Emmett O'Connell
@emmettoconnell.bsky.social
Blogger, podcaster, local government communicator, rec soccer defender
OlympiaTime.com
theolympiastandard.com
OlympiaTime.com
theolympiastandard.com
Meta internal docs say it may earn ~10% of its revenue from scam and banned-goods ads, showing users 15B scam ads daily. Meta often flags scammers but still lets them run ads, sometimes charging them more instead of banning them, despite global regulatory pressure.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Meta is earning a fortune on a deluge of fraudulent ads, documents show
Meta projected 10% of its 2024 revenue would come from ads for scams and banned goods, and it internally estimates that its platforms show users 15 billion scam ads a day, company documents show.
www.reuters.com
November 25, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Meta internal docs say it may earn ~10% of its revenue from scam and banned-goods ads, showing users 15B scam ads daily. Meta often flags scammers but still lets them run ads, sometimes charging them more instead of banning them, despite global regulatory pressure.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Substack is boosting and profiting from both Nazi/extremist content and dangerous health disinfo. Algorithms, categories, and leaderboards push anti-science creators
mediaanddemocracyproject.substack.com/p/substack-h...
mediaanddemocracyproject.substack.com/p/substack-h...
Substack has a Nazi problem AND a health disinformation problem
Substack creators and Substack audiences are supporting a platform that profits off of promoting dangerous antiscience content – at the expense of public health.
mediaanddemocracyproject.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Substack is boosting and profiting from both Nazi/extremist content and dangerous health disinfo. Algorithms, categories, and leaderboards push anti-science creators
mediaanddemocracyproject.substack.com/p/substack-h...
mediaanddemocracyproject.substack.com/p/substack-h...
About 100 people protested ICE arrests in Longview WA, decrying detentions as cruel and unconstitutional. Demonstrators shared fears of profiling and family separation, while one counter-protester argued for “legal” immigration.
andrestepankowsky.substack.com/p/longview-d...
andrestepankowsky.substack.com/p/longview-d...
Longview demonstrators protest recent uptick in ICE detentions in Southwest Washington
About 100 gather near Walgreen's to object to 'inhumane' Trump deportation policies
andrestepankowsky.substack.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:43 PM
About 100 people protested ICE arrests in Longview WA, decrying detentions as cruel and unconstitutional. Demonstrators shared fears of profiling and family separation, while one counter-protester argued for “legal” immigration.
andrestepankowsky.substack.com/p/longview-d...
andrestepankowsky.substack.com/p/longview-d...
Local elections aren’t failing, our information ecosystem is.
This week’s Olympia Time digs into how confusion beats big ideas when local media is thin, plus updates on The Olympia Standard’s new direction and what to read next.
Subscribe for clarity.
buttondown.com/OlympiaTime/...
This week’s Olympia Time digs into how confusion beats big ideas when local media is thin, plus updates on The Olympia Standard’s new direction and what to read next.
Subscribe for clarity.
buttondown.com/OlympiaTime/...
Confusion wins
I left the election season and didn’t send this newsletter for a few weeks. Mostly because I was fiddling with the tool to send it with, was traveling and...
buttondown.com
November 23, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Local elections aren’t failing, our information ecosystem is.
This week’s Olympia Time digs into how confusion beats big ideas when local media is thin, plus updates on The Olympia Standard’s new direction and what to read next.
Subscribe for clarity.
buttondown.com/OlympiaTime/...
This week’s Olympia Time digs into how confusion beats big ideas when local media is thin, plus updates on The Olympia Standard’s new direction and what to read next.
Subscribe for clarity.
buttondown.com/OlympiaTime/...
X’s new tool exposed that many top MAGA influencers were actually foreign-based, a classic step one of the War on Pineapple playbook: fake “locals” stoking division.
The reveal shows how overseas operators fuel U.S. political polarization.
www.thedailybeast.com/top-maga-inf...
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The reveal shows how overseas operators fuel U.S. political polarization.
www.thedailybeast.com/top-maga-inf...
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Top MAGA Influencers Accidentally Unmasked as Foreign Actors
A new feature on Elon Musk’s X has given deeper insight into the online “America First” movement.
www.thedailybeast.com
November 23, 2025 at 2:34 PM
X’s new tool exposed that many top MAGA influencers were actually foreign-based, a classic step one of the War on Pineapple playbook: fake “locals” stoking division.
The reveal shows how overseas operators fuel U.S. political polarization.
www.thedailybeast.com/top-maga-inf...
/1
The reveal shows how overseas operators fuel U.S. political polarization.
www.thedailybeast.com/top-maga-inf...
/1
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
Grand opening, grand closing.
X quietly disabled a new feature that showed which country an account was posting from when it revealed that lots of popular right wing MAGA accounts were being run from foreign countries like India and Nigeria.
X quietly disabled a new feature that showed which country an account was posting from when it revealed that lots of popular right wing MAGA accounts were being run from foreign countries like India and Nigeria.
November 22, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Grand opening, grand closing.
X quietly disabled a new feature that showed which country an account was posting from when it revealed that lots of popular right wing MAGA accounts were being run from foreign countries like India and Nigeria.
X quietly disabled a new feature that showed which country an account was posting from when it revealed that lots of popular right wing MAGA accounts were being run from foreign countries like India and Nigeria.
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
Some incredible details in this piece
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
November 22, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Some incredible details in this piece
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
WSU approved anti-trans CME courses through a detached accreditation process that relied on outside standards and ignored months of student and faculty warnings.
The courses were only suspended after major backlash from LGBTQ+ groups
rangemedia.co/after-pushba...
The courses were only suspended after major backlash from LGBTQ+ groups
rangemedia.co/after-pushba...
WSU suspends transphobic CMEs – RANGE Media
Students and faculty had pressured the university to revoke its accreditation of courses designed by a anti-transgender hate group, but it didn’t act until it came under external scrutiny.
rangemedia.co
November 22, 2025 at 12:53 PM
WSU approved anti-trans CME courses through a detached accreditation process that relied on outside standards and ignored months of student and faculty warnings.
The courses were only suspended after major backlash from LGBTQ+ groups
rangemedia.co/after-pushba...
The courses were only suspended after major backlash from LGBTQ+ groups
rangemedia.co/after-pushba...
The section at the bottom of the post about how to achieve "no jerks" seems to be the most salient thing I've taken from watching Seattle politics from afar. I've seen a lot of decisions made that can most easily been explained as products of strife and drama.
publicola.com/2025/11/21/h...
publicola.com/2025/11/21/h...
Homeless Authority Praises Religious Program, Katie Wilson Plans to Jerk-Proof the Mayor's Office, and Who Will Be the City Council's Next President? - PubliCola
1. The King County Regional Homelessness Authority has signed a contract with Barb Oliver, the head of tiny house builder…
publicola.com
November 22, 2025 at 12:46 PM
The section at the bottom of the post about how to achieve "no jerks" seems to be the most salient thing I've taken from watching Seattle politics from afar. I've seen a lot of decisions made that can most easily been explained as products of strife and drama.
publicola.com/2025/11/21/h...
publicola.com/2025/11/21/h...
Deep cut.
Man Exploring London Names Clocktower ‘Tahoma’ After Mountain 5,000 Miles Away at Home
theneedling.com/2025/11/21/m...
Man Exploring London Names Clocktower ‘Tahoma’ After Mountain 5,000 Miles Away at Home
theneedling.com/2025/11/21/m...
Man Exploring London Names Clocktower ‘Tahoma’ After Mountain 5,000 Miles Away at Home
A Puyallup man exploring London for the first time announced he’s named the towering clock he discovered today all on his own “Tahoma” after his favorite mountain back home almost 5,000 miles away.…
theneedling.com
November 22, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Deep cut.
Man Exploring London Names Clocktower ‘Tahoma’ After Mountain 5,000 Miles Away at Home
theneedling.com/2025/11/21/m...
Man Exploring London Names Clocktower ‘Tahoma’ After Mountain 5,000 Miles Away at Home
theneedling.com/2025/11/21/m...
WA lawmakers will revisit a bill requiring unions be allowed to bargain over government use of AI when it affects wages or working conditions. After passing the House but stalling in the Senate, supporters say early bargaining builds trust
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
WA Legislature to consider requiring union talks over government use of AI • Washington State Standard
Washington lawmakers are set to discuss whether public sector unions can bargain over their employers’ adoption of AI.
washingtonstatestandard.com
November 21, 2025 at 3:24 PM
WA lawmakers will revisit a bill requiring unions be allowed to bargain over government use of AI when it affects wages or working conditions. After passing the House but stalling in the Senate, supporters say early bargaining builds trust
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/20/w...
Kirkland voters rejected an anti-growth slate, reelecting pro-housing incumbents and adding Shilpa Prem. Despite heavy outside spending for slow-growth candidates, the city stayed its pro-density course, signaling strong support for walkable neighborhoods.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
Kirkland Voters Maintain the City’s Course, Rejecting Anti-Growth Push » The Urbanist
# Despite significant spending to steer the Kirkland City Council toward a more slow growth direction, voters elected progressives in three out of four races. In the end, the election seemed to show m...
www.theurbanist.org
November 21, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Kirkland voters rejected an anti-growth slate, reelecting pro-housing incumbents and adding Shilpa Prem. Despite heavy outside spending for slow-growth candidates, the city stayed its pro-density course, signaling strong support for walkable neighborhoods.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/21/k...
Colorado-style pizza never took off because one restaurant trademarked the term and scared everyone else away from making it. A reflexive IP grab, done simply because a lawyer said they could, locked the style in place, stifling its spread
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
How Trademark Ruined Colorado-Style Pizza
You’ve heard of New York style, Chicago deep dish, Detroit square pans. But Colorado-style pizza? Probably not. And there’s a perfectly ridiculous reason why this regional style never s…
www.techdirt.com
November 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Colorado-style pizza never took off because one restaurant trademarked the term and scared everyone else away from making it. A reflexive IP grab, done simply because a lawyer said they could, locked the style in place, stifling its spread
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/19/h...
SEA airport? Listen to it, she actually says ES-EE-AY
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Monday Evening Headlines
Thanksgiving travel through SEA Airport might not be as bad as you'd expect, non-profits are struggling to feed people this Thanksgiving, and Washington is not shipping wolves to Colorado. It’s our d...
www.kuow.org
November 18, 2025 at 2:27 PM
SEA airport? Listen to it, she actually says ES-EE-AY
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Am I missing something? It's this a thing now?
www.kuow.org/stories/mond...
Deep in a critical piece of how the NYT covers youth tech bans, @mmasnick.bsky.social pulls apart the entire scheme: bans don't reduce harms, they actually make everything worse
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
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www.techdirt.com
November 18, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Deep in a critical piece of how the NYT covers youth tech bans, @mmasnick.bsky.social pulls apart the entire scheme: bans don't reduce harms, they actually make everything worse
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
/1
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/17/n...
/1
Do it, coward.
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
Trump threatens to move World Cup out of Seattle
President Trump warns Seattle's new mayor about World Cup issues.
mynorthwest.com
November 18, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Do it, coward.
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
The World Cup doesn't serve the host communities. Tickets are not accessible to local supporters. I don't care if this cash crab does leave Seattle.
mynorthwest.com/local/trump-...
Reposted by Emmett O'Connell
A Republican said he changed his views about Arab Americans after spending 72 hours meeting with residents and visiting three mosques. “You have all been lied to with the propaganda that’s going on about Dearborn, Michigan,“ he said.
GOP candidate admits he was wrong about Muslims, calls off ‘American Crusade’ march in Dearborn - Detroit Metro Times
After two weeks of warning that Dearborn was edging closer to “Muslim infiltration” and Sharia law, Republican gubernatorial candidate Anthony Hudson walked into three mosques, met with residents, and...
www.metrotimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:07 PM
A Republican said he changed his views about Arab Americans after spending 72 hours meeting with residents and visiting three mosques. “You have all been lied to with the propaganda that’s going on about Dearborn, Michigan,“ he said.
The irony of Chris Rufo complaining about misinformation spreading in the right makes me think it's less about information quality than it is about his own control of the message.
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
The Rise of American Schizo-Politics
The far-Left generates violence; the far-Right fulminates conspiracy.
www.city-journal.org
November 15, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The irony of Chris Rufo complaining about misinformation spreading in the right makes me think it's less about information quality than it is about his own control of the message.
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
www.city-journal.org/article/left...
You wouldn't think actual government officials in Seattle would play the "just asking questions" election denier game after all this time, but they do.
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
There Was Nothing Unusual About Seattle’s Election, or the Results
There was nothing odd, wrong, or suspicious about Seattle’s election results. They sure felt slow, but they weren’t. Someone tell that to outgoing Mayor Bruce Harrell and Seattle Police Officer’s Guil...
www.thestranger.com
November 15, 2025 at 1:19 PM
You wouldn't think actual government officials in Seattle would play the "just asking questions" election denier game after all this time, but they do.
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
www.thestranger.com/news/2025/11...
Olympia loosens single-family zoning, allowing duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, cottages, courtyard apts, and ADUs citywide. But strict parking and large minimum lot sizes limit impact, adding only ~1k–1.9k homes over 20 years. Still a major step forward
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
Olympia Moves to Further Loosen the Stranglehold of Single-Family Zoning Laws | Sightline Institute
The city’s new rules to spur missing-middle housing are a good first step, but still retain too many restrictions.
www.sightline.org
November 15, 2025 at 1:12 PM
Olympia loosens single-family zoning, allowing duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, cottages, courtyard apts, and ADUs citywide. But strict parking and large minimum lot sizes limit impact, adding only ~1k–1.9k homes over 20 years. Still a major step forward
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
www.sightline.org/2025/11/14/o...
What hasn't been considered, and I'm totally serious about this, is the statue of Marcus Whitman, which was created because of a racist myth to perpetuate white supremacy, not exist. We should cut it apart and destroy it.
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
4-ton Marcus Whitman statue at WA Capitol still in need of new home • Washington State Standard
Officials seek a new home for the Marcus Whitman statue in the Washington state Capitol that is politically acceptable and physically doable.
washingtonstatestandard.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:02 PM
What hasn't been considered, and I'm totally serious about this, is the statue of Marcus Whitman, which was created because of a racist myth to perpetuate white supremacy, not exist. We should cut it apart and destroy it.
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/13/w...
Spokane may adopt a 12% tax on surface parking lots and 6% on garages to fund road and sidewalk repairs. The plan aims to push redevelopment of downtown lots into housing and businesses, reducing blight and car dependence while boosting vibrancy and tax revenue.
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
Spokane City Council considers taxing commercial parking lots – RANGE Media
The tax would add about $0.50 to a $3.85 parking fee and fund street repair. But it’s not just about revenue, it’s about increasing vibrancy downtown.
rangemedia.co
November 13, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Spokane may adopt a 12% tax on surface parking lots and 6% on garages to fund road and sidewalk repairs. The plan aims to push redevelopment of downtown lots into housing and businesses, reducing blight and car dependence while boosting vibrancy and tax revenue.
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
rangemedia.co/spokane-city...
Marion County, KS will pay over $3M and issue an apology for the 2023 police raid on the Marion County Record, which led to the paper’s co-owner dying the next day.
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
A Kansas county agrees to pay $3 million and apologize over a raid on a small-town newspaper
A rural Kansas county has agreed to pay more than $3 million and apologize over a law enforcement raid on a small-town weekly newspaper in 2023.
apnews.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Marion County, KS will pay over $3M and issue an apology for the 2023 police raid on the Marion County Record, which led to the paper’s co-owner dying the next day.
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
Officials admitted the raid was illegal and poorly investigated.
apnews.com/article/kans...
POLITICO’s poll finding that 24% think political violence is sometimes justified is probably BS because they didn't ask what they meant by political violence. Most likely misunderstood the question and refer to the American Revolution, not today’s politics.
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
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POLITICO Poll: Americans are bracing for political violence to get worse
POLITICO Poll: Americans think it’s likely a political candidate will be assassinated in the next five years.
www.politico.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:17 PM
POLITICO’s poll finding that 24% think political violence is sometimes justified is probably BS because they didn't ask what they meant by political violence. Most likely misunderstood the question and refer to the American Revolution, not today’s politics.
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
/1
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
/1
Starbucks baristas voted 92% to authorize an open-ended nationwide strike after talks for a first union contract collapsed. The company’s offer: no raise the first year, 1.5% after. Workers United represents 12k baristas at 650 stores with zero contracts since 2021.
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
All-out Starbucks strike brewing
With no contract after three years, Starbucks workers vote to strike, demanding fair pay and real bargaining progress.
nwlaborpress.org
November 10, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Starbucks baristas voted 92% to authorize an open-ended nationwide strike after talks for a first union contract collapsed. The company’s offer: no raise the first year, 1.5% after. Workers United represents 12k baristas at 650 stores with zero contracts since 2021.
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...
nwlaborpress.org/2025/11/all-...