iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 18/01/2026

Something I learned today: Blocking on Bluesky is NOT PRIVATE: it's very easy to see who is blocking any account by visiting sites that list this information. In the fediverse (i.e. apps like Mastodon or Pixelfed) users can (privately) block other accounts See joinfediverse.wiki for more info

Screenshot of a post in the Fediverse by Elena Rossini.

An important PSA for people who are active on #Bluesky and who, upon hearing that the ICE account was officially verified, are saying: "I will just block it."

Blocking on Bluesky is NOT PRIVATE: it's very easy to see who is blocking any account by visiting sites that list that information.

I took a screenshot from https://
clearsky.app, listing all the accounts that are blocking ICE (I pixelated avatars and usernames for privacy purposes).

The safest bet is to mute (that info is private) 😫

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 10/11/2025

It has Turtle McConnell as Lucy because I first made this meme a previous time that Chuck Schumer caved under the promise of getting a future vote on some important issue. He's certainly consistent and predictable in his cowardice

Kick the Football, Charlie Brown!

Senator Chuck Schumer as Charlie Brown runs toward Senator Mitch McConnell as Lucy Van Pelt holding a football. Certainly she won't pull the football away at the last minute this time around, right?

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 09/11/2025

It is 72° F (~22° C) and sunny in Richmond, VA. I'm doing yardwork and wearing shorts because of how warm it is out. Today is November 9, 2025 Yes, this is a milder region than where I've lived previously (Wisconsin, Colorado). But this is still way […] [Original post on mastodon.benpettis.ninja]

Yard covered in leaves with sun shining down. Blue skies above. DeWalt lawn mower in foreground.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 07/11/2025

RE: mastodon.benpettis.ninja/@objection… I made this silly bot because I remember really enjoying an equivalent version on Twitter. Something about shifting stupid online arguments to over-the-top Phoenix Wright animations just helped to highlight the absurdity of […]

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Original post on mastodon.benpettis.ninja

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 21/10/2025

Hell of an advertisement for SanDisk, though: what's more crushing than losing your cherished photos and memories? www.techspot.com/news/109921-oceang… "OceanGate Titan sub's camera found mostly intact with SanDisk SD card still […]

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Original post on mastodon.benpettis.ninja

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Julie Greene @greeneland.bsky.social · 13/10/2025

I just learned, Thomas Alter, tenured professor, has been terminated effective immediately. Shame on Texas State! We mst build support for Tom. spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/south-tex...

spectrumlocalnews.com

Texas State upholds the firing of associate history professor Thomas Alter

Alter’s termination occurred on Sept. 10, stemming from his remarks at the Revolutionary Socialism Conference on Sept. 7.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 08/10/2025

I think that the president calling for a governor and a mayor to be jailed is a Very Bad Thing™

The painting "Freedom of Speech" by Norman Rockwell. A man in a thick coat stands and looks forward stoically. Other people in the room are sitting and look toward him as he speaks.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2025

This was the automatically generated alt-text (from trying to read text in the image) “And this life activity [the worker] sells to another person in “You wanna live fancy? Live in a big mansion? Party in order to secure the necessary means of life. ... He works France? You better work, bitch […]

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Original post on mastodon.benpettis.ninja

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.mastodon.benpettis.ninja.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2025

on my way to talk about influencers and @sophiebishop's algorithmic gossip piece with my students and/or (depending on who you ask because I teach in America) brainwash students with a bunch of "woke" radical ideologies about labor and precarity

Portrait of Karl Marx alongside a portrait of Brittney Spears, with quotes beneath each image:

“And this life activity [the worker] sells to another person in order to secure the necessary means of life. ... He works that he may keep alive..”
– Karl Marx

“You wanna live fancy? Live in a big mansion? Party in France? You better work, bitch..”
– Britney Spears

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Zohran Kwame Mamdani @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social · 07/10/2025

My statement on the two year anniversary of October 7, 2023.

“Two years ago today, Hamas carried out a horrific war crime, killing more than 1,100 Israelis and kidnapping 250 more. I mourn these lives and pray for the safe return of every hostage still held and for every family whose lives were torn apart by these atrocities.

In the aftermath of that day, Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli government launched a genocidal war: adeath toll that now far exceeds 67,000; with the Israeli military bombing homes, hospitals, and schools into rubble. Every day in Gaza has become a place where grief itself has run out of language. I mourn these lives and pray for the families that have been shattered. Our government has been complicit through it all.

This must end. The occupation and apartheid must end. Peace must be pursued through diplomacy, not war crimes, and our government must act to end these atrocities and hold those responsible to account.

These last two years have demonstrated the very worst of humanity. We must answer it by modeling the very best: a relentless pursuit of our higher ideals and an unwavering commitment to universal human rights.”

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 06/10/2025

Truly decentralized social media is an amazing an amazing system. Follow me at @bpettis@benpettis.ninja But if you're not hosting, joining a server is easy and there are tons to choose from. AoIR members can all sign up on aoir.social. And you can transfer your profile to other servers if you wish

aoir.social

Mastodon

The Association of Internet Researchers is sponsoring this Mastodon server for its members. Members in good standing are welcome to join and have a home on the fediverse!

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 05/10/2025

I'm writing an Ace Attorney bot over on Mastodon (mastodon.benpettis.ninja/@objectionodon) Earlier, I needed to find a thread to test it out on - and I gotta say, I think I found a really fitting example of the Very Healthy Discourse that exists surrounding a person's chosen social media platforms

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AAUP @aaup.org · 03/10/2025

Say NO to Trump’s loyalty oaths and extortion of our universities! We will NOT throw our students, faculty, and staff under the bus to comply with undemocratic and partisan ideological agendas.

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Mark Harris @markharris.bsky.social · 02/10/2025

This is apropos of a thread about what publications lose when they lose older culture writers and only have young ones. All I'll say about that is that learning about cultural history is a lifetime's work, and if you do this for a living, there's no shame in not knowing, only in not trying to learn.

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Dave Vanness @djvanness.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

A lot of people think that every international student admitted means one fewer spot for domestic students, when the opposite is more likely true - the tuition revenue international students bring allows public universities to provide substantial discounts to domestic students, improving access.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

because of this move, eggs are down more than anyone imagined. 1000% and some even 1500%. The other day a big grocery (this is a new word that I came up with) shopper came up to me with tears in his eyes and said "Sir, thank you for making the eggs affordable again!" www.reuters.com/business/med...

reuters.com

US to impose 100% tariff on movies made outside the country

The United States will impose a 100% tariff on all movies made outside the country, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Monday.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

“Liberals can accuse this agency of constitutional violations all they want. But we both know that seeing a man in tactical gear is far better than seeing a man without a face, staring deep into that empty chasm, and instantly going mad.”

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 26/09/2025

I’m studying what communication and media scholars think about Twitter/X and its recent whirlwind of changes. If this sounds like you (and you've ever used twitter), please take this survey and share your thoughts. sl.richmond.edu/Ee And please share/circulate to help this reach the right people!

Recruitment graphic for "Survey of Academic Twitter"

Twitter (or X) has changed quite a lot in the past few years. I am researching how communication and media scholars use the platform and think about how it has changed. Please take this survey and share your thoughts!

Contains a QR code and URL to the survey, as well as contact information for Ben Pettis <ben.pettis@richmond.edu>.

Project reviewd and Approved by the University of Richmond Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (URIRB). For more information, email irb@richmond.edu or call (804) 484-1565.

Project Number: URIRB250920

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thank u, hexed @lindsaykingmiller.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

ME: Men will literally make up imaginary interviews with Isaac Chotiner instead of going to therapy CHOTINER: What a great point. And when was the last time you went to therapy? ME: Well, now, hold on a second

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Gil Durán @gilduran.com · 24/09/2025

3/ Tech fascism in a nutshell: “Computers are so much more rule-based, controllable, fixable, and comprehensible than any human will ever be. As many political schools of thought do, these technolibertarians make a philosophy out of a personality defect.“ She wrote this in 2000!

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The Onion @theonion.com · 23/09/2025

This App Turns Your Photos into Music If You Want to Do That For Some Reason

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ACOG @acog.org · 22/09/2025

ACOG reaffirms that acetaminophen is safe for managing pain and fever during pregnancy. No reputable studies support suggestions like those in HHS’s recent announcement linking acetaminophen use in pregnancy to autism; in fact, high-quality studies show no such risk. bit.ly/47Wxc59

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Trevon Logan @trevondlogan.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

American Psychiatrist Association Statement on White House Announcement on Autism

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

Tylenol doesn't cause autism. Vaccines don't cause autism. Also, autism isn't something that needs to be "cured" or removed. Fuck everyone who wants to divide and designate a group as "other" Fuck bigots. Fuck Nazis.

Lucy from the Peanuts comic sitting at a TV, looking away, and saying "Christ, what an asshole"

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Janel Comeau 🍁 @verybadllama.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

I have taken the Tylenol that was in the medicine cabinet and which they think probably is the reason you like trains forgive me but that’s bullshit you got autism from your dad

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

The new macOS 26 is so magical - at random intervals between 15 seconds and 5 minutes, the entire operating system freezes for a second and the screen locks. Oh yeah, and the liquid glass looks like shit too.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

I'm very proud to be a part of the WCFTR team! UW-Madison ran a profile on the WCFTR, highlighting archival collections (plus digitized materials!) as well as recent successes, challenges, and ongoing fundraising efforts given the uncertainty facing higher education news.wisc.edu/a-global-hub...

news.wisc.edu

A global hub for Hollywood history

UW–Madison’s Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research preserves priceless materials from the entertainment industry.

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Assigned Media @assignedmedia.org · 22/09/2025

ART CONTEST!!! It's the Charlie Kirk Remembrance Day ART CONTEST brought to you by Assigned Media!! That's right, you heard us.

It's a Charlie Kirk Remembrance Day Art Contest from Assigned Media!

Rules:
1. No AI
2. Drawings calling for further violence or lionizing the shooter will be disqualified.
3. All entry art can be used by Assigned Media, other rights remain with the artist.
4. 1st Prize = $500
5. 2 special mention prizes courtesy of Nora Reed Designs
6. All entries must be submitted by October 10 to AssignedMedia@proton.me
7. Winners to be announced October 14

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Shannon Mattern @shannonmattern.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Yet another demonstration that AI is not a labor-saving device; it merely displaces the cleanup and mitigation (in realms where care, caution, accuracy, etc., actually matter) onto other people

404media.co

Librarians Are Being Asked to Find AI-Hallucinated Books

It’s a trippy time to have a library card.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Overheard from a gaggle of business bros on campus, shouting toward one of their group as they walked away: "I hope your covid goes away bro!" Reader: I have not seen a single student on campus wearing a mask. It is difficult to avoid the looming feeling of "oh my god we are so fucked"

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Je’lon Alexander, M.A. @jelonalexander.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

Fascism and Jim Crow never died, it simply evolved. His name was Demartravion "Trey" Reed and he was lynched at Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi. This picture will remain relevant.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

I was able to schedule an appointment and get a covid vaccine at a Costco pharmacy - their online form asks you to check a box that you meet the new eligibility criteria, but they don't ask about specifics beyond that - in case there's any concerns about data tracking or list compiling

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Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

The free speech activist who built a list of professors he worked to get fired for their speech must be celebrated for his support of free speech, and anyone who quotes his speech accurately in context will be fired and/or face state punishment by the champions of free speech, do I have that right?

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Conrad Hackett @conradhackett.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

LINK ROT: 38% webpages that existed in 2013 were no longer available 10 years later. Even among pages that existed in 2021, 22% no longer accessible just two years later. This is often because individual page was deleted or removed on otherwise functional website. Many implications for knowledge 🧪

A line chart showing that 38% of webpages from 2013 were no longer accessible one decade later.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

인종차별을 하더라고. 눈을 찢는다든지. When I was in elementary school, some other kids did the "pulling their eyes back" thing when they heard my family was Japanese. It's awful and ridiculous when it's Derek from the other 3rd grade class doing it. Even more cruel when it's the literal US government doing it

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emily blight 🐦‍⬛ @threnody.northsky.social · 12/09/2025

hi, cis folks! the WSJ endangered trans lives with false reporting yesterday. it’s still accepted as truth by many, regardless of it being false. the article’s still up with a little note. it needs full retraction. it's not even a phone call—it's email. you can do this. contact info below.🧵⬇️

Editor's Note: An earlier version of this article detailed how an internal law enforcement bulletin said that ammunition recovered following the Charlie Kirk shooting was engraved with expressions of "transgender and anti-fascist ideology." Justice Department officials later urged caution about the bulletin by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, saying it may not accurately reflect the messages on the ammunition, and the article was updated Thursday to reflect that.

This editor's note was appended on Friday, Sept. 12, after Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said the engravings included one that said "Hey fascist!" along with other messages and symbols. He gave no indication that the ammunition included any transgender references.

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Ben Pettis @bpettis.bsky.social · 12/09/2025

I wrote my undergrad thesis about Pepe the Frog and its use in the 2016 US presidential election, arguing that memes can transfer ideologies between groups. It surprises me to still need to bang the "memes are more than just silly pictures" drum in 2025 scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/items/b3c212...

Cover page for a thesis titled "Pepe the Frog: A Case Study of the Internet Meme and its Potential Subversive Power to Challenge Cultural Hegemonies"

Page of text from the thesis with two Pepe the Frog meme instances on the page, one containing Nazi imagery

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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 11/09/2025

When you publish a website that posts the names and photos of scholars who have written or said things you disagree with and encourage people to surveil and harass them, you are not, in fact, a “free speech” organization.

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