iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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...

000

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

Trump saying we should call it "super" intelligence vs "artificial" intelligence because the latter implies it's fake. Make no mistake: this is a thinly veiled attack on media/WH press corps which he calls 'fake news' but also a signal to Zuckerberg, et al that this admin will not regulate AI #unga

000

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

Saying the International Criminal Court are evil people is a choice. But then again, many of us were unaware transgender people were "mutilating children" in the U.S. I guess anything to distract from the genocide in Palestine. [Sarcasm] #unga

100

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

"I'll give no credence in the election to Iran"....I don't understand what that means but saying Iran will never have nuclear weapons got some weak applause. #unga

200

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.

100

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

010

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

010

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...

000

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.

000

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

000

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

I don't understand how much more brutal this job market can get but I'm sure it will find a way to unpleasantly surprise me

011

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

110

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

I've never had this much trouble and in fact was a successful freelancer for a number of years until 2026.

110

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.

110

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

001

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.

001

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.

000

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

Has anyone told the president about Amerigo Vespucci?

010

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...

000

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

000

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

I lost 8 subs in 2 weeks but I'm still counting it a win since I'm trying to be more consistent with filming and publishing while I'm in this horrendous extended unemployment. Please like, share, subscribe, it would be a huge help! www.exportqualitynews.com

exportqualitynews.com

Export Quality | Mythili Sampathkumar | Substack

A substack devoted to amplifying South Asian American and Canadian journalists and news about our communities, with a dash of other things along the way. Click to read Export Quality, by Mythili Sampa...

000

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...

100

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

000

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.

000

Mythili Sampathkumar @mythilisk.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

I have often felt like why isn't there a startup that will pay me every day I don't inhale a family size bag of ruffles in this, our dumbest, dystopia?

010

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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."

09814

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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

714110

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

000

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

My old story on this: www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

000

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

374392807

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

211958

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.

112

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

054

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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

291016242

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

25650

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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

132

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.

000

Reposted by Mythili Sampathkumar

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.

1718994

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

000

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.

000

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

Join AARP or don't, this was just my experience with part of their editorial team and I think things like this happen in the industry more than any of us wants to admit. Tl;Dr follow me on here if you liked me on Twitter. I'm wiser (maybe wizened) now and looking for work in the dystopic market.

010

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

Maybe part of the reason for a growing distrust in American media is because we got annoyingly elitist and gatekept much of the process, trials, and tribulations of the job. And maybe I just needed to vent a little, too.

120

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

This was a huge contract for me and it felt like it was taken because I had done my job reporting on the first admin + 2nd election (again, never confirmed it). It's also my attempt to be a more honest version of myself publicly.

110

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

Note: AARP is the most widely circulated publication on the planet. A friend asked what brought this post on and it's because it happened about a year ago. What followed was all of my freelance business collapsing or contracts I had to end. The two are unrelated, it's just a calendar marker.

110

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

I was told to stop my personal newsletter and not post on social but still lost out about 7 weeks later. On my last day, the editor refused to respond to any of my messages saying bye and wishing them well. I never confirmed politics was the reason but it was just too coincidental to be unrelated.

110

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

Over on ye olde Threads I shared this work story recently about a stint at AARP since it's the one year mark of my contract with their editorial team being cut because someone on Capitol Hill/"high up" told them I was "too anti Trump" based on my years-old reporting.

120

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

My old Twitter game was on point but I fell off using social media after it descended into the depths but I do miss parts of the experience. In my case, here's my linkedin.com/in/MythiliS. Please help get off that godforsaken platform by hiring me!

130