I won’t sugarcoat it: the outcome of last week’s US presidential election was not what WIRED wanted. As I wrote last week, several of the core values that underpin our publication and inform our journalism—unwavering respect for democratic institutions, commitment to human rights and bodily autonomy, recognition that climate change is an extreme emergency—are in disagreement with those of Donald Trump and the incoming Republican administration.
Our values are not changing and our commitment to rigorous, independent investigative journalism and investigative journalism across all of WIRED’s coverage areas remains strong, particularly as the United States navigates this new and uncertain political chapter. But as I reminded our team last week, there is one more value we hold dear here at WIRED, and it’s one I want to share with all of you today: hope.
At WIRED we believe that technological progress and scientific discoveries, sometimes slowly and sometimes rapidly (often turbulently, often unequally), will improve human life and introduce possibilities that were once unfathomable. We believe in the power and creativity of the human mind, and we love nothing more than to present to all of you the ingenious ideas and inventions that come from brilliant people in so many fields of research. We believe the internet can still, amid the decline of AI and the trolls of it all, be a place to find community, connect across physical borders, be informed and entertained. We believe in being weird. We believe in fun. At WIRED we will always choose to believe that the best days in the world (perhaps the best days in the galaxy, when we all live on Mars) are yet to come. So yes. Yes, damn it. We believe in hope.
And, of course, we believe that journalism in all its incarnations, from a print magazine to a WIRED.com story to a TikTok video, is a vital part of creating that better future we all hope for and believe in.
In that spirit, I want to reinforce what you can expect from WIRED journalists in the weeks, months and years ahead. We will follow and cover the incoming Trump administration and its policies, with an eye to revealing new information to help you understand what is happening and why it matters on a variety of prominent topics: from surveillance and privacy to regulation of the artificial intelligence and big technologies. , climate change and reproductive rights. This may be a bit heavy, but we think it’s important: accountability helps the world move in the direction of progress, as does access to accurate information.
But that’s not all we will do. When you read or watch WIRED, yes, we want you to be informed. We also want you to have fun, and of course, we want you to feel hopeful. Our cultural coverage will continue to introduce you to wild online communities, emerging trends, and notable makers and creatives. Our gear coverage will continue to showcase the newest, smartest, and sometimes strangest products to add to your wish lists, and remains committed to the best expert reviews and buying guidance. Our science desk is always here to blow your mind, whether it’s the latest discoveries in physics or the cutting-edge technology driving new finds in archaeology. And our reporting team will continue to deliver rich, in-depth storytelling that you can get lost in. (Stay tuned for a stimulating series of stories that will take you inside the beating heart of Silicon Valley. and in a little driverless car chase).
Keep reading, watching and listening. In addition to our magazine, website and YouTube channel, WIRED journalists are doing incredible and inventive coverage of tiktok and instagram I encourage you to continue. And if you haven’t seen our new flagship podcast, mysterious valleyNow might be the perfect time to break away from politics and instead listen to Mike, Lauren, and Zoë talk about the tech industry’s return to office mandates.
If you can, please support the incredible breadth of work WIRED journalists do by signing up to join our community. And until next time: keep waiting and know that we will too.
