We form intense ties with analog objects over years of use. That’s why Flaubert asked to be buried with his inkwell.
But digital tech is mostly disposable. We value its connection to the infosphere, not the thing itself. No one’s dying wish is to be buried with AI glasses.
Intellectualism is the new counterculture.
Today I learned that Albert Wenger, head of the VC firm that originally backed Twitter, has this sticker on the back of his phone
Case study in the enduring power of print: BookTok creator Jack Edwards reaches millions of readers with his online videos, but always dreamed of seeing his work in physical form. He's now a books columnist for British Esquire and made a video about the thrill of tracking down a copy of the magazine.
.@404media, the journalist-founded tech outlet, is making a zine.
“Print can totally sidestep Big Tech’s distribution mechanisms... It is a piece of physical media that can be organically discovered in the real world... we are hopeful that people like it and that we can figure out how to do more print products."
https://www.404media.co/404-media-is-making-a-zine/
404 Media Is Making a Zine
We are publishing a risograph-printed zine about the surveillance technologies used by ICE.
“The medium is the message.” Johann Hari on the message of printed books:
When I argue for the benefits of physical books, people tell me that every generation misses the old ways. But no, this isn’t pure nostalgia. Yes, my dad used to complain about decline back in the 90s, but the scores weren't plummeting then. Today they're in a free fall.
At first I avoided O’Dell’s book, assuming it was mostly about chilling out. It covers that, yes, but it’s really a defense of *all* activities that aren’t commercially productive but “produce” value which can’t be measured or exploited. Bird-watching, contemplation, wandering through a labyrinth…
It’s no coincidence that people are turning to handwriting on paper more and more. A.I. models regularly steal writers’ work. Anything posted online can be ingested without consent by the machines. The physicality of handwriting is a defensive maneuver, a strategy to protect the human voice.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/29/opinion/diaries-writing-ai.html?unlocked_article_code=1.5U8.wFpz.LmcP9w8EtHik&smid=nytcore-ios-share
Opinion | How Diaries Can Help Beat Back Artificial Intelligence
In a world taken over by the digital, hard-copy, handwritten diaries are a way to fight back.
Why do some parts of the net seem more robustly democratic than others?
"A big piece is that they have a higher purpose. Wikipedia editors, at their best, they really believe that there’s more than partisan politics—and that’s the accurate reflection of reliable sources."
https://slate.com/technology/2025/11/elon-musk-grok-wikipedia-grokipedia.html
Elon Musk Has His Own Encyclopedia Now. Well, We Read Some of the Entries …
He tried to buy Wikipedia. When that didn’t work, he made his own version—and it’s a mess.
