iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 30/09/2026

Is it? Should have looked deeper on basic cable. LiveSoccerTv showed me this and hid TNT after the ad.

fuboTV
Peacock
Telemundo Deportes En Vivo
UNIVERSO

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 28/09/2026

How does one achieve such numbers and still persist in posting?

A celebrity news account with 17,300 posts and 194 followers.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 26/09/2026

Weird, that one let me in.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 25/09/2026

Holy fabricated footnotes, Batman! How much of this garbage does it take to actually destroy the average person's digital footprint?

from https://hub.stellantis.com/article/the-hidden-math-behind-the-0-viral-social-media-code

The most striking estimate comes from former Facebook data scientist Damon Kiesow, who in a 2019 interview with The Atlantic suggested that the platform’s algorithm penalizes "slow burns"—content that gains traction over days or weeks—in favor of "instant gratification loops." This aligns with the broader trend of platforms rewarding content that exploits FOMO (fear of missing out), even if that content is shallow or ephemeral.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 24/09/2026

More on “cutting to profitability” from @dicktofel.bsky.social dicktofel.substack.com/p/mcclatchy-...

Discovering that less is not more
While thus offering substantially less to readers, they had somehow expected, they say, that
"continued investment in our journalism would strengthen our relationship with subscribers."

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 20/09/2026

POV: me interviewing an AI agent.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 13/09/2026

How it started. How its going.

Apple's 1984 ad from 1984. And screenshots of Apple Maps with Lake America and Gulf of America.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 13/09/2026

In an onboarding process, after picking “gender” would anyone like to suggest the problem with this as an age-range picker?

Four ages of generic middle class professional white guy in an onboarding screen.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 04/09/2026

Great use of tech to offer an AI-driven FAQ at the top of the story to effectively answer questions that are addressed in the first 4 paragraphs of the story had those 4 paragraphs not been pushed below the viewport by the AI widget and two ads

When will Grindstone Plaza Drive close?
What alternative route is suggested for drivers?
Why is Grindstone Plaza Drive being widened?

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 04/09/2026

Another news deserts book out today: News Desert U by @terifinneman.bsky.social and Pamela Walck. “What happens when the university owns the news?”

Cover of News Desert U shows a cartoon academic building surrounded by cactus.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 25/08/2026

I think the NYT maybe ought to give up on headlines till it can decide if authoritarian censorship is bad or not. “Overhaul” is a weasel word even in news coverage and the counterpoint in the subhead has a caveat.

A Texas University Becomes a Petri Dish for a
Conservative Overhaul
Texas Tech is using A.I. to cut left-leaning content in its curriculum. Some say the effort to ferret out forbidden topics is a dystopian academic nightmare.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 16/08/2026

Terry Pratchett on AI in Hogfather (1996),

'Of course, Hex doesn’t actually think. Not as such. It just appears to be thinking.’
‘Ah. Like the Dean,’ said Ridcully.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 14/08/2026

Good news everyone, irony is not dead.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 13/08/2026

This is such a great quote for what it argues: transactions are about spreadsheets and what it is missing: any mention of ethics, values, mission, or concern for the industry at large. www.cjr.org/feature/axio...

Axios Wants to Save Local News with AI
"At the end of the day, if someone's going to pay you for content, you say: Well, how much are you going to pay me?" Jim VandeHei, the chief executive, said of his company's deal with OpenAI. "If that payment feels like it's a fair transaction price, you say yes.
"

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 04/08/2026

Welcome to Texas. Land of the free.

Hey there!
You are accessing Bluesky from a region that legally requires us to verify your age before allowing you to access the app.
Based on your network, we think you're in Texas, United States. This estimate may be inaccurate if you're using a VPN. Tap here to update your location with GPS.
O Share age range

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 31/07/2026

Missed it in June but love the top of @dicktofel.bsky.social newsletter linked here. Brand said 'Information wants to be free' at a Hacker's Conference and it has been wildly misunderstood by journalism. I feature it in my chapter on 'The Business of Content.' dicktofel.substack.com/p/on-ai-pred...

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 28/07/2026

Which is of course this meme:

Pranay Pathole @PPathole
Tech enthusiasts: My entire house is smart.
Tech workers: The only piece of technology in my house is a printer and I keep a gun next to it so I can shoot it if it makes a noise I don't recognize.
8:51 AM • Apr 12, 2019 • Twitter for iPhone
7,387 Retweets 656 Quote Tweets 23.8K Likes

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 23/07/2026

ParkMobile and other e-meter apps need a “pay it forward” option like a coin parking meter would afford. But that would cut into profits and create a sense of community and gratitude.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 22/07/2026

Pratchett describing Associate Professors. (Sourcery, 1988)

It may be quite tough at the top, and it is probably even tougher at the bottom, but halfway up it's so tough you could use it for horseshoes. By then all the no-hopers, the lazy, the silly and the downright unlucky have been weeded out, the field's cleared, and every wizard stands alone and surrounded by mortal enemies on every side.
There's the pushy fours below, waiting to trip him up. There's the arrogant sixes above, anxious to stamp out all ambition. And, of course, all around are his fellow fives, ready for any opportunity to reduce the competition a little. And there's no standing still.
Wizards of the fifth level are mean and tough and have reflexes of steel and their eyes are thin and narrow from staring down the length of that metaphorical last furlong at the end of which rests the prize of prizes, the Archchancellor's hat.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 20/07/2026

“The sun was hot, the air was still, and for a fraction of a second the whole mechanism of the world seemed to freeze, revealing the scaffolding behind the illusion—a stark, fragile thing that a single breath of wind could blow away."

Right Now
95°
Feels 108°
High 95° Low 75°
More:
• Heat Advisory

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 20/07/2026

I am curious what every newsroom that does NOT write with this sort of context thinks about the Guardian doing so. Is accurately quoting a source unjournalistic? www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Kirk, a far-right political figure who served as a sort of Pied Piper for young Republicans through his Turning Point USA foundation, was shot dead in September last year. He was known for his racist and bigoted views, using his podcast to claim that "prowling Blacks go around for fun to go target white people" and speculating: "If I see a Black pilot, I'm going to be like: 'Boy, I hope he's qualified'"
Despite, or perhaps because of, such beliefs, Kirk became a hugely celebrated and influential figure in Maga circles. In New York City, one of the most diverse, and Democratic, cities in the US, Kirk is far less popular.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 20/07/2026

It is in the OpenClaw harness but just Python with Gemini-flash Vision.

Watches Gmail (read-only OAuth) for the daily Informed Delivery digest. Real mailpiece scans (numeric filenames) are classified by gemini-2.5-flash vision; promos (content-*.jpg) are dropped. For anything important a clean email is sent with just those envelope scans inline and a note of what was skipped. Junk-only days are silent.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 20/07/2026

Hack of the day: The USPS Informed Delivery email is useful, but is 90% junk mail ads. So I bypass the inbox, have a script analyze it and repackage the actual mail and resend. Like ad blocking but for email.

In today’s mail - Mon, 7/20 with a bill from the city and at the bottom: skipped: 3 ads, 2 promos.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 19/07/2026

Soccer in 10 seconds in case you missed the game.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 16/07/2026

What does it look like when lightning strkes your AC refirgerant line, you might ask.

A one inch copper pipe with a half-inch hole and melted and signed copper.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 08/07/2026

Shortest lighthouse ever.

Steps leading to the Owls Head Maine lighthouse with a blue sky behind.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 07/07/2026

How to make money in newspapers: open a hotel instead.

Partial shot of a Press Hotel placard in a hotel room.

IRVICES
ght Parking
Parking
ON EXCHANGE STREET
'sa day, Valet will assist e and parking needs. It is vide 15 minutes advanced sure on time assistance.
TACT INFO
E PRESS HOTEL
rom Guest Room Phone...
.207.808.8800
.ThePressHotel.com
ThePressHotel
TRANT
9100
The press
The Press Hotel, 119 Exchange St. Portland, Maine 04101
WELCOME
207.808.8800
TO THE
PRESS HOTEL
The staff and management of The Press
during your stay, dialing "'" on your guest
Hotel are passionate about providing guests room phone or calling 207.808.8800 will
information about services
with an experience that can only be
other attractions on pro
described as "Beyond Words."
connect you with a member of their team
looking to venture of
who will be happy to assist.
If you have any questions or requests
Within "The Press Post", guests can find
Services Team can requests.
DINING AT THE PRESS
UNION
INKWELL BAR
A staple restaurant in Portland, UNION
Inkwell Bar & Lounge offers dynamic spaces
offers elevated American fare with dishes
for guests to enjoy food and beverage
comprised of locally sourced ingredients.
whether they're relaxing with a book in the morning or enjoying a night out with frie
Hours of Operation:
Coffee Bar Hours:
Breakfast Mon - Fri 7AM-11AM
Daily 6AM-11AM
Complimentary coffee
Lunch Mon - Fri 11AM-2PM
a la carte food and bev
Weekend Sat & Sun 7AM-2PM
Cocktail Bar
Brunch
Tues to Thurs
Sun- Thurs 5PM-9PM
Fri & Sat
Dinner Fri - Sat 5PM-10PM
Happy F
Union
Sun - Mon 3PM-10PM
offere
Fri & Sat 3PM-9PM
$2 Maine
$9 Rr

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 06/07/2026

The rare 4-1-2-sue-me:

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 06/07/2026

“This is not” football. lol.

A Belgium poster of their “soccer” players in a US Footnall locker room with the famous inscription Cecil n’est pas and a picture of a pipe hanging inside a locker.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 06/07/2026

Hey a new cursed phrase just dropped.

But Page Six has learned that they've been experimenting with more than just editorial positions.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 03/07/2026

See, “clamps down” implies an increased but justified level of legitimate enforcement activity. Not random numbers-making detainments.

Immigrant Arrests Surge to 10,000 in 5 Days as
ICE Clamps Down

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 03/07/2026

My new 'our editorial independence is not threatened' T-shirt has people asking a lot of questions already answered by my shirt www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 01/07/2026

Also possible I am red/green colorblind and could not see their momentum spikes till I enhanced this image.

Match momentum chart for Belgium v Senegal.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 27/06/2026

I am inclined to want to agree with the implicatons of this chart - but it is press release science and just an empty vessel you can pour any preferred meaning into.

The Hardest Hit College Majors Between December 2019 and April 2026, hiring of new college graduates for entry-level jobs related to their majors has declined for all 15 of the most common majors on Linkedln.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 24/06/2026

I pick my conference hotels geometrically.

A map of downtown Pittsburgh with an Apple Fitness outdoor walk recorded in almost a perfectly straight line down Sixth Street across the river.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 21/06/2026

Maybe ESPN should just stick to game coverage. Another gullible headline. “Allegedly” does not cover it here.

Ex-Olympian arrested for allegedly vandalizing
Reflecting Pool

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 18/06/2026

A very healthy thing for journalism could do is to STOP quoting absolutely useless, conspiratorial, uninformed and uneducated anonymous "social media users" just to fill a few column inches.

From the WaPo: But the algae blooms that have long plagued the pool came roaring back, spawning more than a few conspiracy theories and much debate about the renovation. Some social media users said they suspected
"bureaucrats" had seeded the algae bloom in an act of sabotage, while others claimed photos showing the reappearance of the algae were taken during the Biden years. Trump administration officials said the algae was caused by residual material in supply lines that had been dormant for weeks.

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Damon Kiesow @kiesow.net · 14/06/2026

Noted in the story but:

A chart of teen births 15 to 19 showing a significant decrease in rate since 1960 with a notable decrease since 2010.

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