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2 weeks ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Let’s stop pretending DOGE was ever just a stunt. When Trump created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in early 2025, it came with a clear mission: cut federal spending, root out inefficiency, and modernize government operations. Elon Musk was handed the reins — not with a Senate confirmation, not through legislation, but by executive order. He was given full access to federal systems. A mandate. A megaphone. And political cover. And to his credit, Musk took it seriously.
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4 weeks ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Social media was never meant to be a democracy killer. But if you watched today’s panel out of Notre Dame — “Social Media’s Social Contract: Rethinking Responsibility in a Fractured Democracy” — you saw something rare in this space: honesty. Not posturing. Not “innovation theater.” Not half-hearted PR from platform reps who say the right things while doing the profitable ones. No. Today was different.
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1 month ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
The screens glowed with young faces — some goofy, some serene, some caught mid-laugh. The time frozen on each lock screen was the time they left this earth. The Lost Screen Memorial, unveiled in New York City on April 24, stood as a poignant tribute to 50 children whose lives were tragically cut short because of social media harms. As I walked among the screens, the young faces radiated life. Yet the time displayed on each screen marked the moment they took their own life.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
In a dramatic — and until now, unreported — shift, Jay Penske has quietly taken full control of SXSW, ending the festival’s founder-led era and setting the stage for a corporate remake of one of Austin’s most iconic cultural institutions. According to sources with direct knowledge, Penske acquired an additional 1% stake in SXSW from a private investor in August of 2023, pushing his ownership over the 50% threshold and giving him controlling interest.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Something strange happens in video games. People cooperate. They build things — big, complicated things. They lead raids, solve puzzles, defend towns, construct entire worlds, and they do it without likes, followers, or engagement metrics driving the action. If you’ve ever watched a group of teenagers plan a coordinated mission in “Destiny” or build the Eiffel Tower in “Minecraft,” you know what I’m talking about. This isn’t just entertainment — it’s civic practice, smuggled into a game engine.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Last week’s Vancouver TED conference delivered a chilling wake-up call through four speakers who, from different vantage points, converged on an unmistakable warning: Our digital ecosystem isn’t just broken — it threatens the foundations of democracy, truth, and human autonomy itself. These speakers didn’t merely diagnose the crisis. They named it, mapped its architecture, and issued an urgent call to collective action before it’s too late.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
“Sam, given that you’re helping create technology that will reshape the destiny of our entire species, who granted you or anyone, the moral authority to do that? And how are you personally responsible and accountable if you’re wrong?”The question hung in the air at TED like a guillotine blade. Chris Anderson had just dropped the ultimate challenge on Sam Altman, the man whose company created ChatGPT.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
In a powerful and deeply personal TED Talk, Gen Z activist Deja Foxx made a compelling case for why young people — particularly young women — should be at the forefront of designing our digital future. As the founder of Gen Z Girl Gang, Foxx shared her journey from a teenage gas station worker to a digital strategist and political force, illustrating how technology both empowered and endangered her along the way.
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2 months ago | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Steve Rosenbaum·Follow4 min read·--I watched “Adolescence” on Netflix and left the screen rattled — not because of the show’s violence, but because of its accuracy. The story follows a 13-year-old boy who murders a female classmate — and yet, it isn’t structured like a crime drama. There’s no question of whodunit. Instead, it asks the harder ones: What makes a child become a weapon? And who’s responsible? The answers are uncomfortable — and they’re true.
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Feb 2, 2025 | 
stevenrosenbaum.medium.com | Steve Rosenbaum |Steven Rosenbaum
Steve Rosenbaum·Follow4 min read·--NEW YORK , NY— In a move that sent shockwaves through the media industry, NBC News announced today that Lester Holt, the first Black anchor to lead a major network newscast, will “transition to special projects” effective immediately. The statement, laden with corporate euphemisms, barely disguised the reality: when faced with mounting pressure, the network chose expedience over principle.
