Michael Foster

https://backend.newsmast.org/@michael

Co-Founder Newsmast Foundation (npub142g…kmy5)
Discovering things, paths, people, ideas.
Sharing knowledge, curating content, engaging communities and rebuilding the digital public space. It's now or never!

Website: https://www.newsmastfoundation.org/

Public Key

npub19hhrsk4pdq4anvlalxlxamuwugyav3du42wc6cga0j9c9upy7cdqkzyxnx

NIP-05 Address

michael_at_backend.newsmast.org@momostr.pink

Profile Code

nprofile1qqszmm3ct2sks27ek07ln0nwa78wyzwkgk7248vdvywhezuz7qj0vxspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds90a6l0

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

saltivka.org

Author Public Key

npub19hhrsk4pdq4anvlalxlxamuwugyav3du42wc6cga0j9c9upy7cdqkzyxnx

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Last Notes

2026-11-10 12:38:32 UTC

Four years ago this month we wrote the first @npub142g…kmy5 mission: take on Elon with a a mix of knowledge-sharing, community and fun.
We've lost a lot of naivety since then, but none of the ambition. We're not building a town square any more. We're building networks of connected communities, with the organisations that run them.
Thank you to everyone who has been part of it, and most of all to the team who make it all possible. We're excited for 2027!
https://www.blog-pat.ch/four-years-of-newsmast-where-we-came-from-where-were-going/

2026-11-06 11:05:54 UTC

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We’re delighted to welcome Laurens to the Board of our Stichting. Laurens was one of the first people to get in touch with Newsmast when we launched three years ago, and has been a source of wisdom and inspiration ever since. So it’s a natural step for us and we look forward to working together

2026-11-05 15:15:54 UTC

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great to be working with you on this!

2026-11-05 14:00:56 UTC

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and what a year!

2026-08-09 04:34:53 UTC

#COSCUP here we go! Cc @npub142g…kmy5
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/117/063/685/884/794/905/original/51549e7417194172.jpg

2026-08-09 03:30:05 UTC

#COSCUP Social Web track kicking off with insightful and stimulating presentations from Roro Park and [@jihyeok](https://hackers.pub/@jihyeok ) - plus an impromptu session from @npub1hg6…nwn8 as a bonus!
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/117/063/425/778/240/999/original/ead5278ded3b3597.jpg
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/117/063/425/860/619/385/original/2da1c1636459630a.jpg
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/117/063/430/370/144/299/original/6b7cf71d789edd26.jpg

2026-07-18 16:43:21 UTC

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love it :)

2026-07-12 09:46:15 UTC

Dub in the forest at #DWebCamp - with the ultimate sound system from Berlin.
@npub108s…tznn thank you for so many introductions - and to everyone at C-base for bringing their cool stuff to camp 🏕️
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/906/328/830/911/490/original/53cae5d5de63e334.mp4

2026-07-12 09:33:44 UTC

Blues Brothers at #DWebCamp ! Thank you @npub1drf…fpxa for inviting me - it’s been so much fun! What a vibe - and so many fascinating, change-making people 💚
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/906/307/356/383/313/original/1167bb0fc33a00cf.jpg

2026-07-12 06:28:49 UTC

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super cool ❤️

2026-07-10 20:44:24 UTC

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t-shirt in the wild :)
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/897/627/059/593/042/original/564923906299f6c8.jpg

2026-07-08 08:52:52 UTC

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good luck! See you there :)

2026-07-07 20:12:32 UTC

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😅

2026-07-07 14:13:51 UTC

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Can’t wait to arrive at #DWebCamp tomorrow 🐬💕🏕️

2026-07-06 10:53:07 UTC

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This year DWeb is transporting itself from the Redwood forests of California to a former Stasi Camp in the woods an hour outside Berlin. There's a whole bunch of stuff going on, which you can follow online at #DWebCamp or check out as it goes live on the web https://dwebcamp.org/

2026-07-06 10:52:28 UTC

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has promised to wear his incredible neon pink Fediverse cape, and there's a free t-shirt for anyone who takes part 🥳If you're in camp, stop by the Social Web tent on Thursday at 12pm and check it out!

2026-07-06 10:51:22 UTC

Here's what's going in my bag (and what's not) as I pack for "Black Holes & Day-Glo Symphonies" at #DWebCamp on Thursday:
🎨 Six cans of Day-Glo paint. Not allowed on the plane 😬 so a fresh order of graffiti paint is shipping to Alte Holle.
📋 Three flipcharts.
📣 A pink Day-Glo megaphone.
👕 Thirty t-shirts with a top secret design.
🔊 A Bose S1 Pro+.
👩‍🎤 A Lily Allen track.
🐬 A TikTok meme.
⚫ And one black hole. Potentially more hazardous than the spray cans?
Cont...
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/872/647/589/021/032/original/384f5d87f28477fa.jpeg

2026-06-13 08:09:58 UTC

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Incredible work by Tim and the Find Out team - and everyone at Newsmast! Congrats! 🔥🚀🔥

2026-06-10 13:41:28 UTC

Overnight the @npub142g…kmy5 backed Find Out Social added 3,000 users in a few hours, onboarding one user every second at times. All driven by a Mr Global Facebook post. Let’s go!
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17TaRGWXVP/?mibextid=wwXIfr

2026-06-08 13:52:11 UTC

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An incredible moment! And a great opportunity to take forward all we do. Huge thanks to all the team and everyone who has supported us or worked with us along the way 🥳🔥💕

2026-06-07 16:31:51 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@chrisstoecker/116708702343311570
A great piece! Includes support for the European Social Stack initiative and the call for “shared infrastructure and shared protocols” in Europe. https://european.social/
#note1jlx…6wq4

2026-06-02 12:40:17 UTC

Here's the call to action @npub142g…kmy5
is taking to @npub18kk…0r8c:
Make connected community spaces our mission for the year ahead.
Community building is hard. Connected community building is harder. But it's worth it.
For technologists: add this alongside your building. For policy people: let's talk. For marketers and content makers: let's band together. For community builders: we need your help.
Heading to PublicSpaces? Come find us.
https://www.blog-pat.ch/connected-community-spaces/
#Fediverse #PublicSpaces

2026-05-06 16:42:39 UTC

Thanks so much to @npub1lng…tzy0 and @npub1zq3…t5dq for inviting me to present a live webinar yesterday about our work at @npub142g…kmy5
We had a full house and lots of engagement!
It was a pleasure watching the lightbulbs going off in people’s heads. We can make change, creating new digital homes and networks for non-profit communities.
#Fediverse #NonProfit
https://digitalnonprofit.ca/2026/05/06/apps-for-change-building-community-owned-spaces-in-a-big-tech-world/

2026-04-14 10:18:39 UTC

It’s been a busy time at @npub142g…kmy5 Our pilots are all live or in test, across four flavours of app.
Over the next two months, everything we’ve co-designed with our pilot communities will be embedded into our Build-an-App programme. A simplified, modular set of code and tools, enabling partner organisations to:
Create a demo app in hours.
Share a test app in days.
Launch a community and mobile app in weeks.
Read the full building in public update here: https://www.blog-pat.ch/apps-for-change/

2026-04-07 13:37:49 UTC

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Welcome back Mariana! Very excited you’re going to be helping us with all our projects - its wonderful to have you back

2026-03-31 22:24:00 UTC

It’s almost time to say goodbye to the @npub142g…kmy5 home for the last two days - the #ONA26 Midway.
We’ve had lots of conversations about audience engagement, community, and building social networks for #journalism.
We look forward to rolling out pilots in the US over the coming year. If you know a small, indie newsroom who’d be interested, send them our way!
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/326/122/578/013/794/original/00a408aa3f834d45.jpg
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/326/123/012/218/762/original/c3011da53de42a06.jpg

2026-03-28 20:21:07 UTC

#NoKings Chicago - this is big!
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/308/655/660/801/857/original/c3dd9f84d04c3d37.jpg

2026-03-26 21:20:38 UTC

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Looking forward to it!

2026-03-23 15:23:47 UTC

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Huge welcome to Jaz!

2026-03-20 21:27:37 UTC

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Fixed - good spot, thank you!

2026-03-20 20:29:22 UTC

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thanks!! On the case

2026-02-28 21:33:34 UTC

What a team! Snuck into this photo with #TootWales - thanks for a wonderful event
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/116/150/391/329/734/681/original/30aae38f230bf18f.jpg

2026-02-16 15:57:44 UTC

Here's an update on what we're doing at @npub142g…kmy5. We're excited to be working with ten pilot communities, building community apps and platforms on Mastodon and Bonfire. Our apps come in five flavours: news, content creators, professional networks, hyper-local and local language Fediverse communities. We're working all around the world, in the UK, Germany, Brazil, Africa, Canada and the US. If you know any organisations like this, do put us in touch!
https://www.blog-pat.ch/your-community-your-platform/

2026-02-03 14:38:17 UTC

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18th century queer women artists were mostly hidden in society. One we know of is the English sculptor Anne Seymour Damer, who is celebrated as a witch in a painting hanging in the National Portrait Gallery. "The Three Witches from Macbeth" shows Anne along with her close friends Elizabeth Lamb and Georgina, Duchess of Devonshire (The Duchess). Very Portrait of a Lady on Fire! https://www.npg.org.uk/whatson/display/2011/the-three-witches-from-macbeth

2026-02-01 14:29:11 UTC

Great presentation today from @npub14rp…za3l on the Decentralised Communication track at #FOSDEM. Previewing two exciting initiatives Bonfire is working on with @npub142g…kmy5 and [@klasse_methode](https://chaos.social/@klasse_methode ). Look forward to many more!
https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/newsmast/media_attachments/files/115/995/827/066/822/114/original/63e1a6d6b97876a3.jpg

2026-01-28 16:45:03 UTC

Last week I hooked up with @npub1hg6…nwn8 from Tŵt Cymru, the community-owned Welsh social network. We’re combining forces to launch the first Tŵt app on March 1st, Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant (St David’s Day).
The Tŵt mobile app is vibrantly Welsh, easily accessible for new users, and a model for social communities worldwide. Reflecting the Pethau Bychain (Little Things) campaign behind the app. It’s all about building a digital commons from small acts of hospitality and kindness.
https://jaz.co.uk/2026/01/13/there-is-one-fediverse-there-are-a-thousand-ways-to-join-it/

2026-01-14 10:57:34 UTC

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Hi Nicol yes exactly it’s a white-label mobile app - and we have a few more pilots to launch in the coming weeks and months. It’s all on the same codebase so we can put the time into community-led design as Jaz describes.

2026-01-13 20:11:40 UTC

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Watch this space! @npub142g…kmy5 is rolling out white-label apps. As Jaz says, this and other pilots are test cases.

2026-01-02 14:18:12 UTC

Futility or hope: pink flowers, crowbars and compost.
On New Year’s Eve @npub1vag…mjkp shared a link to John Green’s review of Auld Lang Syne, resurfacing Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s question: how do we perceive a bright pink flower growing in an alley?
Looking back through the lens of 2025, a rough year in so many ways, the flower can look like futility. A tiny plant crushed by dark forces. Looking forward to 2026, it’s a symbol of hope.
Here’s why I’m excited about 2026.
https://www.blog-pat.ch/futility-or-hope-pink-flowers-crowbars-compost/

2025-12-18 12:12:03 UTC

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Thanks for everything and good luck! See you in the ‘verse!

2025-12-16 13:31:53 UTC

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50:50!!!

2025-12-09 14:15:35 UTC

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So happy to be working with such a brilliant team

2025-11-17 16:44:21 UTC

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Wonderful to see this live. Revolutionary!

2025-10-28 15:40:24 UTC

I was at the Thompson Reuters Trust Conference last week. Blinded by AI and blindsided by Trump, liberal institutions are in survival mode. instead of making a stand, they're doing all they can to blend into the background, making themselves invisible in order to survive.
How can those of us working in the Open Social Web fight back? Sarah Connor offers inspiration.
#Fediverse
https://www.blog-pat.ch/the-end-of-liberalism-and-the-beginnings-of-resistance/