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2026-10-20 10:34:49
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Today's threads (a thread)
Inside: The death of history's most successful publisher; and more!
Archived at:
https://pluralistic.net/2026/10/20/main-character-syndrome/
#Pluralistic
1/
A haunted burial ground by a lake, with a bat flying overhead. A haint in a shroud floats over the scene, its face is the Google Android droid. The sole, listing tombstone reads 'I'm feeling lucky.'
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2026-10-20 10:35:32
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/2
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The death of history's most successful publisher: Google has a scorching case of "main character syndrome."
https://mamot.fr/@pluralistic/117474406290602736
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2026-10-20 10:35:50
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/3
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Hey look at this
* Trump says Google kisses his ass
https://www.theverge.com/policy/1013485/trump-google-kiss-my-ass
* Tell Doug Ford: Say NO to Waymo
https://techfordemocracy.ca/2026/04/29/say-no-to-waymo/
* Bizarre Blanets and Weird Worlds
https://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2026/10/bizarre-blanets-and-other-weir.html
* The Showrunners Network
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/spacecommand/the-showrunners-network?ref=8rypb4
* Christian Conman Jim Bakker is Dead
https://skepchick.org/2026/10/christian-conman-jim-bakker-is-dead/
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2026-10-20 10:36:38
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/4
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#25yrsago
Reenacting the Civil War with 44,000 ceramic cats in handmade uniforms
https://web.archive.org/web/20011021022729/http://www.phillyburbs.com/intelligencerrecord/news/news_intell/1332513.htm
#20yrsago
More on publishing and “okaysellers”
https://www.nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/bestsellers_oka/#008116
#15yrsago
HOWTO make a Frankenstein hat
https://web.archive.org/web/20111022194802/http://deliacreates.blogspot.com/2011/10/hey-frankie.html
#15yrsago
Copyright policy in the UK: an evidence-free zone
https://www.openrightsgroup.org/publications/cant-look-now-finding-film-online/
#15yrsago
Clockwork Fagin on Escape Pod
https://delivery-edge.libsyn.com/shows/18601/items/1737698/EP315_ClockworkFagin.mp3
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2026-10-20 10:36:47
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/5
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#10yrsago
At long last, America’s racist, crazy tough-on-crime prosecutors are losing elections
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2828803
#5yrsago
Imperfections in your Bluetooth beacons allow for unstoppable tracking
https://pluralistic.net/2021/10/21/sidechannels/#ble-eding
#1yrago
Carl Hiaasen's 'Fever Beach'
https://pluralistic.net/2025/10/21/florida-duh/#strokerz-for-liberty
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2026-10-20 10:37:10
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/6
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Yesterday's threads: The technopolitics of ad-tech; and more!
https://mamot.fr/@pluralistic/117466489349692034
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Image: Jess (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Newspaper_clipping_from_1940s_01.jpg CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en
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2026-10-20 10:37:20
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/7
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Image:
Jess (modified)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Newspaper_clipping_from_1940s_01.jpg
CC BY-SA 4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en
7/
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File:Newspaper_clipping_from_1940s_01.jpg
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2026-10-20 10:38:13
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
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My ebooks and audiobooks (from FSGxMCD, Tor Books, Head of Zeus, McSweeneys, Beacon, Verso and others) are for sale all over the net, but I sell 'em too, and when you buy 'em from me, I earn twice as much and you get books with no DRM and no license "agreements."
https://craphound.com/shop/
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2026-10-20 10:38:31
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/9
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Upcoming appearances:
*
#Victoria
: Munro's Books, Oct 20
https://www.munrobooks.com/events/6113620261020
*
#Vancouver
: Life After AI (Vancouver Writers Festival), Oct 22
https://writersfest.bc.ca/festival-event-2026/46
*
#Ottawa
: Life After AI (Ottawa Writers Festival), Oct 24
https://writersfestival.org/event/life-after-ai
*
#Vienna
: TED AI, Oct 28-30
https://tedai-vienna.ted.com/
*
#Kilkenny
: Kilkenomics, Nov 6-8
https://kilkenomics.com/
*
#Courtenay
: Enshittification (Sid Williams Theatre Society), Nov 10
https://www.sidwilliamstheatre.com/events/cory-doctorow-talks-enshittification/
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2026-10-20 10:38:43
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/10
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Upcoming appearances (cont'd):
*
#Vancouver
: BC Policy Solutions Gala, Nov 12
https://bcpolicy.ca/gala/
*
#Oxford
: Ministry of the Future, Nov 23
https://ministryforthefuture.co.uk/events.html
*
#Sheffield
: Reverse Centaur at Juno Books, Nov 25
https://www.outsavvy.com/event/40274/cory-doctorow-in-conversation
* Virtual: Enshittification, AI, and the Future of Technology (UBC Master of Educational Technology), Nov 28
https://met.ubc.ca/2026/09/met-speaker-series-cory-doctorow-enshittification-ai-and-the-future-of-technology/
*
#Oxford
: Bennett Oxford Symposium on Open Code in Science, Dec 9
https://www.bennett.ox.ac.uk/events/2026-bennett-institute-symposium/
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2026-10-20 10:39:57
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/11
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Recent appearances:
* Life After AI (Brain Bar)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPPa43-n0vI
* Terms of Service with Clare Duffy (CNN)
https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/terms-of-service-with-clare-duffy/episodes/458ce968-af5d-11f0-b539-13ed2afe25f8
* AI, Work, and Power (Software Engineering Daily)
AI, Work, and Power
https://softwareengineeringdaily.com/podcasts/cory-doctorow-on-ai-work-and-power/
* AI, Corporate Power, and the Fight for Worker Control (Plutopia)
https://plutopia.io/cory-doctorow-ai-corporate-power-and-the-fight-for-worker-control/
* How to Think About AI—Before It’s Too Late (Daniel Solove)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0xR3uEgGcc
11/
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2026-10-20 10:40:14
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/12
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You can follow these posts as a daily blog at pluralistic.net: no ads, trackers, or data-collection!
Here's today's edition:
https://pluralistic.net/2026/10/20/main-character-syndrome/
--
If you prefer a newsletter, subscribe to the plura-list, which is ad-/tracker-free, and is utterly unadorned save a single daily emoji. Today's is "⛸". Suggestions solicited for future emojis!
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You can also get a fulltext RSS feed, licensed CC BY 4.0:
https://pluralistic.net/feed/
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main-character-syndrome
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2026-10-20 10:40:27
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Cory Doctorow
pluralistic@mamot.fr
Long thread/eof
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I'm also on Bluesky. Read today's thread there at:
https://bsky.app/profile/did:web:pluralistic.net/post/3myd65xfuhs2x
eof/
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