Investigations of an itinerant scholar, mostly trying to make sense of this crazy place called South Africa through data science and culture.
South Africa
Joined December 2016
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- Following719
- Followers2K
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Superlinear retweeted
AmaBhungane is deeply concerned by reports that our former colleague, South African journalist Micah Reddy, and his local fixer, Kooki Mahmoud, are missing in Djibouti.
Micah is a former amaBhungane journalist and a valued member of the investigative journalism community in South Africa and across the continent.
We join the Committee to Protect Journalists in calling on the Djiboutian authorities to urgently clarify Micah and Kooki’s whereabouts and ensure their safety.
We call for their immediate safe return.
xitter.cf/cpjafrica/status/21014…
Superlinear retweeted
🔒NICOLE FRITZ | Paid influencers and fake news threaten SA democracy businessday.co.za/opinion/20…
Superlinear retweeted
1/ New @Nature! We study how powerful institutions shape the information environment for LLMs. Commercial LLM training is opaque, so we trace a path from state-coordinated media -> training data -> model responses.
Superlinear retweeted
We do a lot of work in the misinformation space, and something in it has been bothering us: a gap between what the industry targets and what the problem actually is. Our co-founder Aldu Cornelissen wrote three short articles trying to work it out. Here's a thread on the first: the problem with "truth", starting from Shannon's 1948 definition of information...
murmurint.com/blog/disinform…
1/7
Superlinear retweeted
Dear Americans
This is what you will be dealing with now on a daily basis with the White Afrikaners.
They are now your problem, goodluck!!!
Superlinear retweeted
The 7th most popular country in the world? That is, ranked 7th among countries viewed most positively by the global community. The southernmost tip of Africa, the Republic of South Africa, Mzansi, Southy, Msawawa. The 2025 Perceptions of Democracy Index. 🇿🇦
Superlinear retweeted
Psychiatric disorders can be perceived as energy landscapes.
OCD has deep valleys - neural activity gets stuck.
Schizophrenia has shallow valleys - neural activity roams too freely.
Superlinear retweeted
The impact on media, the lifeblood of democracies and of anti-authoritarian information.
"In 2023 [USAID] funded training and support for 6,200 journalists, assisted 707 non-state news outlets, and supported 279 media-sector civil society organizations dedicated to strengthening independent media.
"All over the world, media outlets and organizations have had to halt some of their activities overnight."
rsf.org/en/usa-trump-s-forei…
Superlinear retweeted
The average life expectancy of a Russian assault trooper after signing a contract is from two weeks to a month. The Russian offensive continues and it has made advances in several areas at once. Russian troops have advanced to the areas of Kurakhove, Rozdolne,
1/11
Superlinear retweeted
Money launderers and bankers must be shitting themselves now that Dewald is on the case. I've never seen a forensic investigative journalist more capable.
The #Laundry. Tomorrow amaBhungane is launching a major new series on money laundering in South Africa. See here what to expect in the coming weeks :
amabhungane.org/the-laundry-…
Superlinear retweeted
[HAPPENING NOW] ActionSA National Chairperson @ME_Beaumont & Gauteng Provincial Chairperson @Funzi_Ngobeni meet with @ActionSATshwane Regional Executive Committee members & councillors to discuss strategic matters.
#WeAreActionSA
Superlinear retweeted
Anton Harber | Two back-door attacks on journalistic freedom this week. Be alert! news24.com/news24/opinions/a…
Superlinear retweeted
In a time in which social media popularity can drive consumer choices and sway public opinion, political parties, organisations, and individuals have quietly turned to an increasingly influential yet shadowy force: anonymous influencers. dailymaverick.co.za/article/…
Superlinear retweeted
Does astrology work? We tested the ability of 152 astrologers to see if they could demonstrate genuine astrological skill.
Here is how the study was designed and what we found (including a result that really surprised me):
🧵
Superlinear retweeted
🧵🚨New analysis showing ALL tweets mentioning both "Muslim" & "UK" with over 500 retweets since 29 Jul. Graph shows which accounts got most impressions over time. Red/pink dots show anti-Muslim &/or anti-immigrant tweets, brown=neutral, green=tweets defending Muslims #UKRiots
Superlinear retweeted
This Open Source Intelligence by @TheMilkBarTV is better than any news report I’ve seen!
Continuous video of Trump’s rally. In no other time could the public have pieced together a full picture like this.
God bless ubiquitous smartphones & the internet!
Superlinear retweeted
We have to respect South Africans. We have to respect ethical standards. We can’t tarnish the selection of judges.
As @BuildOneSA we hold the view that if you were deemed unfit to be a judge you are not fit to participate in the choice of other judges.