pm. Where: Spring Cafe Aspen at 14 West 4th Street in New York City. The RSVP link is "https://bit.ly/410Xdjg"
March 18, 2025 at 7:37 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
If you need proof of how great an actor Go Min-si is, I recommend watching Netflix's The Frog and Prime's Jinny Kitchen S2 back to back.
Actress Go Minsi as an unwanted guest in Netflix K-drama The Frog. She is leaning against a convertible with a smile on her face and a phone in her hand. She has blood dripping down her arm and neck. Her clothes are also stained with it. In a promotional poster for the Korean reality cooking travel show Jinny's Kitchen Season 2, Go Minsi stands in a kitchen set, holding carrots and green onions. A big smile is on her face. She is holding up one carrot in her right hand.
January 30, 2025 at 7:05 PM
kaytiburt.bsky.social
During the presser, one of the journalists asked Hwang if he felt the creation of a Squid Game reality show diluted the message of the series. His response was really good, and implied that he has thought about this something a lot...
A screenshot of text reading: “Some people ask me, ‘Does it dilute the message of Squid Game to have a show based off of Squid Game be created by Netflix for a cash prize?’ And I don’t know. Because, when you look at Squid Game, the series, it’s not something I created to enlighten. It’s not a piece of propaganda, either. While it deals with the theme of criticizing the capitalist system, it is still a product that was created within a capitalist society. I created the product to sell it, and Netflix invested in the product to sell it as well.” A screenshot of text reading: “And so I think it is only natural for Netflix to take their most successful IP and create other spin-off products based on it, and I do not think that at all dilutes the message in any way. I think that, when you think about it, the world depicted in Squid Game is, in fact, the exact world that you see—where everything is commoditized, everything is created to create and generate profit. So I believe that, rather than diluting the message, the fact that a reality show was built off of that built universe actually exposes the true message of it all.”
December 27, 2024 at 4:48 PM