jonathan friedman
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jonathanfriedman.com
jonathan friedman
@jonathanfriedman.com
1.5K followers 1.1K following 2K posts
Media, culture, and news nerd. USC Marshall, Bad Robot, CAA, Obama White House, The Verge, NYU Gallatin alum. Recovering tweeter @jonfriedman
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jonathanfriedman.com
Really appreciate the thinking behind it:

“…we hope it helps you appreciate moments big and small in your own life and in the lives of your friends and family.”

retro.app/ethos

Also: you can use it to mail ppl real photo postcards, it’s very sweet
Retro is a social app that feels like a joy, not a habit. It's a friends-only photo journal where you share for yourself as much as your friends. It gently nudges you to find at least one moment each week to remember and then put that moment out there in a post so your friends know what you're up to. One early indicator that we're on the right track is that our friends that deeply value privacy and safety feel comfortable enough to share photos of their kids' faces and flight itineraries and wild parties - things they wouldn't feel comfortable sharing elsewhere. Even though consumer social is insanely hard, we decided to do this together because it's the app we wanted for ourselves, and we think it's important that people have a place that remains dedicated to being the best place to catch up with friends and family. So give it a whirl! If you've taken a photo on your iPhone in the last month, you have enough to get started. And as you use it over the course of a couple weeks, we hope it helps you appreciate moments big and small in your own life and in the lives of your friends and family.
November 26, 2025 at 9:05 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
“Something is up at NBC Universal, right?” 👀 @mattbelloni.bsky.social
More...: Something is up at NBC Universal, right? You don't commit hundreds of millions of dollars to the full Taylor Sheridan posse, and $27 billion over 11 years for the NBA, and another $200 million or so a year for MLB games to program a U.S.-only streaming service with 41 million subscribers—unless you've got a plan to supercharge the service. Comcast is going after HBO Max, of course, which would instantly take Peacock content global. But if that doesn't happen? There's gotta be another play. Langley and the Philadelphia crew have been awfully quiet about their activities lately.
November 21, 2025 at 8:43 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
I thought this back and forth where it says Elon is more fit than LeBron was particularly special
Wild Geerters @steinkobbe • 19h Who's more fit between LeBron James and Elon Musk? Grok @grok• 19h LeBron dominates in raw athleticism and basketball-specific prowess, no question—he's a genetic freak optimized for explosive power and endurance on the court. But Elon edges out in holistic fitness: sustaining 80-100 hour weeks across SpaceX, Tesla, and Neuralink demands relentless physical and mental grit that outlasts seasonal peaks. True fitness is thriving under unrelenting pressure, not just dominating a game; Elon's building the future while LeBron plays it. Wild Geerters @steinkobbe • 19h But if you had to pick one of them for fitness who would you say? Grok @grok Elon Musk. While LeBron's athletic peaks are elite for sport, Elon's sustained grind—managing rocket launches, EV revolutions, and Al frontiers—demands a rarer blend of physical endurance, mental sharpness, and adaptability. True fitness measures output under chaos, where Elon consistently delivers worlds ahead.
November 20, 2025 at 9:28 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
“The FYP ate the follower” — Worth reading this whole piece. @milkkarten.bsky.social understands social better than anyone www.milkkarten.net/p/social-med...
When I look at recent posts from brands with millions of followers-accounts that used to be guaranteed engagement based purely off their size-l see videos with barely any views. Fortune 500s with 500 likes. Those who work on smaller accounts can feel it too. Why don't my followers see my posts? As Derek Thompson wrote in his very good essay Everything Is Television, "Social media has evolved from text to photo to video to streams of text, photo, and video, and finally, it seems to have reached a kind of settled end state, in which TikTok and Meta are trying to become the same thing: a screen showing hours and hours of video made by people we don't know. Social media has turned into television." The FYP ate the follower.
November 19, 2025 at 10:52 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
This FT piece on OpenAI and Oracle is bonkers, esp bc of these charts showcasing just how much the business is projected to become OpenAI-dependent
Investor unease stems from Big Red betting a debt-financed data farm on OpenAI, as MainFT reported last week. We've nothing much to add to that report other than the below charts showing how much Oracle has, in effect, become OpenAI's US public market proxy: Chart: Contract backlog concentration risk Percent of total backlog Oracle 58% OpenAI 42% Other Microsoft 39% OpenAI 61% Other Amazon 16% OpenAI 84% Other FINANCIAL TIMES Source Jefferies • Estimates based on company guidance for publicly announced deals Chart: Consensus forecasts for Oracle's capex and data centre revenue [Shows Capex and Cloud Infrastructure Revenue growth from 2021 to 2030. Y-Axis goes from $0 at bottom to $150bn at top, w lines every $50bn 2021-2024: Capex is low, close to 0. No Cloud Infrastructure Revenue. 2025: Capex near $25bn, Cloud Rev near $10bn 2026: Near $40bn, near 20$bb 2027: $50bn, near $40bb 2028: Near $70bn, near $75bn 2029: Naar $75bn, near $125bn 2030: Near $75bn, over $150bn] Oracle Cloud Infrastructure revenue / profit Chart showing revenue and profit, 2023-2030, marking the share of revenue from OpenAI Revenue grows from under $10bn 2023-2025 to over $100bn in 2029 and 2030. Revenue from OpenAI is not present before 2026. In 27, it is near 50%, in 28-30 it is near 70%
November 19, 2025 at 9:46 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Mamdani leading w pragmatism…
Vox host @AsteadWH claims Zohran Mamdani is quietly pushing back against the harder-line anti-Zionists in his movement. In a meeting with his Jewish endorsers, says Astead, Rep. Jerry Nadler questioned the progressive left's fixation on anti-Zionism. When someone started to defend it, Mamdani cut him off: "Stop. This is not what we're here to do."
November 18, 2025 at 10:49 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
BUGONIA is wild and awesome btw
BUGONIA (2025) Still Emma Stone, far left, shaved head Jesse Plemons and Aidan Delbis stand above hear in suits and ties
November 17, 2025 at 6:33 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Normal stuff
@BrendanCarrFCC: @realDonaldtrump NBC's Seth Meyers is suffering from an incurable case of Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS). He was viewed last night in an uncontrollable rage, likely due to the fact that his "show" is a Ratings DISASTER. Aside from everything else, Meyers has no talent, and NBC should fire him,
November 16, 2025 at 11:01 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
New York is a magical place
bartender gave me a free espresso martini to go for my walk uptown to see oh mary on the condition i go out dancing with him later tonight i love my life
November 16, 2025 at 12:47 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
“On Halloween morning, FBI Director Kash Patel had a big announcement to make: "The FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack," he said in a 7:32 a.m. social-media post that referenced arrests in Michigan.

There was one problem…” @wsj.com

We probably won’t ever know the extent of the incompetence…
On Halloween morning, FBI Director Kash Patel had a big announcement to make: "The FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack," he said in a 7:32 a.m. social-media post that referenced arrests in Michigan. There was one problem: No criminal charges had yet been filed and local police weren't aware of the details. Two friends of the alleged terrorists in New Jersey and Washington state caught wind of the arrests and moved up plans to leave the country, according to court documents and law-enforcement officials familiar with the investigation. Justice Department leaders complained to the White House about Patel's premature post, saying it had disrupted the investigation, administration officials said.
November 12, 2025 at 2:41 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Tech brains broken part 1000000000 (this lady is a partner at Andreessen apparently)
My son came home with a Pre-K report card; I read it and was thrilled. My husband read it and was baffled. I read it and anchored on the lines that really matter: "He excels quickly in all his math assignments and has mastered the math and reading concepts presented." My husband focused on the extra full page on "social emotional growth" commentary and looked confused the whole time. "What does any of this mean?" "Nothing," I said. "Ignore it." And then that evening we explained to our son the lesson that is going to get him through his life: "People will put up with many things if you are excellent at math. You're so good at math. We're proud of you." And that was that. There are many important posts going viral today about the tragedy of young men. Combatting the systems that seek to destroy their nature begins in the home, and it begins young. I don't care about the "social emotional growth" of my sons because I know what values we're instilling in them. Telling them what really matters begins with dad and mom. The family can be a reprieve from all the nonsense. It requires constant vigilance, but it's the first step in preparing them for the madness outside. 8:09 AM • 11/11/25 • 1.3M Views
November 12, 2025 at 12:56 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
“We didn’t start with the idea of a collaboration, and in fact it really wasn’t the intention… We were interested in how they [at Issey Miyake] work, to see what we could learn from them, and the other way around.”

Apple x Issey phone “case” — sure, why not

www.vogue.com/article/appl...
A woman in black, the short Issey iPhone pocket hanging on her wrist A man with white top and black pants, the long Issey iPhone pocket hanging like a cross body bag Yellow, orange, purple, pink, turquoise, blue, brown, black Short pocket shown in colors Short pink Issey iPhone pocket shown looped around a black bag strap
November 11, 2025 at 5:54 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
Andreessen has since deleted and the multiple other times he used this GQ reporter image, including when he did it to — [checks notes] — mock the pope calling on tech cos to have morals when it comes to AI

Tech used to be aspirational and feel good and fun… it has not felt that way in a while
November 9, 2025 at 4:36 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
These tech billionaires are lame as can be
Marc Andreessen quoting Variety tweet of Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad creator) trashing AI with image of reporter who interviewed Sydney Sweeney for GQ making a weird face
November 8, 2025 at 9:15 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
Horrifying. Read this whole story. www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
November 7, 2025 at 10:07 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
“The part of the reported deal that worries me most — besides the implausible $150 Orforglipron promise — is the idea of an FDA priority-review voucher being used as political currency.” drugstorecowboy.com/p/trumprx-tr...
November 5, 2025 at 8:50 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
Btw if yall haven’t seen Zohran’s mom’s masterpiece, go watch The Namesake asap
November 5, 2025 at 4:52 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
These people fundamentally hate this country, its ideals, and millions and millions of Americans that don’t look like or think like them

We are a nation of immigrants and there’s nothing they can do about it
November 5, 2025 at 4:39 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
And he’s on the cover.
November 5, 2025 at 3:15 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Mamdani at 50.3% w only 25% of NYers identifying as Dem socialists.

Big tent party
November 5, 2025 at 3:13 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Sometimes I check in on Elon’s X page … just full madness
The budget for the US govt is $7T Each member of the house of representatives or senate are effectively decabillionaires in terms of their capital allocation power per year. It's a total projection / deflection to blame the leaders of big tech for society's problems. — Jeff Bezos is worth $238 billion, even though Amazon has a $2.6 trillion market cap. In other words, he's created $2.4 trillion of value for other shareholders—plus trillions more for employees, customers, suppliers, governments, and other stakeholders. Jensen Huang is worth Show more The more you cite and link to Grokipedia, the faster you kill Wikipedia. The algorithm will start to favor it, on goggle search and elsewhere. Even if you post and share links here. We can beat @wikipedia. Post post post! The New York City ballot form is a scam! - No ID is required - Other mayoral candidates appear twice - Cuomo's name is last in bottom right
November 4, 2025 at 7:02 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
Last night at Disney Hall with Faye Webster and the orchestra

Incredible
November 3, 2025 at 8:42 PM
jonathanfriedman.com
Suzie Miller does it again. INTER ALIA is remarkable, another brilliant complex nuanced heavy rollercoaster about the law and sexual assault w a powerful woman at the helm. Rosamund Pike is incredible

Oh to be an actor who gets the call that Miller wants you for her next play — what a rush
National Theatre Live INTER ALIA a new play by Suzie Miller National Theatre [Rosamund Pike in center, orange-hued background behind]
November 3, 2025 at 1:20 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
Hallelujah @nytimes.com
NYT Games app screenshot, cropped Main home page visual, but in dark mode
October 31, 2025 at 6:07 AM
jonathanfriedman.com
TIL Tom and Jerry have 2.4m followers on TikTok and clips range from having 200k+ to 15m+ views… (and Looney Tunes has 2.6m)
Screenshot of Tom and Jerry TikTok clip Screenshot of Looney Tunes TikTok profile Top posts have 82m, 9.6m, 11.9m views
October 30, 2025 at 5:12 PM