A few weeks ago I wrote this post about how Google, once a foundation of the open web, had shifted decisively against it by transforming search into the front end of a chatbot. Now the Times has a piece that examines the same issue. This is usually presented as a extinction event or at least a catastrophe for publishers. It is. (It’s not for us because we were never very reliant on search.) But as I noted in that June post, there’s much more here than an issue for publishers. It’s part of the broader oligarchic moment in which a literal handful of monopoly tech platforms further entrench their monopolies, lock in ever greater profits and continue to plug that money back into to the political system they need to control to sustain and guard those profits.

I wanted to direct your attention to this podcast episode from Slate. It’s actually the first episode of a series Slate is doing on popular constitutionalism. (The page linked above is paywalled. But, I’m told, the ‘By the People’ pod series itself is not. So you should be able to find it on podcast platforms.) It brings together in a engaging and coherent way a number of themes we’ve been discussing over the last couple years about the problem of and the corruption of the U.S. Supreme Court. And it frames the question around a 20-year-old book on popular constitutionalism by Larry Kramer (The People Themselves: Popular Constitutionalism and Judicial Review).

First, thank you again to everyone who has contributed to keep us moving forward toward our goal in this year’s Annual TPM Journalism Fund Drive. We have a chance to hit $300,000 tonight. If you’ve been considering joining us by making a contribution this afternoon and evening are great times for it. Just click right here. And thank you for supporting our work.