Mx Jay Baker

Solar-powered punk media activist in Britain's Steel City – passionate about free, open source, decentralised technology for the dissemination of information towards a radical municipalist society. :bookchin:

You can subscribe to my website at the link below. More articles on the way, with videos and zines too!

I’m also a carer for my partner, a #pwME caused by Covid (remember to mask up when you can!)

Enthusiastic about #Solarpunk #SolarpunkSunday #Veganism #TransRights #FreePalestine #BlackLivesMatter #MutualAid #Municipalism #Decentralisation #Fediverse #FOSS #Linux #ComicBooks #LuchaLibre (which is real - but borders are fake)

Pronouns: they/he
Location: Sheffield, British Isles
Website: https://www.mediaactivist.com

Public Key

npub1w7kxaqz9d33f7ymv7r8cwsecf9fenl0ehpr7kph3nde7wzxwkqeq9t6v5p

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs80trwspzkcc5lzdk0pnu8gvuyj5uelhums3ltqmcekul8pr8tqvsprpmhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumt0d4hhxarj9ecxjmnt3atym2

Publishing to

relay.momostr.pink

Author Public Key

npub1w7kxaqz9d33f7ymv7r8cwsecf9fenl0ehpr7kph3nde7wzxwkqeq9t6v5p

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Published at

2026-07-13T12:46:06Z

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Event JSON

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Last Notes

2026-05-04 12:38:14 UTC

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I didn't even know this was a thing! I'm definitely interested.

2026-04-25 12:05:07 UTC

"People with compromised immune systems should be able to access healthcare without fear of leaving the facility with another infection. All healthcare facilities should require masking: It benefits everyone and protects both patients and healthcare workers from the continued risk of Long COVID." https://thesicktimes.org/2026/04/24/we-need-masks-in-healthcare-now/ #Covid19 #Covid #CovidIsNotOver #LongCovid

2026-04-24 18:08:21 UTC

Global growth in solar "the largest ever observed for any source": https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/04/global-growth-in-solar-the-largest-ever-observed-for-any-source/

2026-04-19 20:34:12 UTC

Across Africa, farmers are adopting regenerative agricultural practices that support food sovereignty amid global instability https://www.resilience.org/stories/2026-04-17/across-africa-farmers-are-adopting-regenerative-agricultural-practices-that-support-food-sovereignty-amid-global-instability/

2026-04-19 20:08:34 UTC

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Hey, I think after I read your stuff you were one of the dream collaborators I had in mind when I started this idea haha! Helping communities (grant-funded workshops) and nonprofits (private consultation) etc make better tech choices, at the intersection of privacy, security, sustainability, and inclusivity - green, democratic, and Covid-safe - eventually offering cloud-based services too. So slow, small, but scalable; from each according to their ability, to each according to their need.

2026-04-18 18:34:43 UTC

Speaking of @npub1pes…n8m9, well, we've had lots of interest from potential service users, but are finding it tough to find people who'd like to be core UK members of the worker cooperative, functioning at an anti-"A.I.," anti-Covid intersection of privacy, security, sustainability, and inclusivity. But whether you're in England, Britain as a whole - or in other parts of the world! - if you're interested in a slow #solarpunk #SmallTech #cooperative helping deliver public workshops and private consultation to enable people, campaign groups, non-profits and more ethical small businesses to move away from #BigTech, let us know! #CovidIsNotOver #Fuck_ai #permacomputing #TransRights #BlackLivesMatter #FreePalestine

2026-04-18 17:50:25 UTC

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I just realised/remembered there is https://sunbeam.city/

2026-04-18 17:16:28 UTC

I feel - if there isn't one already - there ought to be a specific #solarpunk #Fediverse server(s); imagine the solarpunk vibes of noncentralisation and connectedness reflected in a Fediverse instance(s) powered by green energy too! I guess some of us could always help create it, maybe in cahoots with @npub1pes…n8m9?

2026-02-15 19:30:20 UTC

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So no, nobody is truly shocked by Sir Keir Starmer's relationship with Lord Peter Mandelson. Their interests align. Any day now, the Blairites will inevitably switch their spokesperson, but the sickness now forever remains in a rotten party purged of anything good that was once able to survive, if not thrive there. This is what they are, and who they are. They won't even care to lose (they certainly didn't in 2017 or 2019 when they actively fought to ensure their own party's defeat). And they'll all be just fine in their jobs at Meta or wherever.

2026-02-15 19:25:32 UTC

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And then...? Then Blairism's war criminals and paedophiles finally had their man in 10 Downing Street -- Owen Smith V2.0, a spokesman for their interests. His weak general election victory brought with it, as I predicted here, the very real threat of Nigel Farage gaining power: https://www.silencebreaker.media/the-spectre-of-starmer-keeps-haunting-me/

2026-02-15 19:22:28 UTC

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Then, after the crushing "Get Brexit Done" general election defeat, Blairites prepared their boy Sir Keir Starmer to take the party leadership by not only sweeping his track record under the rug, but by initially falsely co-opting Corbynism policies until he'd secured the spot, at which point he could dump them and begin the purge of leftists from the party: https://www.silencebreaker.media/no-embraces-no-fanfare-no-rallies-sir-keir-starmer-wouldnt-have-it-any-other-way/

2026-02-15 19:19:12 UTC

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Then, after so much shit that wouldn't quite stick, there were the attacks on Corbynism's pro-Palestine stance by sickeningly weaponising anti-Semitism while the actual anti-Semite hiding in plain sight, Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, repeated the line "Get Brexit Done," in answer to almost every question, in order to easily occupy No.10: https://www.silencebreaker.media/the-sickening-orwellian-anti-semitic-weaponisation-of-anti-semitism/

2026-02-15 19:15:25 UTC

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Then there disingenuous justifications for Blairites to remain strongly embedded in a "democratic socialist party" (according to the membership card at the time) because it was a "broad church"...until they had their chance to purge Corbynistas from the party of course: https://www.silencebreaker.media/the-lie-of-the-broad-church/

2026-02-15 19:12:54 UTC

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Then there was lobbyist "D-Fens" Owen Smith and his ice cream van, handpicked by Blairites, Lord Mandelson thinking of ways to undermine Corbyn "every day" while commentators like Owen Jones were actually helping him by adding fuel to the fire: https://www.silencebreaker.media/owen-smith-you-had-one-job/

2026-02-15 19:09:26 UTC

[ Continuing this thread: https://todon.eu/@MediaActivist/116076212920892626 ]
Then there were the smears from Corbyn's fellow MPs, cleverly implying he was stirring up "violence" against them, because the broken window pane is, after all, the most valuable argument in modern politics, even if not in the way Emmeline Pankhurst believed: https://www.silencebreaker.media/broken-panes-and-gravy-trains/

2026-02-15 19:07:28 UTC

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Then there were Blairite politicians and party members condemning populism and rallies, including my own MP, Paul Blomfield, who in a documentary interview with me had previously claimed he disliked the "neoliberal trajectory" of the party so backed Ed Miliband (who also later called for Corbyn to go, rejecting the will of the membership): https://www.silencebreaker.media/why-labour-arent-rallying-the-troops/ [ Thread continued here: https://todon.eu/@MediaActivist/116076220657767414 ]

2026-02-15 19:02:26 UTC

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Then there were more obvious signs that the ones plotting against Corbynism's social democracy were also within the Labour Party itself, key to stopping their own party winning the next general election: https://www.silencebreaker.media/labour-loyalties-and-where-they-lie/

2026-02-15 18:59:22 UTC

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There was this initial bizarre and desperate media response focusing on Jeremy Corbyn’s lack of commitment to the crown, how he dresses, or his “leadership” qualities as distraction from what really worried them, which was his polices: https://www.silencebreaker.media/jeremy-corbyn-vs-the-british-army/

2026-02-15 18:57:30 UTC

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You perhaps won't be surprised that I'm a believer in direct democracy, and that's partly because - not in spite - of my experiences in the Labour Party. There's plenty of documentation via my project known as The SilenceBreaker...

2026-02-15 18:53:54 UTC

Anyone who's been paying attention the last ten years knows what's happened with the Labour Party in the UK, and why Sir Keir Starmer - the most unpopular British Prime Minister since records began - is being exactly who many of us knew he was. Even if you've never seen Al Jazeera's Labour Files series.

2026-02-07 01:36:24 UTC

A masked federal agent in a convenience store parking lot in the northern Twin Cities suburb of Coon Rapids told legal observers that Minnesota’s status as a blue state is linked with the removal of residents, on a video provided to Unicorn Riot: https://unicornriot.ninja/2026/federal-agent-in-coon-rapids-the-more-people-that-you-lose-in-minnesota-you-then-lose-a-voting-right-to-stay-blue/

2026-01-28 12:42:16 UTC

RE: https://social.coop/@thepeoplestech/115972665171740828
I've been getting so much interest in this concept! I've even started tasters already. But I've called it The People's Tech not just because the people - and not governments and corporations - should have control over their own tech, but because I want it to be controlled by its workers and even members. I'm a graduate of the School for Social Entrepreneurs but I want to be part of a democratic #NonProfit organisation and that means a #cooperative model. I've facilitated tech workshops for years but finance/accounts is hardly my biggest strength. If you're in #England, have such skills, are passionate about alternatives to #BigTech, and would like to be part of a part-time, remote, #Covid safer, scaleable small tech co-op, let me know! I guess I ought to add #FediHire to this, even though I'm not technically "hiring" anyone! Feel free to boost.
#note1tv6…wngg

2026-01-24 22:29:16 UTC

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Yes it can be a refuge if not an alternative. And wow, people can applaud good tech talks but really ought to pick a side!

2026-01-24 20:11:40 UTC

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Fantastic. Just last Wednesday I facilitated a workshop where I claimed that much of what we use now would've been considered "malware" back in the day. Perhaps predictably, I love the points on journalism as clickbait too (I've just included that quote from Axel Springer's lawyer in my website section on "Why Media Activism?"!) Thank you!

2026-01-24 11:39:03 UTC

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This looks great, thanks - I have it opened ready to watch later!

2026-01-24 11:09:08 UTC

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That's a brilliant point.

2026-01-23 14:01:37 UTC

Israel pays for UK adverts attacking Doctors Without Borders https://www.declassifieduk.org/israel-pays-for-uk-adverts-attacking-doctors-without-borders/

2026-01-21 11:08:32 UTC

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What part of the multiverse is this from?

2026-01-18 23:47:27 UTC

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"For the first time, according to a recent poll conducted by The Economist/YouGov, there is more support for abolishing ICE — 46 percent — than there is for those opposed to abolishing ICE, at 43 percent." https://theintercept.com/2026/01/18/abolish-ice-democrats/

2025-12-29 15:26:22 UTC

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"Even Republican voters support funding more research into renewable energy sources." https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/12/29/will-trumps-climate-criticism-backfire-new-poll-shows-most-us-voters-support-paris-agreeme

2025-12-20 15:47:00 UTC

After many years on protests and picket lines, at sit-ins and squats, I started to make more sense of what was going so terribly wrong in the world and for once try to identify some possible answers to things seeming so shit - and why media, and potentially the Fediverse, is important for change. Broken up into four parts: https://www.mediaactivist.com/why/

2025-12-20 15:43:13 UTC

Not shocking to anyone with class consciousness that billionaire-owned media are more outraged by a single CEO being killed than the thousands of innocent people subjected to multiple genocides taking place all at once and enthusiastically supported by the same capitalist class.

2025-12-10 16:19:27 UTC

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"Americans must learn to adjust to a lower standard of living,” Trump told the crowd before suggesting a specific solution to prices hiked by his tariffs, which he continues to insist are a success: “You can give up certain products. You can give up pencils…You don’t need 37 dolls for your daughter. Two or three is nice.” Trump’s return to MAGA rallies is a flop: https://www.salon.com/2025/12/10/trumps-return-to-maga-rallies-is-a-flop/

2025-12-09 17:17:03 UTC

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The Affordable Care Act (ACA), oftentimes called Obamacare, is more popular than it’s ever been before. https://truthout.org/articles/aca-and-medicare-for-all-polls-reveal-voters-back-publicly-funded-health-care/

2025-12-05 11:39:18 UTC

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Many top MAGA troll accounts aren’t even in the U.S., Elon Musk’s new X feature exposes. https://newrepublic.com/post/203562/maga-trolls-elon-musk-x-new-feature

2025-12-03 15:31:09 UTC

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Trump's approval rating with voters has cratered to its lowest level of his second term and stocks tied to the president and his family have plummeted by as much as 86 and 99 percent: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/11/trumps-brand-is-tanking/

2025-12-02 21:35:58 UTC

Here it is! My declaration of intent to form a cooperative that promotes technology at the intersection of inclusivity, privacy, security, and sustainability: https://www.mediaactivist.com/whats-irl-really/ #cooperatives #IRL #ableism #Disability #Covid #CovidIsNotOver #RemoteWork #elementaryOS @npub1pes…n8m9

2025-11-25 15:34:23 UTC

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Very true. Also why someone on Mastodon once said that instead of the term "influencers," we should use "sellouts"!

2025-11-25 15:22:20 UTC

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Very perceptive point! The algorithm definitely seems to create hierarchies in favour of the more high-profile people, despite the denials from Bluesky's defenders. No wonder all the high-profile folks dropped their Mastodon accounts in favour of Bluesky the first chance they got...it reminded them of Twitter. And may well remind them of it even more one day. But will they learn? Or even care?

2025-11-25 15:10:25 UTC

Creating the new world in the shell of the old means using decentralised and democratic social media. And yes, change is hard, and mistakes are seen as failures in our culture, rather than lessons to learn from. But it's worth it. I've written about this in my (four part) piece on my website about why media activism is crucial for realising change: "Bluesky's Twitter 2.0 model, it is often argued, is more intuitive for ex-Twitter users, and therefore easier to use than Mastodon. The codes of conduct will play a part in this too, even if users don't realise it: in spaces such as many servers on Mastodon, the standards are often just plain higher, people push for more inclusive language, and alt text on images is constantly requested (and rightly so)." https://www.mediaactivist.com/4-decentralised-networks-mutual-aid-media/

2025-11-25 14:54:39 UTC

I've noticed a lot of more high-profile accounts who left Twitter to grab Mastodon and Bluesky accounts have slowly become more active on Bluesky, essentially mothballing their Mastodon accounts. I really think they've backed the wrong site there, as time will tell.

2025-11-17 12:36:55 UTC

I'm growing weary of tech advice and recommendations with an admirable emphasis on privacy and security, even sustainability, but that don't also consider ethical options. "Don't use Google Chrome/search" is great until it's followed up with "...use Brave or Kagi." Then there's Framework, an example of a sustainable option...that can no longer be considered an ethical one. Genuine emphasis on privacy and security is about more than just *your* privacy and security, it's about recognising risks to the most marginalised in society - so why support bigots and outright fascists who claim they're private, secure, or even sustainable? We can do better. And I plan to do something about it. Watch this space.

2025-11-11 16:43:30 UTC

A lot of talk about the BBC today, so I thought I'd offer a reminder about them from my own website: "Contrary to the popular myth, the 'impartial' BBC are actually inherently anti-left – not, perhaps, *despite* being a state broadcaster but *because* they’re a state broadcaster. While Russia Today, or RT, are roundly (and rightly) criticised for being a state media group and therefore at the behest of the Russian government, the BBC, too, is controlled by the increasingly right-wing, authoritarian U.K. government – but repackaged as, instead, a 'public' broadcaster." https://www.mediaactivist.com/1-uncertain-times-divide-and-rule/

2025-10-02 15:42:40 UTC

"On September 3, Meta sent emails to six people with Instagram accounts informing them that ICE had served the company with a subpoena related to 'official, criminal investigation regarding officer safety,' demanding extensive personal information about the users. The accounts, most notably StopIce.net, are part of a broader crowd-sourcing movement that works to publicly identify masked immigration agents who make violent arrests and alert communities about their presence. On September 2, the Instagram account for StopIce.net shared a video identifying a Border Patrol agent involved in a recent Los Angeles area immigration raid and welcoming him to a 'wall of shame.' Meta gave the users just 10 days to challenge the subpoena before their information would be released to the government, according to The Intercept." https://truthout.org/articles/trumps-ice-turns-its-target-to-activists-not-just-immigrants/

2025-09-29 20:52:38 UTC

"Google’s Android developer registration requirement will kill F-Droid" https://www.osnews.com/story/143450/googles-android-developer-registration-requirement-will-kill-f-droid/

2025-09-29 14:38:00 UTC

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Let's not forget, Starmer's a staunch believer in - and defender of - revolving-door politics. He and his friends will do just fine from all this.

2025-09-29 10:49:19 UTC

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Unsurprisingly, Starmer is now the most unpopular UK Prime Minister since records began. https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/keir-starmer-is-the-most-unpopular-pm-on-record-yes-even-including-liz-truss_uk_68d8e33ce4b0cf903dc4c0b9

2025-09-26 11:48:16 UTC

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"Starmer's false claims to deliver 'change' has the potential to be absolutely devastating for the UK...[leading] to Farage actually entering and occupying No. 10 Downing Street." I was writing to warn about this over a year ago: https://www.silencebreaker.media/the-spectre-of-starmer-keeps-haunting-me/

2025-09-26 11:47:56 UTC

YouGov MRP shows a Reform UK government a near-certainty if an election were held tomorrow: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/53059-yougov-mrp-shows-a-reform-uk-government-a-near-certainty-if-an-election-were-held-tomorrow

2025-09-25 19:56:01 UTC

Whew here we go: "YouTube will restore channels banned for COVID and election misinformation." https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/09/youtube-will-restore-channels-banned-for-covid-and-election-misinformation/

2025-09-19 12:21:28 UTC

"Keeping your morale up is essential to resistance. Do not surrender in advance. Our adversaries aim to cow us into submission because they know that they cannot subdue us by brute force alone. Remember, managing perceptions is core to the fascist project—they seek to project strength at all times precisely because they are not invincible. Even when things seem grim, keep your hopes up and keep fighting. Defeatism only serves the enemy." https://crimethinc.com/2025/09/18/make-ready-safeguarding-our-movements-against-repression-how-to-respond-to-donald-trumps-threats

2025-09-18 11:36:12 UTC

"Be Evil", I guess: Google secretly handed ICE data about pro-Palestine student activist https://theintercept.com/2025/09/16/google-facebook-subpoena-ice-students-gaza/

2025-09-11 15:39:55 UTC

Know your enemy. Tributes to a dead fascist by Obama and Starmer, whose friends Clinton and Blair scuppered and sabotaged laughably mild social democrats like Bernie and Corbyn, who was proudly "undermined every day" by Mandelson, another Epstein friend. The protectors of capitalism are united. It's time anti-capitalists were united too. It's easier than ever, now you know your enemy.

2025-09-11 07:51:58 UTC

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Oh and it's going well on "decentralised" Bluesky this morning, where their all-powerful "safety team" are scrambling to remind people not to glorify violence (against violence-glorifying fascists) while taunts and threats of violence towards trans folks and immigrants have continued to be ignored.

2025-09-09 15:30:41 UTC

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I'll finish by mentioning that we're about to wrap up the @npub1r8f…wvks that came out of the Libre Digital non-profit I founded fifteen years ago, therefore for one last time I'm facilitating its tech-focused workshops for the 2025/26 season, so feel free to find out more about these topics there! https://www.libredigital.org/the-freetech-project-returns-with-tea-tech-online-workshops/

2025-09-09 15:25:19 UTC

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PineTime: Even cheaper than the Bangle.js, the more basic PineTime comes from the people who brought us the Pinebook Pro laptop and PinePhone, amongst other things that remind us of the hardware options out there — from the Fairphone and Framework devices with a focus on DIY repairability, to simply refurbished laptops with Linux on and cheap Raspberry Pi microcomputers. There is actually a lot of choice out there, that really depends on personal preference. https://www.pine64.org/pinetime/

2025-09-09 15:23:49 UTC

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Bangle.js: Rather than the various unethical and expensive smartwatches from the surveillance capitalists, you may wish to instead opt for the slightly more affordable, effective, and hackable Bangle.js 2 that has an incredible amount of interfaces and features readily available — developed by the community — so even if you don't want to hack it yourself, you can use it with ease. https://banglejs.com/

2025-09-09 15:22:14 UTC

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I feel like I've written at length on my own site about the social media alternatives that have risen up in recent years, from the federated to the decentralised, and seeing as I avoid the rest, the fact you're reading this means you've found some of the better places! One thing I will say is that too many good people are still falling for Meta's marketing ploy pitching "Insta" as the younger, hipper, more progressive version of Facebook -- but they are the same thing. Delete your Instagram. https://deleteinstagram.neocities.org

2025-09-09 15:10:12 UTC

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Signal: WhatsApp is owned by Mark Zuckerberg's Meta, so their encrypted messenger app comes at an ethical cost, when there are perfectly good alternatives. Still in my opinion the original and best, Signal is encrypted, fast, free, open source, and can be used on mobile or desktop, whether you use Windows, Mac, or Linux. In addition, Signal’s video chat option is surprisingly smooth enough to rival Jitsi Meet, and even offers screen-sharing (though not closed captioning). Those wanting something more fun and functional, reminiscent of WhatsApp's look and feel, with less emphasis on open source and encryption, have often opted for Telegram, which sadly became a haven for far-right groups whose members rear their ugly heads in other chatrooms (reflective of the sketchiness of Telegram itself), but we should always stick to the safe spaces, which brings me to the next subject. https://signal.org/en

2025-09-09 15:09:26 UTC

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AnonAddy: This is an ideal option to sign up for offers and accounts that you don’t want to share your actual everyday email account with! Think of it like a digital P.O. Box. It not only helps you protect your privacy online, but it's also open source. https://addy.io/

2025-09-09 15:08:36 UTC

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LibRedirect: When someone sends you a link to often walled-off sites like YouTube, Instagram, or Reddit, you can use the albeit hit-and-miss LibRedirect web extension that valiantly attempts to redirect such websites to alternative privacy-friendly frontends. https://libredirect.github.io

2025-09-09 15:03:23 UTC

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However, if you’re wanting privacy from your ISP regardless of whether you’re using a browser or another programme connected to the internet, you may be interested in Mullvad VPN: Yes, it’s Mullvad again, but with what they were most known for before their browser came along: the virtual private network (VPN). The VPN has been the bane of the increasingly anti-protest, authoritarian British police state since the introduction of Prime Minister (or “Pry Minister”) Theresa May’s “Snoopers’ Charter,” requiring ISPs to keep tabs on internet activity for the purposes of blanket surveillance. A VPN is ideal in combating government, corporate, or other malicious attacks on privacy, and an absolute must when using public/shared wifi. VPNs are also useful if you’re in one country and wanting to access local content in another country, as you can choose which servers to connect to. While NordVPN and Surfshark may deserve a mention, their “dark patterns” approach to locking in customers and their accounts make me reluctant to recommend them any more. One of the few VPN providers to offer cheap and flexible pricing combined with ease-of-use, Mullvad hit headlines for refusing to hand over customer details to cops because they don’t log such information. https://mullvad.net/en

2025-09-09 14:58:41 UTC

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Mullvad Browser: We’ve talked about Firefox from the Mozilla Foundation, and of course Edge comes from Microsoft, and Chrome from Google, and while Brave browser hails itself as a privacy-focused option, their current CEO was kicked out by the Mozilla Foundation for his bigotry, so no thank you. Built in collaboration with the folks at Tor, Mullvad Browser offers largely the same as Brave but without the prejudice or cryptobro culture. Bonus! https://mullvad.net/en/browser

2025-09-09 14:55:28 UTC

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Tor browser: This is Firefox on steroids: enabling anonymity while browsing, routing traffic through the Tor network (though some websites don’t play nicely when you’re using it – so this is really just what you use when you want to fully protect yourself). It’s also a conduit to *ominous music* the Dark Web (ooh, scary!) https://www.torproject.org

2025-09-09 14:51:59 UTC

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I used Firefox for over twenty years, and after I fell in love with the workspaces feature and aesthetic of Vivaldi, I retained those, with Firefox’s containers, by using the Floorp forked version of Firefox from Japan and, more recently, the beautiful Zen browser, as well as Waterfox and LibreWolf, before finally realising I can cope just fine without containers and stick with Vivaldi, who are a larger project, while retaining a good ethos. The point is, there are many forks of Firefox to choose from if you don't want to use a Chromium-based browser.

2025-09-09 14:50:33 UTC

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Another note: If any of those examples aren’t good enough for you, there’s the privacy-focused Searx, which has different search engines available depending on your own needs. And there's the rub: Firefox have not only become incredibly dependent upon Google sponsorship, but also pivoted towards advertising and A.I. in recent months (as have many search engines, sadly): https://www.osnews.com/story/141757/mozilla-once-again-confirms-its-all-about-ads-and-ai-now/

2025-09-09 14:49:01 UTC

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Note: Don’t let Firefox (or any other browser) fool you into using Google as your default search engine, though — use something like DuckDuckGo, MetaGer, Mojeek, Swisscows, or Startpage instead, though the latter two can be annoying as they seem to rely on ads, and while Startpage is powerful and not based in the US, they are constantly blocking VPN users, while at least for me DuckDuckGo do not seem to be doing that. I cannot recommend Kagi: https://d-shoot.net/kagi.html

2025-09-09 14:45:40 UTC

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Firefox: There is a common argument that browsers are being built in a way that is reliant on the Chromium base, and therefore it’s therefore better to look towards alternatives such as Firefox (and I'll tackle that in a moment). From the non-profit Mozilla Foundation, Firefox offers containers (that enable you to open a site in a contained tab that separates it from the rest of your browsing, for example, for various logins to the same site) and has numerous privacy and security add-ons available, as well as synchronisation between devices via its Firefox account that also links to useful services like Firefox Monitor and Firefox Relay. https://www.mozilla.org

2025-09-09 14:42:41 UTC

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Vivaldi: – Google’s Chrome browser is, of course, a vile and sinister menace (see contrachrome.com). If you’d like to attempt to wean yourself away from such software but are used to certain Chrome features, Vivaldi is a worker-owned company from Scandinavia with a browser built on Chrome but retaining an ethos of privacy and decentralisation. Vivaldi is indeed, as it claims, “powerful, personal, and private,” and is highly suitable for the web browser “power-user.” https://vivaldi.com

2025-09-09 14:41:54 UTC

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A note: Zoom has greater resources so, like many larger companies, are quicker at implementing accessibility features such as closed captions, so always consider how to strike the balance between ethics and inclusion.

2025-09-09 14:39:49 UTC

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Jitsi Meet: With a massive amount of marketing money behind it, Zoom became the “big bad” of video conferencing as the pandemic hit (then without irony ordering their own workforce back to the office in the ongoing pandemic), nonetheless leaving many unaware of Jitsi Meet: open source and with end-to-end encryption, it offers an incredible unlimited free meeting access for up to a hundred people at a time. (Personally, I just use Signal for my video meetings when I have the option – more on that later!) https://meet.jit.si

2025-09-09 14:33:20 UTC

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The balance between a robust, sustainable service provider and those who cannot be easily coerced is difficult to identify – and quite subjective, based on your own circumstances and needs. But Runbox are worth a mention for their principles alone. There is also Riseup which – while also not necessarily offering an app or encryption "out-of-the-box" – are run by what remain exclusively an activist collective less likely to adhere to warrants issued by oppressive regimes; Disroot, meanwhile, can no longer be recommended since it was brought to my attention that they are run by Covid conspiracy types: https://todon.nl/@joenepraat/107780085180396545

2025-09-09 14:31:25 UTC

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Tuta: The aforementioned Tuta Calendar is brought to you by the same folks who provided us with Tuta Mail. "Private, green, and ad-free," Tuta offer encrypted email to protect our communication and keep it quantum-safe. https://tuta.com

2025-09-09 14:24:55 UTC

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Another note: On the subject of “de-Googling,” if you haven’t taken these leaps yet, regardless of the Android device you currently use, you can still avoid over-reliance on Google Play by using F-Droid or Aurora to get your apps, completely bypassing Google Play (at your own risk and all that). And keep in mind there are many alternatives to Google’s seemingly essential services with things like Cryptpad or Riseup Pad (instead of Google Docs), Mega Sync (instead of Google Drive), DeepL (instead of Google Translate), OpenStreetMap (instead of Google Maps), and Tuta Calendar (instead of Google Calendar), and with even more cool alternatives below, there’s really no reason to still utilise the glorified advertising company that is the data-gathering, evil Google. Proton – who built an ecosystem to rival Google's – stopped being a viable alternative for me after the CEO essentially adopted a “both sides” position on fascism and anti-fascism (and it's a bad idea to buy into one singular ecosystem of online products anyway, and surprisingly not even necessarily cost-efficient when I tried it): https://theintercept.com/2025/01/28/proton-mail-andy-yen-trump-republicans/

2025-09-09 14:23:12 UTC

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A note: If ethics are less of a concern but you are in circumstances where you must run arguably the most secure mobile system possible, you might opt for GrapheneOS, which only runs on a Pixel phone (which are now under other threats from Google's AOSP shenanigans) – but anyone supporting or even mentioning mobile alternatives that aren’t GrapheneOS are susceptible to being targeted and harassed online by the GrapheneOS developer(s); I heard about it then experienced it personally, and even Louis Rossmann wasn’t immune from this either: https://inv.nadeko.net/4To-F6W1NT0?t=35

2025-09-09 14:19:36 UTC

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CalyxOS (currently up in the air): Nicholas Merrill ran a New York-based web-hosting company called Calyx when he received documents from the FBI demanding information on his service users. He not only refused to comply, but also sued the FBI – and won. He then set up the Calyx Institute, a non-profit organisation. CalyxOS is a mobile operating system with privacy and security in mind that runs on specific devices such as Fairphone and Pixel, if you can grab a used one to avoid financing Google. Sadly, for reasons unclear, Nick’s just recently parted ways with the Calyx Institute since I originally compiled this list, and security updates are paused, so personally I switched to the comparable iodéOS: https://iode.tech

2025-09-09 14:17:21 UTC

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eOS: If you’ve already rejected the closed-source world of Apple, are used to Android, but are sick of all the apps that come “baked-in” to it, and want a “de-Googled” version, this – from the non-profit e Foundation – is a smooth, easy-to-use mobile operating system you can put onto many models of phone with their “easy installer” or perhaps purchase a refurbished device with it already installed, and save waste. You can even buy a sustainability-focused Fairphone (and other handsets) with it pre-installed. https://e.foundation/

2025-09-09 14:15:46 UTC

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TAILS: A special mention in particular for this ultra-private Linux distro: The Amnesic Incognito Live System (TAILS) is a private operating system you can carry around with you in your pocket — no, really! If you’re hopping onto different computers but they’re not working smoothly or you just don’t trust their security, you can launch your very own TAILS from your USB stick and use it on that computer, with all its wonderful privacy-focused programmes and features. There’s even an option to have it retain your information unlocked by your own security keys via something called Persistent Storage, meaning it truly does become your own secure personal computer on a stick! Bizarrely, I’ve been informed that some activists have been arrested just for possessing TAILS, so proceed at your own risk. https://tails.net/index.en.html

2025-09-09 14:12:38 UTC

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As a recovering Linux "distro-hopper," I have used many (Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, Manjaro, Mint, Elementary, to name a few), but am currently running Pop!_OS (and secondarily Ubuntu Budgie) at time of writing. The best option for you depends entirely on your personal preferences and circumstances; for example, Mint and Elementary (who have made strides on accessibility features) retain aesthetics similar to Windows and Mac, respectively, whereas Fedora may possibly provide better security but are under the auspices of the ethically dubious Red Hat: https://www.thejournal.ie/red-hat-israel-6393191-May2024/

2025-09-09 14:08:59 UTC

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Linux: It’s not just Microsoft Office you can forget about, but all of Microsoft’s offerings, including Microsoft Windows itself. You can probably get rid of Mac OS too. Why? Because Linux is free and open source software that is not just “libre” but also often costs you as little as nothing. There are literally hundreds of different Linux distributions (or “distros”) to choose from, and you can find the one for you via LibreHunt: https://librehunt.org/

2025-09-09 14:08:04 UTC

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Scribus: This is a free and powerful program that lets you create professional-looking documents like books, newsletters, and brochures. It supports various file formats, colour separations, PDF creation, and has a user-friendly interface. https://www.scribus.net

2025-09-09 14:07:26 UTC

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OnlyOffice: This is similar to Libre Office, but geared towards cloud-based office use, ideal for collaborations as well. https://www.onlyoffice.com/en/

2025-09-09 14:06:53 UTC

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Libre Office: This is probably not a shocker, but there’s really absolutely no reason to be coughing up money to give to Microsoft for their Office suite when there’s already the free and open source Libre Office that does almost exactly the same things. Don’t look back. https://www.libreoffice.org/

2025-09-09 14:06:16 UTC

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Resonate: Sick of Spotify? Resonate is a community-owned music network, enabling you to support the artists you love, co-own your platform, and set the terms on which you share. https://resonate.coop

2025-09-09 14:05:47 UTC

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Audacity: This is a nifty piece of free audio recording and editing software, ideal for podcasting or even music-making. https://www.audacityteam.org

2025-09-09 14:05:17 UTC

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Kdenlive: The KDE Non-Linear Video Editor (or simply Kdenlive), is a free and open source video editor that works on Linux, Windows, and BSD. https://kdenlive.org

2025-09-09 14:04:08 UTC

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PeerTube: Here, there are several instances of servers featuring videos of various kinds — I have used Todon Tube and Kolektiva.media, for example. PeerTube is part of the “Fediverse,” which we’ll come to when tackling social media further below. https://joinpeertube.org/

2025-09-09 14:03:17 UTC

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FreeTube: This is essentially NewPipe but for your laptop or desktop computer — you can run it as a separate programme and even subscribe to certain channels without being bugged to set up a Google account. Or, if you’re wanting to build alternatives to YouTube… https://freetubeapp.io/

2025-09-09 14:02:15 UTC

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NewPipe: If you’re going to watch YouTube videos on mobile devices, do it via this Android app that strips away all the crap that Google pollutes them with. Feature-rich and privacy friendly, NewPipe was created with the purpose of getting the original YouTube experience on your smartphone without annoying ads and questionable permissions. https://newpipe.net/

2025-09-09 14:01:28 UTC

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GIMP: That's GNU Image Manipulation Program, so please don't let the name deter you! This is a free and open source alternative to Adobe Photoshop, so powerful that while you may enjoy basic use of it, it will likely take you years to utilise it to its full potential. https://www.gimp.org

2025-09-09 14:00:51 UTC

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Privacy Guides: Privacy Guides is a not-for-profit, volunteer-run project that hosts online communities and publishes news and recommendations surrounding privacy and security tools, services, and knowledge. https://www.privacyguides.org/en/

2025-09-09 14:00:12 UTC

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*Without spending around seventeen hours reading them in their entirety: https://www.pcmag.com/news/it-would-take-17-hours-to-read-the-terms-conditions-of-the-13-most-popular

2025-09-09 13:59:16 UTC

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TOSDR: “I have read and agree to the Terms” is the biggest lie on the web, but this free and open source, not-for-profit resource sums up the terms of service of many sites so that you have an idea of what they're potentially getting you into*. https://tosdr.org/en

2025-09-09 13:57:47 UTC

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Bad News: an online game where the goal is to expose the tactics and manipulation techniques that are used to mislead people and build up a following, working as a psychological “vaccine” against disinformation: playing it builds cognitive resistance against common forms of manipulation that you may encounter online. Scientists who worked on the development of the game found that playing Bad News improves people’s ability to spot manipulation techniques in social media posts, increases their confidence in spotting such techniques, and reduces their willingness to share manipulative content with people in their network. https://www.getbadnews.com/en

2025-09-09 13:54:55 UTC

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Keep in mind, many of the suggestions are based on ethics converging with privacy and security to offer user-friendly alternatives to common services. Where activists require hardened security and privacy options (for example, in serious danger and/or threat of oppressive regimes), these additional options will be provided, possibly at the expense of more ethical alternatives. And yes, there are people with more expertise than me, who will likely @ me on several of these points; read them at your leisure, and I’m sure some will be from folx with good intentions and superb suggestions of their own, so enjoy! I’m glad to get this topic of conversation going.

2025-09-09 13:54:01 UTC

For a time, I had a page on my website with a selection of technology options for the discerning media activist who wishes to undermine and challenge big tech/media companies and surveillance capitalism. I stopped maintaining it, and when I removed it entirely, to my surprise a lot of people got in touch with me asking where it went! So I’ll just throw a lot of what was there into a thread here.

2025-08-28 21:18:21 UTC

Just another reason why I keep coming back to Vivaldi (along with the support for the Fediverse, the in-built mail handler, sync to send tabs across devices, the workspaces...) https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/08/28/vivaldi_capo_doubles_down_on/

2025-08-21 09:41:50 UTC

"Today, AI is the voice in the drive-thru that can't hear our orders. It's killing the livelihood of creative workers. It's the thing you have to do at work, whether you like it or not. It's making search engines unusable. It's a justification for corporate layoffs. It's plagiarism. It's killing information access. It's taking credit for the work of visual effects artists. It's a serial liar. It's harming our critical thinking and memory skills. It's mecha-Hitler. It's the really annoying popup. It's wealth inequality. It's a crutch for the loneliness epidemic. It's the industrial polluter. It's the scammer faking your voice for predatory phone calls. It's the military-industrial complex. It's the book that could kill you. It's exploiting social media algorithms with fake content." https://www.spacebar.news/we-hate-ai-because-its-everything-we-hate/

2025-08-12 11:50:46 UTC

My latest blog post on Bluesky, how it compares to Twitter, Mastodon and the Fediverse, my past stubborn criticisms, the pitfalls and possibilities -- featuring wisdom from the likes of [@_elena](https://mastodon.social/@_elena ) @npub1zzy…9edy and of course @npub1fdr…lvhs: https://www.mediaactivist.com/bluesky-vision/

2025-08-11 14:48:26 UTC

Contrary to what establishment media may have us believe as they continue to amplify this group as part of Late Capitalism's counterrevolution, fascists are in fact a small yet vocal minority. My latest piece for The SilenceBreaker: https://www.silencebreaker.media/fear-makes-the-wolf-look-bigger/ #fascism