Christopher Dornan
@chrisdornan.bsky.social
Ahora, jubilado. Formerly, School of Journalism and Communication & Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada. 🇨🇦 Writing on disinformation, the twilight of the news media, and politics. Click here: www.educatedguesses.ca
Pinned
Is it time for a Chris Dornan starter pack? Do you need to know what is happening to what used to be called the “news media"? Here’s an immodest reading list to get you started, whether you are a high school media literacy teacher, the incoming president of the CBC, or the CEO of Postmedia. 👇👇👇
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
I know most of the focus is on RFK Jr.'s weird horny texts, but the news that he used to spam Bill Nye with anti-vax weirdness and Bill was like, "Dude, you're you're confusing correlation for causation" is the only RFK text-message news I will ever need.
November 27, 2025 at 1:15 AM
I know most of the focus is on RFK Jr.'s weird horny texts, but the news that he used to spam Bill Nye with anti-vax weirdness and Bill was like, "Dude, you're you're confusing correlation for causation" is the only RFK text-message news I will ever need.
To be fair, there are people who invest in ventures like OpenAI who couldn't are less about the tech itself, whether it works or not, the damage it may do or the good. They're just betting on the stock to fluctuate in price. As long as the stock keeps climbing, an investor can buy low, sell high.
The people who finance a venture like OpenAI do so because they believe the investment will pay off. The tech will eventually be able to do what it says it will be able to do, and from then on corporate fortunes will be made. These are the same people who say governments must not run deficits.
November 27, 2025 at 3:08 AM
To be fair, there are people who invest in ventures like OpenAI who couldn't are less about the tech itself, whether it works or not, the damage it may do or the good. They're just betting on the stock to fluctuate in price. As long as the stock keeps climbing, an investor can buy low, sell high.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Industry with over 330 years of experience in calculating risk: AI is too risky for us.
Canada’s technocrat-led federal government: AI regulation would just SLOW DOWN THE FUTURE.
As a mentor once noted: If you want to get a sense of where things are going, pay attention to the insurance industry.
Canada’s technocrat-led federal government: AI regulation would just SLOW DOWN THE FUTURE.
As a mentor once noted: If you want to get a sense of where things are going, pay attention to the insurance industry.
In more AI bubble news, major insurers are declining to insure risks from AI chatbots & agents, saying AI models are too unpredictable & error-prone with no one clearly liable when things go wrong. Firms & universities better consider this in their rush to adopt AI.
www.ft.com/content/abfe...
www.ft.com/content/abfe...
Insurers retreat from AI cover as risk of multibillion-dollar claims mounts
AIG, Great American and WR Berkley seek permission to limit liability from AI agents and chatbots
www.ft.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:50 AM
Industry with over 330 years of experience in calculating risk: AI is too risky for us.
Canada’s technocrat-led federal government: AI regulation would just SLOW DOWN THE FUTURE.
As a mentor once noted: If you want to get a sense of where things are going, pay attention to the insurance industry.
Canada’s technocrat-led federal government: AI regulation would just SLOW DOWN THE FUTURE.
As a mentor once noted: If you want to get a sense of where things are going, pay attention to the insurance industry.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Live at @uvic.ca tonight! Join the livestream: tinyurl.com/RLAG-uvic-live
November 26, 2025 at 2:22 AM
Live at @uvic.ca tonight! Join the livestream: tinyurl.com/RLAG-uvic-live
Now in Vienna there’s ten pretty women
There’s a shoulder where Death comes to cry
There’s a shoulder where Death comes to cry
November 26, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Now in Vienna there’s ten pretty women
There’s a shoulder where Death comes to cry
There’s a shoulder where Death comes to cry
How you know your post-secondary institution is being run by administrative functionaries, not the faculty.
Morgan State University is one of the first colleges in the country to create its own sovereign artificial intelligence system. The university will soon run entirely on the AI, called Obsidian, which will advise students and grade assignments.
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...
Morgan State could one day run entirely on AI
The historically Black college may be one of the few universities in the country, perhaps even the world, that has its own sovereign AI.
www.thebanner.com
November 26, 2025 at 1:55 AM
How you know your post-secondary institution is being run by administrative functionaries, not the faculty.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Lots of pie discourse on Bluesky I see
I will take the opportunity to stan for Canadian butter tarts 🇨🇦
cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019...
I will take the opportunity to stan for Canadian butter tarts 🇨🇦
cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019...
Butter Tarts (Published 2018)
cooking.nytimes.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:37 AM
Lots of pie discourse on Bluesky I see
I will take the opportunity to stan for Canadian butter tarts 🇨🇦
cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019...
I will take the opportunity to stan for Canadian butter tarts 🇨🇦
cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019...
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
The Globe's chart on references to Donald Trump in Hansard sent me down the rabbit hole of checking for pre-2016 references to the future president.
I think the earliest reference comes from Iain Angus, MP for Thunder Bay—Atikokan, on May 8, 1990.
I think the earliest reference comes from Iain Angus, MP for Thunder Bay—Atikokan, on May 8, 1990.
November 25, 2025 at 9:55 PM
The Globe's chart on references to Donald Trump in Hansard sent me down the rabbit hole of checking for pre-2016 references to the future president.
I think the earliest reference comes from Iain Angus, MP for Thunder Bay—Atikokan, on May 8, 1990.
I think the earliest reference comes from Iain Angus, MP for Thunder Bay—Atikokan, on May 8, 1990.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Google at its peak was basically the best information retrieval system in human history and they and every competitor decided going from there to “you didn’t want answers you wanted half-assed auto-complete 80%-wrong hallucinations” in a few years was the right idea
November 25, 2025 at 1:57 AM
Google at its peak was basically the best information retrieval system in human history and they and every competitor decided going from there to “you didn’t want answers you wanted half-assed auto-complete 80%-wrong hallucinations” in a few years was the right idea
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Duuuude. We’re flying a fighter jet
a man with a mustache is sitting in the driver 's seat of a car holding a key .
ALT: a man with a mustache is sitting in the driver 's seat of a car holding a key .
media.tenor.com
November 26, 2025 at 1:26 AM
Duuuude. We’re flying a fighter jet
How many Gripens will that buy?
Canada collected over $5.4B in cannabis tax revenue since legalization | CBC News
Ottawa and the provinces raked in more than $5.4 billion in cannabis tax revenue since the drug was legalized for recreational use in October 2018.
www.cbc.ca
November 26, 2025 at 1:22 AM
How many Gripens will that buy?
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Trump is forcing Hollywood to make a new Rush Hour. Now it’s time for Mark Carney to demand The Sweet Hereafter II.
November 25, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Trump is forcing Hollywood to make a new Rush Hour. Now it’s time for Mark Carney to demand The Sweet Hereafter II.
To sum up, the "basket of deplorables" in the United States is currently in charge and the "binders full of women" are not.
November 25, 2025 at 3:36 AM
To sum up, the "basket of deplorables" in the United States is currently in charge and the "binders full of women" are not.
"It doesn't make sense to have more than one type of fighter jet" is an odd argument to hear from a country that has more than 40 different brands of automobiles on the road, all of which have to be serviced separately and whose parts are not readily interchangeable. #Gripen #F35
“Arguing that a country of 40 million people “can’t” operate two fighter types and must use a single jack-of-all-trades aircraft is not a serious position.” #cdnpoli
This was a very interesting and fairly nuanced read:
November 25, 2025 at 2:41 AM
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
“Arguing that a country of 40 million people “can’t” operate two fighter types and must use a single jack-of-all-trades aircraft is not a serious position.” #cdnpoli
This was a very interesting and fairly nuanced read:
Gripen E vs F-35? The Wrong Question to Ask
Mikael Grev is a former Gripen pilot and co-founder and CEO of Avioniq. In this column for Nordic Defence Sector, he compares the Gripen E and the F-35, arguing for a more nuanced view of fighter capa...
nordicdefencesector.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:44 AM
“Arguing that a country of 40 million people “can’t” operate two fighter types and must use a single jack-of-all-trades aircraft is not a serious position.” #cdnpoli
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:26 PM
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Some more details on my new #ScienceFiction anthology, including one inclusion that I’m especially happy about (thanks in large part to Brooks Hefner’s terrific work in *Black Pulp*)
Edited by Jason Haslam, our upcoming reader is the first new SF anthology in almost ten years 🌌@jasonhaslam.ca
Anthologized here for the very first time is “The Space Ship,” a story by Black SF pioneer James H. Hill. -- and tons more.
See the full TOC 🔗https://buff.ly/E6RyEE4
Anthologized here for the very first time is “The Space Ship,” a story by Black SF pioneer James H. Hill. -- and tons more.
See the full TOC 🔗https://buff.ly/E6RyEE4
The Broadview Anthology of Science Fiction - Broadview Press
The Broadview Anthology of Science Fiction -
buff.ly
November 24, 2025 at 6:27 PM
Some more details on my new #ScienceFiction anthology, including one inclusion that I’m especially happy about (thanks in large part to Brooks Hefner’s terrific work in *Black Pulp*)
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
This should be fun!
AI: Write a law regulating Alberta whiskey.
ChatGPT: Alberta is in Nepal. Whiskey comes from fish.
Meta: Does drinking whiskey make you sad?
Copilot: Cabinet Ministers use these passwords:
Gemini: service unavailable
Grok: Nazis loved whiskey.
#ABPoli
shorturl.at/hU1pJ
AI: Write a law regulating Alberta whiskey.
ChatGPT: Alberta is in Nepal. Whiskey comes from fish.
Meta: Does drinking whiskey make you sad?
Copilot: Cabinet Ministers use these passwords:
Gemini: service unavailable
Grok: Nazis loved whiskey.
#ABPoli
shorturl.at/hU1pJ
Alberta government eyes AI to write legislation for 1st time | CBC News
The Alberta government is considering using AI technology to write a law for the first time, eyeing a forthcoming piece of whisky legislation as its test case.
shorturl.at
November 23, 2025 at 8:25 AM
This should be fun!
AI: Write a law regulating Alberta whiskey.
ChatGPT: Alberta is in Nepal. Whiskey comes from fish.
Meta: Does drinking whiskey make you sad?
Copilot: Cabinet Ministers use these passwords:
Gemini: service unavailable
Grok: Nazis loved whiskey.
#ABPoli
shorturl.at/hU1pJ
AI: Write a law regulating Alberta whiskey.
ChatGPT: Alberta is in Nepal. Whiskey comes from fish.
Meta: Does drinking whiskey make you sad?
Copilot: Cabinet Ministers use these passwords:
Gemini: service unavailable
Grok: Nazis loved whiskey.
#ABPoli
shorturl.at/hU1pJ
The F-35 vs. Gripen purchase is shaping up as something. America or Europe? Old commitments or new alliances? Whatever decision is taken, how will it play politically, at home and abroad?
November 24, 2025 at 4:13 AM
The F-35 vs. Gripen purchase is shaping up as something. America or Europe? Old commitments or new alliances? Whatever decision is taken, how will it play politically, at home and abroad?
If Carney cancels the F-35, he will piss off DND who still want that plane so they can play with the big boys in the Pentagon. If Carney doesn't buy the Gripen, he will piss off everyone on every bar stool in every Legion and local across the country, because those people have made up their minds.
“Arguing that a country of 40 million people “can’t” operate two fighter types and must use a single jack-of-all-trades aircraft is not a serious position.” #cdnpoli
This was a very interesting and fairly nuanced read:
November 24, 2025 at 3:59 AM
If Carney cancels the F-35, he will piss off DND who still want that plane so they can play with the big boys in the Pentagon. If Carney doesn't buy the Gripen, he will piss off everyone on every bar stool in every Legion and local across the country, because those people have made up their minds.
The people who finance a venture like OpenAI do so because they believe the investment will pay off. The tech will eventually be able to do what it says it will be able to do, and from then on corporate fortunes will be made. These are the same people who say governments must not run deficits.
November 23, 2025 at 3:29 AM
The people who finance a venture like OpenAI do so because they believe the investment will pay off. The tech will eventually be able to do what it says it will be able to do, and from then on corporate fortunes will be made. These are the same people who say governments must not run deficits.
Remember when VICE was the property that was going to disrupt the old school media and in 2017 it was valued at $5.7 billion? Good times, eh? Then it had to declare bankruptcy in 2023 because it spent more money than it made. The big revenue was always promised, never delivered.
November 23, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Remember when VICE was the property that was going to disrupt the old school media and in 2017 it was valued at $5.7 billion? Good times, eh? Then it had to declare bankruptcy in 2023 because it spent more money than it made. The big revenue was always promised, never delivered.
I suppose that would be inflationary, which would diminish the purchasing power of Elon’s remaining billions. Either that, or Elon’s billions aren’t liquid at the moment, being tied up in Arby’s franchises and whatnot.
November 23, 2025 at 1:49 AM
I suppose that would be inflationary, which would diminish the purchasing power of Elon’s remaining billions. Either that, or Elon’s billions aren’t liquid at the moment, being tied up in Arby’s franchises and whatnot.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
Almost a year now since I received this absolutely classic burn from the Canadian government.
November 21, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Almost a year now since I received this absolutely classic burn from the Canadian government.
Reposted by Christopher Dornan
And it gets worse... bsky.app/profile/ronf...
What a shit show. Everyone could see this plan was written by the Kremlin. Adopted by Witkoff and Trump who demanded Ukraine accept it by this Thursday. After a firestorm of objections by Europe and Republican senators it appears Rubio wants to distance himself from it.
November 23, 2025 at 1:43 AM
And it gets worse... bsky.app/profile/ronf...