cawston.bsky.social - Profile | ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

Access to knowledge is essential for society, democracy & prosperity. Preservation of knowledge allows us to learn, iterate,challenge. It drives innovation and growth in all senses of the word. Privileged to be part of the House of Lords roundtable on unlocking eBook access. #CILIP #KR21 #Inflect

submitted 4 days ago • 0 comments

Like with Musk’s ownership of Twitter, the right win in each possible scenario here - either the take-over or destruction of a key media platform.

submitted 5 days ago • 0 comments

This episode of Origin Story on the myth of "cultural marxism", a conspiracy theory with antisemitic roots, is essential listening. It's a phrase, alongside "critical race theory", that always indicates bad faith. @iandunt.bsky.social @dorianlynskey.bsky.social open.spotify.com/episode/1ywU...

submitted 14 days ago • 12 comments

This is so bad, it's almost very good.

submitted 14 days ago • 1 comment

Herman Melville's "Moby Dick" has perhaps the most memorable opening line in all of Western literature: "I hope you motherfuckers like reading about whales"

submitted 15 days ago • 500 comments

Monk at the Abbey seemed like a good idea but the dream is over @cambridgeunited.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

submitted 14 days ago • 0 comments

"Everything is a conspiracy when you don’t know how anything works," what a phrase

submitted 16 days ago • 3 comments

The big takeaway here is that Reuters won this case against the AI company on grounds they violated fair use—the judge found the AI company was guilty because, in using copyrighted works to generate its output, it “meant to compete... by developing a market substitute.” Huge.

submitted 19 days ago • 56 comments

Going to submit my annual vibes at the end of March...

submitted 20 days ago • 0 comments

Some great debates on #AI hosted by @britishlibrary.bsky.social

submitted 21 days ago • 0 comments

'the AI Playbook for the UK Government... updates and expands on the Generative AI Framework for HMG' www.gov.uk/government/p... - at quick glance it looks clearer so hopefully easier to share with colleagues #GenAI #UK

submitted 20 days ago • 0 comments

Trump just fired the National Archives Director Colleen Shogan “This evening, President Trump fired me. No cause or reason was cited." 🔗 www.404media.co/trump-fires-...

submitted 23 days ago • 130 comments

“An Arkansas state senator filed legislation Monday seeking to abolish the state boards that oversee public libraries and educational public television programs.”

submitted 23 days ago • 1 comment

It’s why I call it “a coup data” : the capture/destruction/leakage of federal data flows that function as its core source of power

submitted 25 days ago • 5 comments

Yet another example of the ongoing success of cultural institutions despite the asymmetrical disadvantages they are continuously burdened with, juxtaposed w/ the supposed grit (read: grift) of the private sector. Give any cultural org the chance to lose billions like the private sector so often does

submitted 25 days ago • 0 comments

So Google joins OpenAI in continuing to expose "Responsible AI" as a useful PR term that every teacher and school admin should understand can be stripped of any remaining ethical commitments when it's profitable to do so, and thus a good reason not to embrace these companies and their tools.

submitted 26 days ago • 1 comment

Librarians aren't going to save us. Librarians aren't superheroes. They're just people trying to keep largely underfunded and overwhelmed public services going. Praise is nice; realistic expectations are better; material support is best.

submitted 27 days ago • 15 comments

You've got to find a crazy narrative to justify a decision that will literally kill children, otherwise you'd be forced into a pretty heavy moral reckoning

submitted 28 days ago • 10 comments

Long week.

submitted 30 days ago • 0 comments

Libraries and librarians didn’t just change my life - they saved it. Today I was honoured to be made a Centenary Champion for @natlibscot.bsky.social along with the great @valmcdermid.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

submitted 31 days ago • 11 comments

This seems to me to be an excellent list of principles

submitted 32 days ago • 5 comments

Even our intranet is called Biscuit 🍪

submitted 31 days ago • 0 comments

Welcome to the National Library of Scotland's Bluesky account! We're chuffed to be joining you all here 🦋 Lets run through some introductions!

submitted 32 days ago • 38 comments

You might have noticed something looks a little different on our profile... 🛞 That's because, to mark our 100th birthday in 2025, we're refreshing our look! Read more about our brand refresh > media.nls.uk/news/our-bra... #NLS100

submitted 32 days ago • 2 comments

There can be no place on any UK broadcast network for people who make and normalise facist gestures (whether in ‘jest’ or part of your ongoing grift)

submitted 32 days ago • 0 comments

Love, and constantly reference, this line from the fab @johnfitzg.bsky.social on “creating a culture of curiosity and care” around technology.

submitted 32 days ago • 1 comment

💥 Mind, the leading mental health charity, has quit X. It's here as @mindcharity.bsky.social. It had over 500,000 followers on the other place.

submitted 33 days ago • 17 comments

I sometimes thinking about this Canon ad with Godzilla at a copy machine when I’m feeling sad

submitted 33 days ago • 119 comments

When a single billionaire can accumulate more money in 10 seconds than their employees make in one year, while workers struggle to meet the basic cost of rent and medicine, then yes, every billionaire really is a policy failure. Read our op-ed here ⤵️

submitted 38 days ago • 414 comments

Still buzzing from last night's debate @britishlibrary.bsky.social, exploring the opportunities and threats that #AI poses for libraries. Terrific to be part of this Panel: Svein Arne Brygfjeld @timandraharkness.bsky.social (Chair), Mia Ridge @cawston.bsky.social and @tomchatfield.bsky.social

submitted 38 days ago • 3 comments

Great to be part of this fab panel at the British Library last night, thinking through the various implications of AI for Libraries.

submitted 38 days ago • 0 comments

The website of an official US government department is being flagged for me as insecure with an invalid authority certificate. Sums it up rather well.

submitted 41 days ago • 0 comments

There is too much news.

submitted 41 days ago • 0 comments

What a dark day for #digital government: The #USDS gets turned into #DOGE, and the structures and knowledge of effective, evidence-based, human-centred government transformation built over a decade get wiped away. Sending hugs and strength to my public service colleagues over the pond. 🖤

submitted 41 days ago • 2 comments

I’ll be joining a panel with @miaout.bsky.social @tomchatfield.bsky.social @suelacey-bryant.bsky.social and others at the British Library next week to discuss Libraries and AI 🤖 📖

submitted 44 days ago • 0 comments

One month until our Digital Research Fellowship call closes: £7,500 for a three month project exploring datasets on our Data Foundry, this year with a theme around the application of AI tools to the collections. More information: data.nls.uk/projects/dig...

submitted 45 days ago • 0 comments

Is Flashes a good name tho?

submitted 46 days ago • 0 comments

The three-year-old is crying because "my eyes are wet". Mate, your eyes are wet because you're crying.

submitted 47 days ago • 1 comment

Listen to this for a great, patient explanation from Tyler Cowen about why explosive growth in AI doesn't generate explosive growth. Tl;dr- it's always about the scarce factors of production. So much schooling... youtu.be/GT_sXIUJPUo?...

submitted 46 days ago • 1 comment

In a week dominated by AI, I thought it’d be nice to write about human beings buttondown.com/tumshie/arch...

submitted 47 days ago • 0 comments

This is spot on. For "innovation", read "capital". See also: "The AI industry needs a government that is on their side"

submitted 49 days ago • 1 comment