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Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) on Dec. 12 launched a “starter pack” for press freedom organizations active on the social media platform Bluesky. We did so to curate a unified feed dedicated to press freedom, facilitate mutual following among community members, and contribute to the health of the conversation on the nascent platform.

What is Bluesky and why do we like it?

FPF joined the microblogging social media platform in July 2023, just a few months after Bluesky launched as an invite-only service in February 2023. The site opened registrations publicly in February 2024 and has seen exponential growth since the U.S. presidential election in November. Its user base is now inching toward 25 million, with daily active users increasing rapidly.

Bluesky was established in 2019 as a research effort within the company formerly known as Twitter to explore open communication protocols, and developed what later became known as the Authenticated Transfer Protocol as a result, which was released publicly in 2022.

In 2021, Seattle-based Bluesky became an independent company primarily owned by its 33-year-old chief executive, Jay Graber. Despite its ownership model, the key difference between current mainstream social media platforms — like Meta, X, and TikTok — is that Bluesky is based on an open communication protocol for distributed, or decentralized, social networks. The goal is, essentially, to shield the platform from being owned and controlled by just one person or group (like an enthusiastic, Trump-supporting, free speech-hypocrite billionaire), a concept that we hugely admire here at FPF.

What else are we doing?

Since the site allows independent developers to build apps and extensions on top of Bluesky's network, we will be exploring and experimenting with various ideas, including creating a custom press freedom feed. Feeds allow the site’s users to search for and save a stream of posts around a specific subject to their account without having to follow individual accounts. We hope to share more in 2025 about our work on this.

What can you do?

In the meantime, if you are on Bluesky or plan on creating an account, follow us and our press freedom reporting project and database, the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. You can also follow the accounts on our press freedom starter pack, plus FPF’s staff, board members, and projects on this separate starter pack.

And if you are a press freedom organization on Bluesky, verify your domain, if you own one, for a couple of reasons. First, doing so confirms your identity on the platform, and second, it makes it easier for other members of our community, journalists, and the public at large to find you there. We did our best to locate press freedom organizations and add them to the starter pack, but if you are active on the platform and not in our press freedom pack, send us a message or contact us here and we will add you.

We are not leaving X anytime soon, because we think it’s still important to reach users there, but we’re excited to deepen our presence on Bluesky. We hope others will join us there in facilitating the conversation around press freedom and other issues critical to our democracy.

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ALTON - Persnickety by Jen Farley, a new store in downtown Alton, offers an “eclectic blend” of vintage, antique and contemporary products for every household. “I like to say my pieces find me so I can help them find their owners,” said owner Jen Farley. “I always wanted a shop. I grew up here in Alton. I went to Marquette. I spent a lot of time on Broadway back in the old days when it was all the antique shops, and I just always wanted to have one of my own.” Located at 303 E. Broadway inside of Mineral Springs Mall, Persnickety was started by Farley earlier this year. Melissa Bland of Honeybee Vintage and Kim Tanner of Strangelovely encouraged her to open Persnickety, and she has loved being a part of downtown Alton. She noted that the area has “a great vibe,” and she is excited to see its revitalization. As a store, Persnickety sells a wide variety of items. Farley finds most of her inventory at estate sales, vintage

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April Bingham pleaded guilty in September to receiving illegal amphetamine prescriptions from Dr. Craig Spiegel and, on some occasions, selling the pills to others.

From St. Louis Business Journal:  St. Louis real estate developer and architectural firm Urban Improvement Conglomerate (UIC) said Tuesday it is merging with a construction firm based in Iowa. UIC, 1536 Tower Grove Ave., will join forces with Davenport, Iowa-based Bush Construction in a deal the two firms said will strengthen their design-build capabilities and […]

From Architectural Record:  Interdependence is the key ingredient of On Olive, a development at the edge of downtown St. Louis that cultivates semi-communal living as an art form. The project’s first phase of 17 houses is a collaboration between the philanthropist Emily Pulitzer, who is intent on city-building through art; the architect Tatiana Bilbao, who […]

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, a closeout and overstock merchandise chain, has opened four stores in the St. Louis region in the last 18 months with plans for a fifth.

From West Newsmagazine:  The Reserve at Wildwood development will be allowed to proceed after all. At the Nov. 4 Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission meeting, a vote to recommend the site plan subcommittee’s favorable report on the project was denied by a vote of 5-3. It required six votes to pass. Chair David Beattie, Cindy […]

EAST ST. LOUIS – A jury has found Evette B. Osuegbu, 62, guilty of conspiring to commit arson and fraud, marking a significant development in a case involving multiple properties in Illinois and Missouri. The conviction was announced following a trial that revealed Osuegbu's involvement in setting fire to her apartment in St. Louis on Dec. 31, 2022, with the intent to collect insurance benefits. Osuegbu was convicted on multiple charges, including one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, ten counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit arson, and one count of using fire to commit a federal felony. Her sentencing is set for April 23, 2025. Co-defendant Rufis A. Jefferson, 47, from Venice, pleaded guilty to related charges in January and is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 6, 2025, at the federal courthouse in East St. Louis. U.S. Attorney Rachelle Aud Crowe said, “The pair are guilty of conspiring together to commit

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A wedding venue hopes to add a campground with cabins for year-round lodging in St. Charles County.

Fourteen people are accused of helping fund North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

  This week St.Louis Mayor Tishara Jones and Board of Alderman President Megan Green released their plan for the use of the approximately $277 million in Rams settlement money. The Transform STL Act was filed this week by Ward 7 Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier and splits the money into 6 independent funds addressing various needs including…

The post Rams Money appeared first on The Big 550 KTRS.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend his inauguration next month. Trump with the move is extending a diplomatic olive branch even as he threatens to levy massive tariffs on Chinese goods once he becomes president. Trump’s incoming press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed on Thursday…

The post Trump invites China’s Xi to his inauguration even as he threatens massive tariffs on Beijing appeared first on The Big 550 KTRS.

From Construction Business Owner:  The construction industry is currently grappling with a significant labor shortage, with approximately 300,000 job openings in 2023 — a figure that is expected to continue growing. This shortage isn’t just a challenge for the industry; it’s a potential crisis for the broader economy. As the demand for infrastructure projects grows […]

BELLEVILLE — Belleville East High School Honor Society recently hosted its first annual Letters to Santa event, engaging over 50 children in festive activities. The event featured a variety of holiday-themed activities, including Christmas stories, crafts, and coloring. The Belleville East English Honor Society members facilitated the event, helping children write letters to Santa and take pictures with the jolly figure. The success of the event was attributed to the collaborative efforts of the library staff, student members, custodial staff, and others who contributed to its planning and execution. The English Honor Society expressed gratitude for the support that made the event possible.

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EDWARDSVILLE - EXO Lounge, Edwardsville’s newest “utopia” complete with a nail bar, med spa and cocktail lounge, will host a Christmas party for all to enjoy. From 4–10 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, community members are invited to EXO for a fun-filled Christmas party. All of EXO’s services will be available, and attendees can also enjoy photos with the Grinch, music by DJ Spicy, and over $3,000 worth of giveaways. “It’s everything Christmas,” said EXO owner Gina Gamblin. Located at 2157 Center in Edwardsville, EXO opened in 2019 but was destroyed in a fire in 2021. The lounge reopened earlier this year and Gamblin said they are “off to a good start.” “I am so proud of EXO and where we are today,” she added. “The brand has been through a lot, and I appreciate all the support and love from the community.” EXO previously hosted a variety of special events, and Gamblin is eager to bring these

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You ain’t seen nothing yet regarding how some MAGA politicians are going to harass and attack journalists. This week, it was revealed that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (who already has a history of trying to punish speech he dislikes) had issued a subpoena to 404 Media, an independent, journalist-owned-and-run news site that we link […]

The University of Missouri–St. Louis is building a new UMSL School of Engineering as it continues to address the high demand for trained engineers across the St. Louis region and the state of Missouri. Those efforts have received a significant boost with an $8 million grant from the James S. McDonnell Foundation (JSMF), one of […]

Kansas City could shrink by about 80 acres if a request succeeds in shifting city boundaries to make some Park University property part of Parkville. The proposal calls for Kansas City to let go of three parcels of undeveloped land the university owns, connected to the rest of its main campus. The area lies north […]