ANALYSIS: From LGBTQ+ characters in their lessons to hunky owls in the streets, Duolingo’s blend of inclusivity and absurdity has me primed for my next lesson
Jon Heggestad
Jon Heggestad is a digital culture researcher and the proud parent of a thriving Tamagotchi. His work has been featured in Public Books, Input Magazine and Inside Higher Ed. He lives in Charlotte, North Carolina and speaks English. You can find him on Bluesky: @heggestad.bsky.social
Who does queer AI ‘art’ actually represent?
ANALYSIS: Accounts dedicated to queer AI art have popped off, but is there hope for anything beyond “boyfriend twins”?
The (missing) context around using AI to ban books
ANALYSIS: The case of an Iowa school district employing ChatGPT to enforce a statewide book ban has garnered significant attention—what concerns does it raise around AI-aided censorship?
Did AI ruin Keith Haring’s work?
ANALYSIS: Controversy surrounding the AI-altered version of Keith Haring’s “Unfinished Painting” stirred up now-familiar questions about the ethics of AI-generated art
YouTube is no longer the default site for coming out online, but its legacy lives on
ANALYSIS: What do Troye Sivan, Gigi Gorgeous, Tom Daley and Dodie have in common? They all came out on YouTube. But the platform is no longer as central to queer and trans narratives
The internet is toxic for queer people—and this new survey proves it
ANALYSIS: Policy advocate Sam Andrey provides insight into how queers confront hate while building digital communities
Where have all the good gay memes gone?
ANALYSIS: Memes like the “Distracted Boyfriend” and “Right in front of my salad” have stood the test of time, but where are their contemporaries?
The case for digital minimalism—even for the gays who love excess
ANALYSIS: Digital minimalism is more than a time-management tool; it’s a whole new mindset. How might this approach to technology benefit queer users in particular?
There’s a reason why queer folks are turning to online spaces like Snapchat and Tumblr
ANALYSIS: Gender scholar Kathryn Bond Stockton coined the term “growing sideways” to describe the queer experience during childhood. Are some of our favourite social media offerings following suit?
‘Black Mirror’ episode ‘Beyond the Sea’ is a brutal reflection of toxic masculinity in the Digital Age
The series known for its dark reflections on a tech-obsessed society turns its focus to the Space Age, toxic geek masculinity and the danger of the “magic circle”
AI art like the ‘RuPublicans’ is part of a long lineage of queer remixing
ANALYSIS: Viral posts of U.S. Republicans dressed in drag are fun and subversive, but issues of ownership from AI art are still a concern
Google is still the arbiter of life’s big questions
ANALYSIS: While the algorithm has evolved, it’s still worth considering how search engines respond
How getting ghosted by ChatGPT showed me the bot’s true colours
ANALYSIS: ChatGPT’s evasive manoeuvres are an accurate analogy for our unfolding relationship with chatbots—a useful reminder for queer folks in particular
Why we shouldn’t rely on TikTok to tell us we’re gay
OPINION: We increasingly rely on social media sites like TikTok and Twitter to categorize people. As queer folks, should we be worried?