Politicians and state officials, often with the help of management consultants, are making liberal arts education scarce in some of the poorest states in the Union. This trend, typically led by Republican-controlled legislatures and often masquerading as budgetary necessity, threatens to have dire long-term effects. - The New York Times
For the first time since its release last year, traffic to the ChatGPT website fell by almost 10 percent in June. Downloads of its iPhone app have fallen off, too, the report said, although OpenAI wouldn’t comment on the numbers. - Vox
If we focus on independent artists — writers and artists who say they’re either in publishing or outside of any defined industry — D.C. remains on top. But that little data clarification clamps shut the yawning gulf between D.C. and the rest. - Washington Post (Scroll down)
If, when someone searches online, they are served a paragraph-long answer from an AI tool that refashions reporting from the Times, the need to visit the publisher's website is greatly diminished, said one person involved in the talks. - NPR
"Sling in the right sort of suit and those who knew what Bernstein looked like would surely think the actor close enough. There was no need to tamper with the hooter." - Irish Times
Are things changing? Reports say Disney's and Netflix's CEOS pressured the studios for a deal- "an offer that reportedly included ensuring human beings would not be replaced by artificial intelligence for screenplay credits." - The Verge
In Blue Beetle, the main character "takes a job at a wealthy CEO’s mansion to help his family. ... The working-class themes of the film resonated with working actors on the picket lines" at Warner Bros. - Los Angeles Times
Holders of women’s titles who change their genders to male would see those titles “abolished,” the federation said, while holding out the possibility of a reinstatement “if the person changes the gender back to a woman.” - Fast Company
"(The troupe) is part of a second lawsuit challenging a Texas law that some argue would amount to a ban on public drag performances. The VORTEX Repertory Company joined seven other plaintiffs suing Texas and local leaders to block Senate Bill 12 from going into effect next month." - KXAN (Austin)
"As members of two dominant cultures in a world in which everyone's hyperconscious of identity, we have enough clout to be labeled part of the problem without that critique being racist or sexist. That itself is an indication of how far we've journeyed." - T — The New York Times Style Magazine
Yes, COVID lockdowns and all that time at home certainly played a part, writes Mary McNamara, but there are other factors at work, especially this long after things have reopened. She also has an idea or two for addressing the problem. - Yahoo! (Los Angeles Times)
The company wrote in a blog post that GPT-4 can not only help make content moderation decisions, but aid in developing policies and swiftly iterating on policy changes, "reducing the cycle from months to hours." - Engadget
"And yet Morris predicted that this would never be Venice's fate, because 'the world would not allow it.' That may be true. What she wasn't right about was the time frame of the impending tragedy. She thought it would be a long time coming." - Wired
