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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

My latest newsletter issue is about Trump's #unga speech, and combating hopelessness. Plus, I illustrated it! open.substack.com/pub/exportqu...

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

As far as Trump's #unga speeches go, this is a relatively tame one. Though that doesn't say much given that we've had to shift the entire 'unhinged diplomacy' scale entirely post-2017.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Trump: "We have the hottest country in the world." Rest of the world and millions of Americans: Literally yes. The US contributes a great deal to global warming. #unga

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Trump: "our economy is the envy of the world." Rest of the World: it really isn't. #unga

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Walked up from my apt to Turtle Bay. The UN General Assembly started and Trump’s speech is going on now. I'll have something (many things) to say about it on my channels + newsletter later this week www.instagram.com/exportqualit... www.tiktok.com/exportqualit... www.youtube.com/@exportquali...

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

A kindergarten field trip, an internship, becoming a U.S. citizen, being brown, and the day that changed our entire world and robbed us of the future we were promised as elder millennials. I wrote about the 25th anniversary for my newsletter open.substack.com/pub/exportqu...

open.substack.com

Remembering the day that changed the world

Welcome to Export Quality, the home of your journalist and artist friend who writes about the South Asian diaspora and other news.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

If anyone wants to make a donation to #Nepal aid relief I'm donating all the proceeds from the sale of this collage I made to World Central Kitchen etsy.com/listing/4566975696/collage-art-print-nepal-2026

etsy.com

Collage Art Print: Nepal 2026 - Etsy

This Wall Decor item is sold by ExportQualityMedia. Ships from New York, NY. Listed on Sep 2, 2026

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Just got rejected from a job for being "too senior." The hiring manager's boss recommend me for it. Another one was "anxious a journalist couldn't handle the learning curve" even though I said what we do in the intvw and they loved it. 20+ years exp and didn't think I'd be sidelined from SO much

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

An honest moment: my job search has dragged on for 7 months and I'm not sure what the hell is going on in this market for people w/my skills. Working with a career coach, applying outside of journalism, having no shame to reach out to my network, nailing interviews. And still, nothing.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Latest issue of the Export Quality newsletter issue is about #Nepal. If you're new here, I have been illustrating the news through collage. This week's is for sale and any proceeds will go to @wck.org. Check out the issue and link to purchase here open.substack.com/pub/exportqu...

open.substack.com

$9.8 billion and Nepal’s devastation

Welcome to Export Quality, a home for my writing, art, South Asian diaspora news, and other fun things. Though today is about Nepal.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

open.substack.com

$9.8 billion and Nepal’s devastation

Welcome to Export Quality, a home for my writing, art, South Asian diaspora news, and other fun things. Though today is about Nepal.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Another one for the 'all politics is local' file. There is so much more to say about this and maybe I'll do a newsletter issue on it but for now I'll just say this is one of the dumbest byproducts of our current, stupid American dystopia.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Has anyone told the president about Amerigo Vespucci?

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

'Ontario' is an indigenous word, Iroquoian/Huron/Wyandot for 'great lake' so... But what did we expect as ICE also harasses people who have been on this land for millennia...

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Good afternoon to whoever chose '9 to 5' as the Dolly Parton song to play in front of Buckingham Palace. Peak British humour and a hell of a way to tell your boss you hate him

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

I wrote and made some art about Dolly Parton yesterday. I restarted my newsletter a few weeks ago and kind of exploring where to take it but I know I'll be illustrating the news through my collages open.substack.com/pub/exportqu...

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

There's a City Hall job announcement coming out soon and I have a shortlist of people I think it will be. It's wild how angry one would make me and therefore I have every ounce of faith it will be that person. Maybe its US politics PTSD or pessimism but I hope it's one of the other people on my list

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Four interviews and a lengthy edit test and I got a "we are so impressed with you" job rejection just now. Sent out a newsletter issue for the first time in months and had four people unsubscribe immediately. I think the day needs to quit.

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Josh Sternberg @joshsternberg.com · 13/08/2026

it is really strange to see a reporter praise a communications person who represents a principal who used journalists as a decoy for them to get blown up and not him; a principal who subpoenas colleagues for doing their job; a principal who calls peers "piggy" "disgrace" "dumb."

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darth™️ @darthbluesky.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

the real race will be between those trying to perfect an AI writing detector and those trying to normalize AI writing so no one cares if it is AI or not making said AI detector unnecessary

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

A note: recent federal budget cuts to the tune of ~40% reduced staffing and resulted in other cuts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (despite a small budget increase to the National Weather Service, which sits under it). When people say 'all politics is local,' this is an example

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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 12/08/2026

Incredible. When E—n M—k & his crew obliterated USAID in a weekend, they deleted a vast trove of publicly-funded knowledge: the Development Experience Clearinghouse. A Canadian high school student (!) happened to have downloaded the entire thing for a project. AidData has now posted it for all.

aiddata.org

Before reimagining development data, remember what we’ve learned

Why we’re publishing a free, searchable, and ungated archive featuring a quarter-century of USAID evaluation reports.

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Brandon Hardin @hardin.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

anyone who has been applying for jobs for longer than a week knows our shit often goes straight to the trash. nice to have confirmation.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I wish this were more stunning. We saw shades of this in 2017 when Amb. Haley had only invited Christian groups to the UN Women Summit and again in a closed door meeting declaration that the US would only support pro-life aid. Govts have agendas too but groups are unmonitored.

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Rest of World @restofworld.org · 12/08/2026

One of the clearest lessons of 2024’s “year of elections” was that the impact of deepfakes was significantly overstated. More important is what happens when AI is embedded in the systems that administer elections themselves restofworld.org/2026/ai-elections-d…

restofworld.org

Why we should all be worried about AI in elections

Deepfakes dominate headlines, but the real danger lies in opaque AI systems that make up election infrastructure.

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Dan Froomkin/Press Watch/Heads Up News @froomkin.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

When you have an agenda and when you don’t:

NYT: A stunning loss in Wisconsin show shows the limits of the left

AP headline: No clear direction for Wisconsin Democrats

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Andrea González-Ramírez @andreagonram.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I spoke with people back home in Puerto Rico about the water crisis and how attributing it to the current drought conditions isn't the full story. Read more: www.thecut.com/article/what...

thecut.com

‘I’m Tired of Being Resilient’

Skipping laundry. Bathing in the sea. Catching drops falling from AC units. This is life in Puerto Rico amid the worsening water crisis.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Decided I should be more present on here going forward, so uh, have fun with that. On that note: I'm an experienced journo and comms person who has been on the job hunt for 6+ months. I had a thriving freelance business for years but it fell apart late 2025 so I'm here looking for gigs, jobs, etc

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

You know it's bad out here right now because watching The Odyssey reminded me of the job market/search.

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Democracy Docket @democracydocket.com · 11/08/2026

NEW: A far-right media host urged Trump to exert sweeping control over the midterms by declaring a national security emergency. The president's response? An alarming remark that signals his willingness to do so. "Let me just say stranger things have happened...I'll leave it at that."

democracydocket.com

Trump signals openness to unconstitutional plot to take over elections

"Stranger things have happened,” Trump said after a far-right media host implored him to declare a national security emergency on elections.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

The new Samsung folding phone is just a reminder that we've all just been recreating what Penny from Inspector Gadget used.

static.klipy.com

Inspector Gadget: Penny and Brain's Communicator

ALT: Inspector Gadget: Penny and Brain's Communicator

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Few things are as depressing as someone reinventing Cliff's Notes for adults but in the most annoying, destructive way possible. There are definitely useful applications of AI and then there's just plain brain and culture and society rot.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

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Asha Rangappa @asharangappa.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

He basically used journalists as…human shields?

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Lina Srivastava @linasrivastava.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

And acknowledging here again the debt we owe to @prisonculture.bsky.social for the framing of political hope, which we have embedded into the core of this series.

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Lina Srivastava @linasrivastava.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Proud to release "The Truths We Hold," the latest issue in our political hope zine series We asked creators and advocates to address the US's 250th with the question: How are you creating hope now? Please read, share, and join us in imagining the next www.transformationalchange.co/news-stories...

transformationalchange.co

The TRUTHS WE HOLD — CfTC

The USA is marking the 250th year since declaring its independence. We offer this zine, the second in our series, as a record of political hope at a time of transformation. We asked for contributions ...

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emily lipstein @emilylip.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

got harassed on twitter by Sid Rosenberg and John Chell today and all i got was an admission that NYPD won't issue you a traffic ticket if you listen to the right talk show or have the right job nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/03/25/f...

nyc.streetsblog.org

Former NYPD Chief Admits Giving 'Free Pass' to City Workers, Right Wing Allies - Streetsblog New York City

NYPD cops ignore transgressions by drivers if they happen to be listeners of right-wing radio host Sid Rosenberg, former police chief John Chell said.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Members of Congress shouldn't be allowed to fly until they figure out this airport bullshit.

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DAME Magazine @damemagazine.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

What if Trump’s foreign policy isn’t chaotic at all? What if it’s built on his mobster-style attitude towards everything: Pay up. Or else. @brynntannehill.bsky.social explains how the closest historical parallel isn’t modern diplomacy, it’s the Barbary pirates.

damemagazine.com

Trump’s Foreign Policy Has a Model: The Barbary Pirates

Trump’s foreign policy often looks chaotic, but it follows a clear model: intimidation, tribute, and transactional power reminiscent of the Barbary pirates.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

My freelance business fell apart last quarter. All of it (I ended one contract for my sanity). Oddly, I haven't been able to say that until recently but my life's work over the last 15+ years, each step I built upon, relationships - all gone bc of a bad market + ripple effects of fed budget cuts

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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 09/03/2026

If you’re roughly my age, it’s wild to reflect on the optimism for the future Americans felt when Obama was elected — young Americans spontaneously took to the streets to celebrate! — and contrast with what we face today. The falloff over the past 18 years is hard to process.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Instead of a hospital, it's night shift at a pizza place and it's The Hut.

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Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

This is really the dumbest dystopia.

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