How Epstein Warped the Entire Internet

Mr. Beast Islam, Roblox threesoms, the Staples Baddie, Parisian slop bowls, phone away from phone, AI pervert glasses, TX primary influencer wars, and prediction markets' billionaire founders feud

Since the release of the Epstein files, we've learned a ton about Epstein's role in the early web. From 4chan to World of Warcraft, to Facebook, and online movements like gamergate and MeToo, Epstein seems to have played a role in it all.

So how much of our modern internet was shaped by Epstein? I sat down with Ryan Broderick to uncover how Jeffrey Epstein quietly warped our modern tech landscape. From his early days scrubbing his SEO to his mysterious networking with Silicon Valley elites, Epstein's rise was intertwined with modern platforms. [WATCH]

What I wrote recently

I decided to take on a few freelance pieces recently, so wanted to share! I wrote about ID verification for The Guardian, how congress is seeking to eliminate anonymity from the internet for The Intercept, and I did a fun piece for Vanity Fair on how the Epstein files took over TikTok and what it reveals about our modern information ecosystem.

The AI Scandal Rocking Silicon Valley

Over the past few weeks, a massive conflict between the Pentagon and leading AI companies like Anthropic and OpenAI has triggered a nationwide debate about how AI should be used in warfare and surveillance.

For today’s episode of Free Speech Friday, I sat down with The Atlantic's Ross Anderson to uncover the dark truth behind the Pentagon’s push for fully autonomous weapons and mass domestic surveillance.

We break down exactly how negotiations between Anthropic and the Department of War broke down over using AI to analyze the commercial data of American citizens. From Pete Hegseth going "nuclear" and labeling Anthropic a "supply chain risk", to OpenAI and Sam Altman swooping in at the last minute to claim the government deal, this drama really broke tech Twitter for the past week. Also, people are now stanning Claude (which I argue is dumb!). [WATCH]

What I’m reading

The Texas Senate Primary Was a Preview of Creator Wars to Come

After the 2024 election, influencers were seen as an asset. A contentious race between Democrats James Talarico and Jasmine Crockett showed that they can also be a liability. - WIRED

I Investigated a Fake Newspaper Targeting Greenpeace. Then It Targeted Me.

Before Greenpeace lost its $345m Dakota Access trial, a mysterious paper attacking the group appeared in North Dakota mailboxes. I traced it to a pink-slime network before it began writing about me. - Evergreen

How TikTok 2.0 Became a Weapon for ICE

In just one week, the company has gone from being Gen Z’s preferred social media platform to a tool for spying on Americans and the suppression of information. - New Republic

An ugly gang of Big Tech, “ban-teens-from-social-media” culture warriors, and an abusive parent team up to exploit a vulnerable teenager

The “social media addiction” lawsuit against Meta exposes (again) how greedy interests re-victimize teens suffering violent, troubled families. - Mike Males

2 young billionaires are behind the prediction market boom. They hate each other

The feud could shape the future of the industry, with each executive offering competing visions for how prediction markets should grow. - NPR

Looks Like We’ve Democratized Insider Trading

Polymarket and Kalshi promise the wisdom of the crowds. They deliver something very different. - The Atlantic

Is This Insider Information?’ The Prediction Market Bets Driving a Campus Frenzy

Kalshi and Polymarket pour money into deals with social-media influencers and students, who try to parlay rumors into cash; ‘We know this shouldn’t be allowed’. - WSJ

Prediction markets in the news are a dangerous gamble

Why platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket want so badly to be seen as sources of news, instead of anything-goes casinos. - The Verge

User Mag news rundown

A few people have asked me to start separating these links out into sections, so I’m going to try to do that from now on!! Let me know if you prefer this or the old way please!

Influencers & Online Culture

• People on X coined the phrase “Mr. Beast Islam” to describe the flashy, high-production, influencer-pilled version of Islam coming out of wealthy Gulf countries like Dubai.

• Dubai is paying social media influencers to flood Instagram with feel-good videos claiming the city is totally safe, using nearly identical scripts in different languages.

• Everyone seems to think their boyfriend has “avoidant attachment style,” but what if they’re all just not into the relationship?

• People are having threesoms in Roblox.

• A 22 year old Staples employee has gone viral for explaining the supplies at her store and is now known as “the Staples baddie.”

• A Florida car dealership sales guy who’s also a classically trained opera singer went viral for making car ads that sound like opera performances.

• A fun Dutch livestream is back where you watch an underwater camera and press a bell whenever you see a fish swim by, so the canal gate will open for them.

• There’s a new Hello Kitty x Labubu collab.

• A Florida man was arrested after posting his high speed police chase on TikTok.

• Logan Paul says he is going to sue people that call him a “scammer”.

• Hasan Piker announced an upcoming stream with Gavin Newsom after Hasan said he’d vote third party if Newsom was the nominee.

• Matt Bernstein just released an excellent video critiquing Gavin Newsom.

• Interview Magazine did a big spread called Meet the Finest Boys in Finance that everyone in the biz world is chatting about.

Food

• People in Paris are now eating slop bowls like the rest of us.

• Wendy’s is hiring a “chief tasting officer” to eat its food and it pays $100,000.

• McDonald’s CEO asked AI for new menu ideas and it suggested McRib Nuggets.

• Officials warn YouTubers are posing as health inspectors to film “secret restaurant audits”.

• Wendy’s U.S. president posted a video of himself taking several few bites of a Wendy’s burger, after the Burger King CEO went viral for taking a huge bite of his burger in response to the McDonald’s CEO’s video where he barely took a bite.

AI & Technology

• Roblox is using AI to “rephrase” profanity in text chat.

• A creepy new AI tool now uses dead teachers to review academic work.

• They’re reinventing the BlackBerry from first principles.

• More people are purchasing second smartphones to avoid distracting content on their primary smartphone, kind of like a phone away from phone.

• Scientists grew real human brain cells on a microchip and taught them to play the video game Doom.

• CEO of Cluely, the AI company with the slogan “cheat on everything,” admitted to publicly lying about their revenue numbers last year.

• California community colleges are spending millions on AI chatbots that don’t work.

• Tinder has agreed to pay $60.5M after it was sued for charging certain users more.

• A BART police officer made an insane bigoted AI deepfake about a Sikh colleague and the chief of the department.

• A dad is suing Google after its AI chatbot convinced his son it was his wife, then allegedly encouraged him to attempt suicide and a planned attack at an airport.

Entertainment

• Turns out that really was Jim Carrey spotted at a Paris awards show.

• Britney Spears was arrested for a DUI.

• Podcasters exclusive to Netflix are seeing their YouTube channel growth slow by as much as 50% compared to the year prior.

• Brand social media teams are starting to look a lot like mini movie studios.

• Why is Paramount hiring so many men with troubled pasts?

• Family Guy creator says it takes “10 months to a year” to make 1 episode.

Civil Liberties

• Federal agents are intimidating legal observers at their homes.

• In an open letter, over 400 computer scientists caution governments against imposing age (aka ID) restrictions on internet platforms.

• The UK is banning step-family porn, which prompted a wave of jokes online about the British royal family’s history of inbreeding.

• People are calling Meta Ray Bans “pervert glasses.”

• Also Meta contractors are watching videos that users had privately uploaded, often witnessing some seriously disturbing things.

• An open letter from 60,000 young people was sent to the the House of Representatives detailing opposition to ID verification bills (which they’re trying to call age verification).

• A reporter in Nashville has been detained and is being sent to an ICE center in Louisiana after reporting critically on ICE.

Politics & Government

• The White House’s official X account posted a video mixing footage from Call of Duty with real footage of military strikes against Iranian targets.

• Trump announced he’ll show up to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner this year, something he’s never done as president before.

• A leaked government database showed the US is quietly planning to rewrite historical records.

• A DHS shooting of a third US citizen went unnoticed for months.

• Some US military commanders have been telling soldiers that the war with Iran is literally part of God’s plan to bring about the end of the world.

• Polymarket created a market where people can bet on the chance of a nuclear bomb.

• The secretary of Miami-Dade County’s GOP started a group chat for conservative students and within 3 weeks it was filled with over 400 instances of the N-word, Nazi rhetoric and writings of “dozens of ways of violently killing Black people”

• The government is arguing that a protest at an ICE facility was actually left-wing terrorist plot.

• The DOJ released an interview with the woman who claimed both Trump and Epstein sexually assaulted her as a minor.

Science

• Over 100 mystery ingredients have been secretly added to foods, drinks, and supplements in the US without anyone telling the FDA.

• Two animals believed extinct for 6,000 years have been rediscovered in remote location.

Miscellaneous

• People really tried to make Snoafers (aka sneaker loafers) happen, but they just didn’t hit.

• United Airlines can now kick passengers off flights and ban them for not using headphones.

• Housing is so expensive that people earning $200,000 qualify for help.

• 53% of U.S. adults say Americans are morally bad.

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