Jeff Horwitz
@jeffhorwitz.bsky.social
Reporter covering Meta, social media and other topics (hopefully) for Reuters' investigative Team.
I knew doing scam research would put me into the "dumbest guy alive" digital ad targeting category, but nonexistent Milwaukee Brand cyberpunk staplers?
Holy hell I don't think I was ready for the ad-based internet to get even worse.
Holy hell I don't think I was ready for the ad-based internet to get even worse.
November 14, 2025 at 6:08 PM
I knew doing scam research would put me into the "dumbest guy alive" digital ad targeting category, but nonexistent Milwaukee Brand cyberpunk staplers?
Holy hell I don't think I was ready for the ad-based internet to get even worse.
Holy hell I don't think I was ready for the ad-based internet to get even worse.
Meant to post this from one of underlying documents:
Meta earns $3.5B ever six months in "higher legal risk" revenue from scams, and that such amount is could be the cumulative "outside order of magnitude" for fines from regulators for accepting scam ads.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Meta earns $3.5B ever six months in "higher legal risk" revenue from scams, and that such amount is could be the cumulative "outside order of magnitude" for fines from regulators for accepting scam ads.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
November 6, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Meant to post this from one of underlying documents:
Meta earns $3.5B ever six months in "higher legal risk" revenue from scams, and that such amount is could be the cumulative "outside order of magnitude" for fines from regulators for accepting scam ads.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Meta earns $3.5B ever six months in "higher legal risk" revenue from scams, and that such amount is could be the cumulative "outside order of magnitude" for fines from regulators for accepting scam ads.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE AND MY FEET: A MYSTERY
My wife wanted to sell a mirror, so I listed it on Facebook Marketplace this weekend. I neglected to wear shoes for the photo.
I have since received seven offers: two for the mirror, and five for acts involving my feet. I'm now curious what's going on.
My wife wanted to sell a mirror, so I listed it on Facebook Marketplace this weekend. I neglected to wear shoes for the photo.
I have since received seven offers: two for the mirror, and five for acts involving my feet. I'm now curious what's going on.
October 29, 2025 at 1:23 AM
FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE AND MY FEET: A MYSTERY
My wife wanted to sell a mirror, so I listed it on Facebook Marketplace this weekend. I neglected to wear shoes for the photo.
I have since received seven offers: two for the mirror, and five for acts involving my feet. I'm now curious what's going on.
My wife wanted to sell a mirror, so I listed it on Facebook Marketplace this weekend. I neglected to wear shoes for the photo.
I have since received seven offers: two for the mirror, and five for acts involving my feet. I'm now curious what's going on.
I would gladly read a followup on this focused entirely on IRBs. I've been surprised by how often researchers say they could never got approval to run tests mimicking the sort of interventions that major platforms undertake on far larger populations as a matter of course on a daily basis.
October 24, 2025 at 4:42 PM
I would gladly read a followup on this focused entirely on IRBs. I've been surprised by how often researchers say they could never got approval to run tests mimicking the sort of interventions that major platforms undertake on far larger populations as a matter of course on a daily basis.
This recent preprint on tech industry influence over external research is compelling. Beyond documenting the low rate of industry-funded researchers actually disclosing that fact, the paper points out that journals have routinely waived IRB review for industry work.
arxiv.org/abs/2510.19894
arxiv.org/abs/2510.19894
October 24, 2025 at 4:08 PM
This recent preprint on tech industry influence over external research is compelling. Beyond documenting the low rate of industry-funded researchers actually disclosing that fact, the paper points out that journals have routinely waived IRB review for industry work.
arxiv.org/abs/2510.19894
arxiv.org/abs/2510.19894
Jeff Schwarz, The Stain Wizard, has some sound advice about how to preserve fabric’s tensile strength when removing substantial bloodstains.
Raises some unanswered questions about what the Wizard’s been up to, though.
Raises some unanswered questions about what the Wizard’s been up to, though.
October 7, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Jeff Schwarz, The Stain Wizard, has some sound advice about how to preserve fabric’s tensile strength when removing substantial bloodstains.
Raises some unanswered questions about what the Wizard’s been up to, though.
Raises some unanswered questions about what the Wizard’s been up to, though.
Here’s the lede to an article on The Clean Show 2025. As with AI, there were “vast advances” since last year.
October 7, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Here’s the lede to an article on The Clean Show 2025. As with AI, there were “vast advances” since last year.
Happy birthday to this trade publication, which I am fairly confident will outlive most of its news industry peers
October 7, 2025 at 10:21 PM
Happy birthday to this trade publication, which I am fairly confident will outlive most of its news industry peers
Practicing medicine? I’m going to guess they’re for practicing medicine now. And maybe clinical research.
September 22, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Practicing medicine? I’m going to guess they’re for practicing medicine now. And maybe clinical research.
I try not to believe in market timing, but the WSJ’s planning a full year’s worth of stories on the ongoing triumph of American capitalism is one of those things that makes me wonder if my portfolio should be more skewed toward global stocks / canned goods.
September 7, 2025 at 11:39 PM
I try not to believe in market timing, but the WSJ’s planning a full year’s worth of stories on the ongoing triumph of American capitalism is one of those things that makes me wonder if my portfolio should be more skewed toward global stocks / canned goods.
Like, "is it creepy?"
"Show, not tell."
"Show, not tell."
August 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Like, "is it creepy?"
"Show, not tell."
"Show, not tell."
Last one, prompt here being "jumping cat."
August 22, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Last one, prompt here being "jumping cat."
This isn't a place where I'm deeply sourced up, but man I would love to understand how Midjourey produced better image GenAI than Meta did given their relative infrastructure spending.
The below are Meta AI animations produced in the last couple of days.
The below are Meta AI animations produced in the last couple of days.
August 22, 2025 at 11:13 PM
This isn't a place where I'm deeply sourced up, but man I would love to understand how Midjourey produced better image GenAI than Meta did given their relative infrastructure spending.
The below are Meta AI animations produced in the last couple of days.
The below are Meta AI animations produced in the last couple of days.
When people talked about the coming use cases for crypto, I don’t know if they had “monetizing throwing sex toys at athletes” or “gambling on whether people will throw sex toys at athletes” in mind.
Either way, though, I guess we’re living in the future.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...
Either way, though, I guess we’re living in the future.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...
August 8, 2025 at 4:30 AM
When people talked about the coming use cases for crypto, I don’t know if they had “monetizing throwing sex toys at athletes” or “gambling on whether people will throw sex toys at athletes” in mind.
Either way, though, I guess we’re living in the future.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...
Either way, though, I guess we’re living in the future.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...
Google just offered without prompting to do my math homework for me. (Just tested it out, and the "help" involves providing the answer).
August 7, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Google just offered without prompting to do my math homework for me. (Just tested it out, and the "help" involves providing the answer).
PSA: the crappy UPS chatbot will not let you talk to a human about your lost package unless you swear at it first.
August 5, 2025 at 11:51 PM
PSA: the crappy UPS chatbot will not let you talk to a human about your lost package unless you swear at it first.
For reasons that are very unclear to him, links to my former colleague @bobmcmillan.bsky.social past work on Wired.com sometimes lead to the following image. He has posted about this on LinkedIn and I am very happy/excited for him.
July 31, 2025 at 7:29 PM
For reasons that are very unclear to him, links to my former colleague @bobmcmillan.bsky.social past work on Wired.com sometimes lead to the following image. He has posted about this on LinkedIn and I am very happy/excited for him.
I went at least a year without noticing that Spotify started letting people pay to influence its recommendations. Of course, of course, but it'd be great if I could just pay for a service and not have someone trying to wring a few more pennies out of making the experience crappier.
July 27, 2025 at 8:43 PM
I went at least a year without noticing that Spotify started letting people pay to influence its recommendations. Of course, of course, but it'd be great if I could just pay for a service and not have someone trying to wring a few more pennies out of making the experience crappier.
This is potentially doable, though I’m leaving town in the AM and supposed to have dinner with my folks.
Serious interest? @lcaliforinquena.bsky.social also expressed possible interest. Taking back what I said about skittishness
Serious interest? @lcaliforinquena.bsky.social also expressed possible interest. Taking back what I said about skittishness
June 25, 2025 at 1:25 AM
This is potentially doable, though I’m leaving town in the AM and supposed to have dinner with my folks.
Serious interest? @lcaliforinquena.bsky.social also expressed possible interest. Taking back what I said about skittishness
Serious interest? @lcaliforinquena.bsky.social also expressed possible interest. Taking back what I said about skittishness
Just trapped this girl in my yard. She’s been weaned and seems pretty skittish. My guess is five weeks old.
Got a friend of my niece fostering for a night or two. If nobody in the San Francisco / East Bay vicinity wants to adopt, I’ll probably have to just cook it and eat it.
Got a friend of my niece fostering for a night or two. If nobody in the San Francisco / East Bay vicinity wants to adopt, I’ll probably have to just cook it and eat it.
June 25, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Just trapped this girl in my yard. She’s been weaned and seems pretty skittish. My guess is five weeks old.
Got a friend of my niece fostering for a night or two. If nobody in the San Francisco / East Bay vicinity wants to adopt, I’ll probably have to just cook it and eat it.
Got a friend of my niece fostering for a night or two. If nobody in the San Francisco / East Bay vicinity wants to adopt, I’ll probably have to just cook it and eat it.
June 24, 2025 at 11:18 PM
People smirk sometimes when I tell them about my bee jobs. As if bee removals weren’t a serious form of work.
June 2, 2025 at 3:05 PM
People smirk sometimes when I tell them about my bee jobs. As if bee removals weren’t a serious form of work.
Bee Minus has also created a merchandizing and fast fashion arm. I’ve struck an in-kind deal to trade screen printing services for honey.
May 23, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Bee Minus has also created a merchandizing and fast fashion arm. I’ve struck an in-kind deal to trade screen printing services for honey.