Real fake news

Today is Thursday. It’s Marty Feldman‘s birthday.

The most recent Kaseya ransomware attack was billed as the biggest ever. They all seem to be the biggest ever. Who decides what’s big and what’s not? Scott Rosenberg and Ina Fried try to sort it out.

When did the Globe get so sleazy? I know it’s hard to make money in the news business but there should be some standards. As a paid subscriber, I chafe at prominently placed ads on the website. But I get it. What’s not acceptable is the dark pattern placement of ads that purport to be news. For example, under the masthead and main menu, there was this: “Grandma attacked outside store in [insert local town name based on IP lookup]. It links to an infomercial (don’t click) for a security device. The ‘news’ part appears to be completely made up. I know it’s all done algorithmically behind the scenes but at the end of the day the Globe owns it and their aging readership deserves better.

Spencer Buell has suggestions for making the T more fun to ride. Something about Jerry Seinfeld, Easter eggs, t-shirts and free samples.

Dorchester and Mattapan have a significant Haitian population. The Dorchester Reporter staff rounds up local reaction to the assassination of president Moïse.

And not only are we getting stupider, we’re also getting less creative. -I got nothing.

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