Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

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Alex Garcia @alexgarcia.xyz · 4h

New blog post: I've been working on a new parser for the Federal Election Commission's custom `.fec` file format.

Written in Rust, completely open source, and the fastest FEC file parser out there.

If you ever work with federal campaign finance data, check it out!

alexgarcia.xyz/blog/2025/in...

I'm working on libfec, a new FEC file parser and CLI tool

Parse federal campaign filings

alexgarcia.xyz

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David Folkenflik @davidfolkenflik.bsky.social · 8h

NPR's veteran defense reporter Tom Bowman: Why I'm handing in my Pentagon Pass

www.npr.org/2025/10/14/g...

Opinion: Why I'm handing in my Pentagon press pass

Tom Bowman has held his Pentagon press pass for 28 years. He says the Pentagon's new media policy makes it impossible to be a journalist, which means finding out what's really going on behind the scen...

www.npr.org

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Molly Jong-Fast @mollyjongfast.bsky.social · 18h

Solidarity is the only way

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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 19h

Several news organizations, including The Washington Post, The New York Times, Newsmax and NPR, have announced that their journalists will not sign a new set of Pentagon restrictions affecting news gathering in the massive military complex.

Several News Outlets Reject Pentagon’s Reporting Restrictions

The Washington Post, The New York Times, Newsmax and others said their journalists would not agree to the Defense Department’s policies on news gathering ahead of a Tuesday deadline.

nyti.ms

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Andy Greenberg @agreenberg.bsky.social · 19h

Researchers pointed a satellite dish at the sky for 3 years and monitored what unencrypted data it picked up. The results were shocking: They obtained thousands of T-Mobile users' phone calls and texts, military and law enforcement secrets, much more: www.wired.com/story/satell... 🧵👇

Satellites Are Leaking the World’s Secrets: Calls, Texts, Military and Corporate Data

With just $800 in basic equipment, researchers found a stunning variety of data—including thousands of T-Mobile users’ calls and texts and even US military communications—sent by satellites unencrypte...

www.wired.com

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Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 1d

For months I've been following what happened when a company forced AI into the world of craft beer. Legal threats, people quitting, and beer judges in revolt over being told to use AI.

"It is attempting to solve a problem that wasn’t a problem before AI showed up"
www.404media.co/what-happene...

What Happened When AI Came for Craft Beer

A prominent beer competition introduced an AI-judging tool without warning. The judges and some members of the wider brewing industry were pissed.

www.404media.co

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Tyler Dukes @mtdukes.bsky.social · 1d

Awesome! Good luck Todd!

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The Charlotte Observer @charlotteobserver.com · 1d

As a nor’easter approached last week, local residents made sure they had what they needed in case travel in or out was cut off. It was.

A nor’easter has closed sections of NC 12 on the Outer Banks. Here’s what to know.

As a nor’easter approached last week, local residents made sure they had what they needed in case travel in or out was cut off. It was.

bit.ly

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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 1d

John Searle, a philosopher who was best known for a thought experiment he formulated, decades before the rise of ChatGPT, to disprove that a computer program by itself could ever achieve consciousness, died at 93.

John Searle, Philosopher Who Wrestled With A.I., Dies at 93

His blunt debating and imaginative theorizing about artificial intelligence and the human mind made him a leading scholar. But sexual-harassment allegations ended his career.

nyti.ms

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Tyler Dukes @mtdukes.bsky.social · 2d

Red flag day.

Photo of the shoreline of Kitty Hawk looking out over the Kitty Hawk Pier, pounded by rough nor’easter-driven waves.

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Tyler Dukes @mtdukes.bsky.social · 3d

FWIW, this is a claim some municipalities here in NC make.

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Melody Joy Kramer, MLIS @mkramer.bsky.social · 3d

I spent five years working alongside demographers and population researchers before joining @propublica.org - info below on how to reach us.

ProPublica @propublica.org · 4d

Federal workers: If you were impacted by the Trump administration's just-announced mass layoffs, our reporters are here to listen.

We understand you may be taking a risk in contacting us, and we take your privacy seriously.

Here's how to get in touch securely 👇

How to Contact ProPublica or Send a Tip Securely — ProPublica

Our job is to hold people and institutions accountable. To do that, we need evidence.

propublica.org

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Paul Mozur @paulmozur.bsky.social · 4d

Our newest AI investigation opens in a Taipei bar where Chinese exec Alice Huang toasted Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Her company soon began receiving billions in AI chips.

Now her firm is being investigated by the U.S. government for selling those chips on to China. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/09/t...

A Mystery C.E.O. and Billions in Sales: Is China Buying Banned Nvidia Chips?

www.nytimes.com

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The News & Observer @newsobserver.com · 4d

Gov. Josh Stein said the charges against Brockman “are extremely serious and deeply troubling.” He joined several other political leaders in saying Brockman “should resign immediately.”

Top NC Democrats and Republicans call on Rep. Cecil Brockman to immediately resign

Gov. Josh Stein said the charges against Brockman “are extremely serious and deeply troubling.” He joined several other political leaders in saying Brockman “should resign immediately.”

bit.ly

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Felix M. Simon @felixsimon.bsky.social · 5d

No time to read the long version of our new @reutersinstitute.bsky.social research on use & views around GenAI, information, and news in 6 countries? Then read the summary, just out with @niemanlab.org.

www.niemanlab.org/2025/10/peop...

People are using ChatGPT twice as much as they were last year. They’re still just as skeptical of AI in news.

"For news organizations, our findings are in some ways bitter medicine."

www.niemanlab.org

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The News & Observer @newsobserver.com · 5d

His appearance at a UNC public forum follows his filing a lawsuit accusing the university of violating public records laws.

After suing UNC, ex-Provost Chris Clemens talks DEI, protests and ‘bullying’ from DC

His appearance at a UNC public forum follows his filing a lawsuit accusing the university of violating public records laws.

bit.ly

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Tyler Dukes @mtdukes.bsky.social · 5d

Kate, no. 😭

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Tim Kellogg @timkellogg.me · 6d

agent definition

Anthropic vs OpenAI

(yes, the debate is open again)

A simple comparison diagram contrasting Agent and Workflow concepts.

On the left, under a green circle titled “Agent”, the subtitle reads “A loop where the agent decides when to stop.”
Below it, a flow diagram shows:
• LLM Call → Call Tools → loops back to LLM Call,
• with an arrow branching from LLM Call to Stop, showing the agent can choose when to end.

On the right, under a red circle titled “Workflow”, the subtitle reads “Predetermined steps, written in code.”
A linear sequence of boxes illustrates fixed progression:
• LLM Call 1 → LLM Call 2 → LLM Call 3.

The visual contrast emphasizes that agents are dynamic and self-directed, while workflows are sequential and predefined.

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Brad Heath @bradheath.bsky.social · 7d

Stop and read this deep dive on TikTok and how it's consuming much more than hours of our time.

One user: "It was harder for me to create my own opinions, it was harder for me to express my own thoughts in the day, and I think that took a toll with me."

www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/int...

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404 Media @404media.co · 7d

NEW: Cops in Texas told 404 Media in May they used Flock to find a woman who self-administered an abortion out of concern for her safety.

Documents now show police were conducting a “death investigation” and discussed whether they could charge her with a crime: www.404media.co/police-said-...

Police Said They Surveilled Woman Who Had an Abortion for Her 'Safety.' Court Records Show They Considered Charging Her With a Crime

Court records show that the narrative Flock and a Texas Sheriff's Office has told the public isn't the whole story, and that police were conducting a 'death investigation' into the abortion.

www.404media.co

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Felix M. Simon @felixsimon.bsky.social · 7d

🚨✨ Publication alert: How do people in 6 countries (🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🇫🇷 🇦🇷 🇩🇰 🇯🇵 ) use AI 🤖 and think about it in the context of information, news, and institutions?

Our new @reutersinstitute.bsky.social survey research (n ≈ 12,000) with @richardfletcher.bsky.social & @rasmuskleis.bsky.social explores this.

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Hannes Cools @hannescools.bsky.social · 7d

New study by @felixsimon.bsky.social et al.👏

One result that stood out for me, and that should reassure news organizations (for now): Getting news via an AI system has doubled but remains a minority activity. Weekly use rose from 3% to 6%. 18–24s seem to use it slightly more.

tinyurl.com/bdz957en

Generative AI and news report 2025: How people think about AI’s role in journalism and society

Our survey in six countries (Argentina, Denmark, France, Japan, the UK, and the US) explores how people use generative AI in their everyday lives, what they think its impact will be on different areas...

reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk

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David A. Graham @dgraham.bsky.social · 7d

Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill

Anthony Michael Kreis @anthonymkreis.bsky.social · 7d

contracts professor / torts professor / constitutional law professor

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Jodi Cohen @jodiscohen.bsky.social · 8d

🚨Come work with me at @propublica.org!
We are hiring a reporter to cover higher education — the best beat there is. 🏫

job-boards.greenhouse.io/propublica/j...

Higher Education Reporter, National

New York City, United States

job-boards.greenhouse.io

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Hannah Bloch @hannahbloch.bsky.social · 7d

Many congratulations to @npr.org’s Anas Baba on this wonderful, hugely deserved recognition of his “steadfast and factual coverage of the war in Gaza [that] is making a singular contribution to public understanding of the conflict at great personal risk.”

www.academyofdiplomacy.org/news/press-r...

Press Release | The Academy’s 2025 Ross Media Award Winners Announced | American Academy of Diplomacy

In a statement issued on October 6, 2025, the American Academy of Diplomacy announced that the winners of the 2025 Ross Media Award for Reporting and Commentary on the Practice of American Diplomacy a...

https://www.academyofdiplomacy.org/news/press-release-%7C-the-academy’s-2025-ross-media-award-winners-announced

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