Snarky Crafters

AI has come for the book clubs!

https://writerbeware.blog/2025/09/19/return-of-the-nigerian-prince-redux-beware-book-club-and-book-review-scams/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/genre-grapevine-139940838

And publishers (even when contractually obligated to do so) don’t always register copyright for published works.

https://writerbeware.blog/2025/08/29/if-your-publisher-promised-to-register-your-copyright-check-your-registration-now/

I stayed up late Tuesday night to watch the return of Jimmy Kimmel Live.

( Context for non USA residents )

I don’t usually stay up past my bedtime to watch late night comedy. In fact, ever since I discovered that the New York Times does a daily Late Night Roundup (Welcome to Late Night Roundup, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy.) I haven’t watched anything live. I either watch the clips in The New York Times, or in Facebook reels. And I follow The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Facebook.

But Tuesday night I stayed up way past my bedtime to watch Jimmy Kimmel’s return to late night TV. I watched the entire hour, because I was going to be counted in the ratings. According to the New York Times, Tuesday’s episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” averaged 6.2 million viewers, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen. That is nearly four times as much as his usual audience, even though more than 20 percent of ABC affiliates boycotted the show. So he beat his usual ratings, with 20% of his usual stations not carrying his show. Dayam boy! AND, when I posted this, the video of his return currently has almost 21 million views. He has 20.4 million subscribers, but I’m pretty sure that isn’t the only reason for his number of views. He was getting almost a million views an hour for the 24 hours after his return episode aired on ABC.

I was VERY impressed. He knew he was going to have a huge audience, and he took full advantage of that. I don’t know who wrote his opening monologue, but it was excellent.

He really did thread the needle very carefully. He didn't apologize, but made it clear that his comments in his last episode were misunderstood. He called out Brendan Carr and FFOTUS for their flip from supporting the first amendment to government censorship, and brought receipts. He showed video of each of them defending freedom of speech from back when they claimed that Liberals were censoring Conservative voices.He made it clear that he empathizes with Kirk's widow because he too has received death threats against himself and his family, so he knows how that feels. He stood up not only for himself, but for other targeted comedians and especially for journalists. He made a point that if so many people can agree on free speech, what else can we agree on? And let’s try to build on what we agree on.

If you haven’t seen it, it’s well worth your time to watch. I plan to watch it again this weekend, when I have more free time (this week has been a busy one at work).

Related links

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/business/media/jimmy-kimmel-ratings.html

https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/disney-shareholders-demand-reasons-kimmel-suspension-semafor-reports-2025-09-24/

YouTube secretly used AI to edit people's videos. The results could bend reality
In recent months, YouTube has secretly used artificial intelligence (AI) to tweak people's videos without letting them know or asking permission. Wrinkles in shirts seem more defined. Skin is sharper in some places and smoother in others. Pay close attention to ears, and you may notice them warp. These changes are small, barely visible without a side-by-side comparison.

There's a larger trend at play. A growing share of reality is pre-processed by AI before it reaches us. Eventually, the question won't be whether you can tell the difference, but whether it's eroding our ties to the world around us.

"You can make decisions about what you want your phone to do, and whether to turn on certain features. What we have here is a company manipulating content from leading users that is then being distributed to a public audience without the consent of the people who produce the videos."

I think that one of the things that creators hold dear is creative control. Once your distribution system starts editing your creation, you’re no longer the sole creator of your creation, be it a text, video, blog, music, book, piece of art, whatever.

Startup behind $700-a-month bed 'pods' wants to put 10,000 more in San Francisco

Brownstone has rented beds to a rotating cast of tech startup founders, immigrants and other new-to-the-city characters willing to stay in barely private, 4-foot-tall boxes for $700 a month. And now, CEO James Stallworth is ramping up Brownstone’s ambitions.

Stallworth also wants to shift to a franchise model, where San Francisco’s landlords would tap into his pool of applicants by converting their offices into space for pod housing.

“We’re not doing this just, you know, for self-gratification,” Stallworth said. “Our goal is to create as much housing as people need.”

“Stallworth said he doubts most landlords would charge as little as $700 a month for the pod”

As little as $700 a month? AS LITTLE? What are you smoking bro?!?! I know it's been thirty years, but we rented an entire 3 bedroom house for $600 when I was in college. And this guy thinks that $700 for a 4 feet high, 3½ feet wide pod is low?!?!

WTF, I don’t think anyone defines “housing” as merely having a roof over your head. I think most people think of housing as having some space where you can have comfortable furniture and safely keep your possessions. Not a tiny box with a curtain for privacy. I already hear enough noise from my neighbors, and I have walls and doors between us.