Michael Bird

Thanks to the Mechanics Institute Review (MIR) Online for publishing my short story ‘sugar tiger’ Which introduces the hindolyne - a pet that only appears to its owner when it senses true affection then tells the brutal truth of where it stays the rest of the time mironline.org/fiction/suga...

Anyone uses AI detection software on texts? I just tested my own work which doesn't use AI, and it told be the texts were 79% and 61% produced by AI I had to log in to gain a "report" Then it told me it can humanise my text (ironically using AI) for a price

Anthony Head was an Ambassador for Battersea Dogs and Cats home for more than two decades. Thanks for everything Tony x

Just put yourself out there, the more embarrassing it feels, the better you're doing, I swear

Former fur industry leader describes fur farming as “inherently cruel”. Citizens have spoken. Science is clear. Even former insiders acknowledge the reality of this industry. The @ec.europa.eu must finally deliver on #FurFreeEurope. euobserver.com/217742/its-i...

I’m an Ambassador for this brilliant charity, Bookbanks, giving away books with food parcels at food banks. There are two part-time jobs going for Regional Leads in London and East Anglia. Link below. Please share far and wide :)

Walz: "To Americans who are watching this, I've got a question for you: What side do you want to be on? The side of an all powerful federal govt that can kill, injury, menace, & kidnap its citizens off the streets? Or on the side of a nurse at the VA hospital who died bearing witness to such govt?"

7 reasons why The Thing (1982) is a Christmas film: 1) snow 2) bearded men concealing surprises 3) compulsory party games 4) introverts shunning group activities 5) digestive issues 6) revellers bursting open to reveal partially assimilated canine lifeforms 7) knitwear

Europe’s wildlife trade isn’t what it seems. Animal Hustlers uncovers the shadowy networks selling exotic animals legally… & illegally. 😔 ‼️ The EU’s wildlife loopholes are fueling a silent crisis. Explore the full investigation ⤵️ animalhustlers.com

How much does a tiger cost in Romania or a monkey in Albania? Check out the trailer for our new investigation on animal traffic youtube.com/shorts/Ur0yg...

“He’s gonna sell Poland to Nazi Germany - that’s what a dealmaker does”

Monkeys, snakes and baby caiman face abuse on Europe's beaches - will 2026 offer another season of animal suffering? www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hh-x...

That’s one hell of a steel butt russians published a video showing an FPV strike on Ukrainian soldiers. The Ukrainian serviceman was extremely lucky cause the drone hit him right in the butt, but didn’t explode. The warhead and the fiber-optic cable separated from the drone.

EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR PRESS AND MEDIA FREEDOM: Car bomb attack on investigative journalist Sigfrido Ranucci rings alarm for media freedom in Italy www.ecpmf.eu/car-bomb-att... @ecpmf.bsky.social #photojournalism #journalism #journalismisnotacrime #pressfreedom

There should be a high bar for politicians attacking the media, but maybe Ed Davey has half a point here? For example, the first three paragraphs of this BBC story repeat Reform's £243bn figure without saying that the thinktank behind the estimate now disowns it. (This is mentioned in paragraph 35)

The deadline for the #AlgorithmicAccountability Reporting fellowship call is approaching. We have an upcoming Q&A session on September 8 at 18:00 CET. Join us to solve any questions you have before sending your application. Find all the information in our website: algorithmwatch.org/en/open-call....

The Industrial Revolution produced not only technical innovation, but also social disruption. What is the situation with the current “AI revolution”? This report by our fellows examines working conditions in this context: EN: algorithmwatch.org/en/ai-revolu... DE: algorithmwatch.org/de/die-ki-re...

How the AI revolution is built on exploitation of workers in the west: my new investigation with Nathan Schepers for @algorithmwatch. algorithmwatch.org/en/ai-revolu...

Bucharest Pride 2025 - record number of 30,000 attend diversity demo

After interviewing almost 50 clickworkers around the world, our Fellows @michaelbirdwrites.bsky.social and Nathan Schepers encountered a sophisticated fraud starting in Facebook and WhatsApp, in which users are lured into buying and/or selling clickwork accounts… Read the full story: t1p.de/qbzjm 🇩🇪⬇️

Zwei unserer aktuellen journalistischen Fellows, @michaelbirdwrites.bsky.social & Nathan Schepers, sind in einer investigativen Recherche in einen besonderen Schwarzmarkt eingetaucht. Gehandelt wird dort nicht mit Drogen oder Waffen, sondern mit Clickwork-Accounts. Die Reportage auf 🇩🇪: t1p.de/1yhja

A black market is selling access to platforms that train AI models, and it’s out in the open Our new report for AlgorithmWatch and taz in Berlin algorithmwatch.org/en/scams-and... German: taz.de/!6088209/

Thanks to @thecwa.bsky.social for shortlisting my crime story 'The Human Imperative' for the annual Margery Allingham Award - proud to be alongside a great list of writers for this prestigious prize thecwa.co.uk/awards-and-c...

Journalist Antonina Favorskaya, accused of "extremism," along with journalists Konstantin Gabov, Sergey Karelin, and Artyom Kriger, has been sentenced to several years in prison by a Moscow court. Nothing scares an authoritarian government more than true reporting. corporate.dw.com/en/convictio...

Very happy to have made the Longlist for the Margery Allingham Award for @thecwa.bsky.social and congratulations to all the writers here - I can't wait to read your work thecwa.co.uk/awards-and-c...

It's with great sorrow that we announce the death of Romanian author Bogdan Teodorescu (1963-2025). Bogdan was not only a personal friend, but also the main reason why Corylus Books came into existence. His political thriller Sword was the first book we published back in 2020

'The Others': A sweeping love story set against the fall of the Berlin Wall – where love, lies, and revolution collide. The fourth moving novel by Sheena Kalayil, out June 19. Avail for preorder from all bookshops now! www.flyonthewallpress.co.uk/product-page... #books📚💙 @inpressbooks.bsky.social

Romanian far right candidate for Presidency Călin Georgescu cannot stand in elections in May, rules highest court in România, the Constitutional Court hotnews.ro/calin-george...

“I don’t know if I’ll still be alive on the date of my MRI appointment” LB.UA in @n-ost.bsky.social show how Russia treats the most vulnerable in the occupied Ukrainian territories n-ost.org/article/want...

Every Saturday Ukrainian people come and meet and sing in Birmingham's Victoria Square.

Yes, and we know the name of the 78-year-old kid who's forced the country to stop the car before it gets to Disneyland

Romanian Presidential candidate Calin Georgescu asks followers to draw up ‘blacklist’ on X. This is a witch hunt

This is where we are now: An elementary school at Fort Campbell has removed all books from its library that so much as *allude* to slavery or the civil rights movement. The wholesale erasure of history in real time.

Wordle 1,338 🇺🇦 Solidarity 🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩 🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩 🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩 🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

See you all tonight! Impulsive readers, you can still grab a ticket here you lucky things - www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/s-j-bradle... @blackwellsmcr.bsky.social #books📚💙

Trump says he will begin negotiations with Putin to end the war in Ukraine. Any "deal" will be scripted by Moscow: Russia keeps territory it has stolen, no Nato membership for Kyiv, US military assistance ends. In short, a recipe for betrayal and further war www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

🔴 From Ukraine to Uganda, Trump’s aid freeze endangers millions. This is the global impact of Trump’s attack on USAID ⤵️ www.opendemocracy.net/en/trump-for...

We're so pleased to launching @rosiegarlandwriter.bsky.social at WaterstonesMCR with #NeilCampbell 6 Feb, discussing fab short story collections, #YourSonsAndYourDaughtersAreBeyond & #SayingDirtyThingsInRegionalAccents, exploring the everyday & the supernatural www.waterstones.com/events/in-co...

Happy Xmas

Yesterday, the Baron of Siberia posted my investigation into Tortoise on Twitter. I responded saying the Guardian is cancelling my contract after 19 years, so I'd be happy to go to the Indie to carry on investigating Evgeny's dad, the ex-KGB spy. This was a joke! However, here are some facts.. 1/

2024 Worldwide #BoxOffice is a fiasco for original material - only at number 15 is there a movie derived from non pre-existing cinematic intellectual property

🛑 The media in #Georgia is under siege. Since November 28, over 80 journalists have faced brutal attacks during Tbilisi protests. Together with 50 press freedom organisations, ECPMF stands with Georgian independent media, urging accountability and action. www.ecpmf.eu/press-freedo...