mastodon - Link to source

It is absolutely *wild* to me that media organizations still do not put RSS/Atom :rss: feed info front-and-center on their websites.

One needs to dive into HTML code or use external tools to discover their feeds.

It is wild because this is one of the easiest, least-effort ways to reach their audience. Encouraging RSS/Atom use is a phenomenal way of becoming less reliant on gatekeepers like huge social media platforms.

Come on! :angrycat:

Peter Lord reshared this.

in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

friendica (DFRN) - Link to source

Peter Lord

So true.

Mind you, many websites do have an RSS feed but don't publicise it (mostly, I suspect, due to ignorance).

I use addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firef… to find "hidden" RSS feeds to follow (on my frendica instance).

Screenshot from my next talk -

#u3a #u3a.social @U3ACommunities Computing

#u3a #u3a.social @U3ACommunities Computing
in reply to Peter Lord

mastodon - Link to source

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

@plord @u3acommunitiescomputing

> Mind you, many websites do have an RSS feed but don't publicise it (mostly, I suspect, due to ignorance).

This is kind of my point. Most of these sites *do* have RSS/Atom feeds available. They just decide to hide them.

@U3ACommunities Computing @Peter Lord
in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

Anneke

@elmine um, I actually blame the non-considered inclusion of RSS feeds in newspaper website systems in the 90s for the fact people expect their news for free. Newspapers don’t want to reach an audience; journalists do. Newspapers want to keep paying journalists and thus have copyright/control/make money. And they don’t make any off you not going to their website.

(As an idealist I feel similar to you but I also know journalism takes a lot of time and can’t be done as a hobby)

@elmine
in reply to Anneke

mastodon - Link to source

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

@Anneke @elmine sure, I get that – I had worked at a media org.

But here's the thing, the media orgs keep complaining that social media is so bad for them, eating their cake, not sending people back to their sites, limiting reach, and all that, and yet they keep encouraging people to use that.

RSS/Atom has fewer of these downsides.

@elmine @Anneke
in reply to Anneke

mastodon - Link to source

elmine

@Anneke You can also make a teaser RSS feed as a subscription based outlet, just like you would tweet new headlines to lure readers to your articles. It would make a lot of sense in today’s siloed environment for people to also follow media outlets on a more independent technology. Media outlets posting to mastodon already have that at their disposal, so why not offer that more prominently on your website? I think that’s the spirit of @rysiek ‘s post.
@Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦 @Anneke
in reply to elmine

mastodon - Link to source

Anneke

@elmine I get it and I have actually myself set up RSS feeds for the Tubantia that ran for more than a decade after I worked there 😀 but there is noone at the papers doing some modernization direction or thinking about what digital tools to use or how to do it responsibly. Just want to help understand the background here. If it’s something you want and think would be good, a paper would probably be delighted to get help with this stuff, even if they’re part of DPG here
@elmine
in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

Anneke

@elmine well as I said, if you believe in it, go and offer to help them with it! I would try and find a person in a responsible looking role through linkedin of one of the media outlets you like. All you need is an advocate on the inside who you can convince. At least that’s my experience and now that I’m thinking about this I might help my old paper get on Mastodon
@elmine
in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

Space Invader

@pluralistic Browsers used to auto-find and put an RSS button in the URL bar.

Used to.

I kinda understand why they stopped, but I wish it was a user-selectable option so power users could easily find those feeds. Also, it would allow for the creation of a viral TikTok video about a “secret option” to break free of algorithms which would do more for teaching non-technical users about RSS than anything else ever written.

@Cory Doctorow
in reply to Space Invader

mastodon - Link to source

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

@spaceinvader I did say "don't get me started" on that :blobcat:
mstdn.social/@rysiek/115850916…

@pluralistic

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

2026-01-07 00:11:41

mastodon - Link to source

And don't get me started on the absolutely screwed up, hilariously misguided decision by Mozilla to remove the RSS/Atom :rss: button from the default Firefox UI a long while back.

You absolutely hopeless nincompoops!.. :blobcatfacepalm:


@Cory Doctorow @Space Invader
in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

And don't get me started on the absolutely screwed up, hilariously misguided decision by Mozilla to remove the RSS/Atom :rss: button from the default Firefox UI a long while back.

You absolutely hopeless nincompoops!.. :blobcatfacepalm:

in reply to Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦

mastodon - Link to source

resipiscent

helpful
rsslookup.com/

also know, GaleOneFile alerts through your public library provide free full-text access to many many paywalled sites: Economist, Barron's, WaPo, etc.

RSS Lookup - Find RSS feeds on any URL

RSS Lookup is a free, open-source tool that helps you search for RSS feeds on any URL
www.rsslookup.com
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