«I'm Russian. Here’s how propaganda really works.»
"propaganda doesn't need to make you stupid, it only needs to make you tired"
"A population that's disengaged, cynical, and emotionally exhausted is far easier to manage than one that's angry and curious."
"propaganda teaches you that paying attention is pointless"
Having just read 'I Love Generative #AI and Hate the Companies Building It', I cannot see where the love is. All the cited examples are of human and environmental exploitation. How can you love a technology that is NEVER used ethically?
https://cwodtke.medium.com/i-love-generative-ai-and-hate-the-companies-building-it-3fb120e512ac
"Find some topic you care about. Just one. Resist the temptation to have takes on everything else. Let the discourse rage without you while you spend weeks or months actually understanding something ... Change your mind when you find you were wrong. And when you finally have something to say, something you’ve actually earned through careful thought rather than absorbed from the tribal zeitgeist, say it clearly and then step back." —Joan Westenberg
https://jarche.com/2026/02/let-the-discourse-rage-without-you/
"Before the era of algorithm dominated feeds, my consumption was intentional. I relied on the trusty RSS feeds to subscribe to blogs from people I admired. It was almost like active curation of what you attend to. This agency of choosing whose ideas I consumed was the foundation of my learning. Building relationships with those people was a huge bonus. I still use this "pull" method to read, learn, and create." - Tanmay Vora https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tnvora_visualnudges-learning-creativity-share-7432676137836703744-PbsZ
The quality of our consumption determines the quality of what we create. This is critical in a world with infinite noise. Before the era of algorithm dominated feeds, my consumption was intentional. I relied on the trusty RSS feeds to subscribe to blogs from people I admired. It was almost like active curation of what you attend to. This agency of choosing whose ideas I consumed was the foundation of my learning. Building relationships with those people was a huge bonus. I still use this "pull" method to read, learn, and create. In contrast, today's consumption is ruled by bottomless feeds that are engineered to keep us hooked, rather than helped. And we subconsciously trade intentionality with mindless scrolling. To break this cycle, here are three practices that help me: 1) Curating my feeds/mails: I prefer RSS feeds, newsletter subscriptions, podcasts and books where I can exercise an active choice. Thumb rule is to engage with slow media - the one that takes time, effort, and nuance to create. 2) Seeking, not scrolling: I think it was Austin Kleon who said that we should actively search (and now ask AI) rather than passively scroll. Search has agency, scroll is automatic. 3) The 2:1 Rule: For every two hours of consumption, I commit to an hour of creation - taking notes, making notes and synthesizing ideas visually. What strategies have worked for you for mindful consumption? I am curious to know. #visualnudges #learning #creativity
Relying too much on artificially-generated knowledge may stunt our own sensemaking. Even more importantly, it’s the connections and knowledge-sharing between humans that keeps civilizations alive. The machines are our tools, not our friends. Let’s make sure we know how they work and what is behind them by learning with and from each other. (2023)
https://jarche.com/2023/04/our-machines-are-tools-and-not-our-friends/
The PKM online workshop started today 16 February. The first iteration launched 15 years ago & it continues to focus on sensemaking, cooperation, networks, & communities.
PKM helps professionals become knowledge catalysts because the best leaders are constant learners.
Registration closes 18 February.
“let the discourse rage without you” HT @harold https://jarche.com/2026/02/let-the-discourse-rage-without-you/
"The final advice Westenberg gives reflects what I counsel in using the PKM framework. Take time to make sense." #PKMastery
I like the idea of wayfinding instead of sensemaking. It reminds me that in unexplored territory a compass is more important than a map. I think we will all have to get used to a sense of disorientation for the time being.
"He is quick, thinking in clear images;
I am slow, thinking in broken images.
He becomes dull, trusting to his clear images;
I become sharp, mistrusting my broken images." —Robert Graves, 1885
https://jarche.com/2025/03/a-new-understanding-of-my-confusion/
In September 2016, the security journalist Brian Krebs had his website knocked offline by a botnet called Mirai. Hundreds of thousands of compromised devices, mostly cheap webcams and DVRs manufactured with default passwords that nobody ever changed, all simultaneously requesting his homepage. No single request was malicious. Each packet was
Harold Jarche
Rotana Ty 🐘
Bonni Stachowiak