Shira Chess
@shirachess.bsky.social
Associate Prof. of Media Studies @ UGA Books: 1. The Unseen Internet (MIT press, 2026)💫 2. Freaks in the Machine: Mondo 2000 in Late 20th century (Strange Attractor w RU Sirius) https://open.substack.com/pub/unseeninternet
From Mondo 2000 associated people and the true hipsters of the earlier internet; the secret worlds, the secret bizarre glories!
The Unseen Internet 💫 | Shira Chess | Substack
Looking at technological woo past, present, and future. Click to read The Unseen Internet 💫, by Shira Chess, a Substack publication.
unseeninternet.substack.com
About an old friend and colleague of mine and a Person of Interest at Mondo 2000. She passed away from cancer some years ago. She was a legend in the tech/web underground.
In Defense of Irresponsible Journalism
Wherein St. Jude (Milhon) will not be canonized (much)
unseeninternet.substack.com
In my latest Mondo 2000 adjacent article I tell the strange tale of “Michael Synergy,” a self-proclaimed cyberpunk hacker. But, also, he probably wasn’t a hacker. Basically: I know almost nothing about who Synergy was, but I have a lot to say, anyhow. unseeninternet.substack.com/p/the-hacker...
In my latest Mondo 2000 adjacent article I tell the strange tale of “Michael Synergy,” a self-proclaimed cyberpunk hacker. But, also, he probably wasn’t a hacker. Basically: I know almost nothing about who Synergy was, but I have a lot to say, anyhow. unseeninternet.substack.com/p/the-hacker...
Bay Area friends! I will be joining @rusirius.bsky.social at his "Deliria 2" event on August 12 & 13 @ Gray Area. We will give our first reading of FREAKS IN THE MACHINE... Exclusive screening of Nova '78. Plus, Rudy Rucker (@rudytheelder.bsky.social) and Annalee Newitz (@annaleen.bsky.social)!
RE/Search’s influence, especially on the Industrial movement, cannot be overstated. By the way, Vale is still around and producing!
mmr@mmr3cords.bsky.social · 2mo ago#RESearch #VVale #IndustrialCulture In this episode you'll learn • How RE/Search Publications began • The connection between punk and underground publishing • Why industrial culture became a central focus • How alternative archives preserve subcultures youtu.be/V4ore94XlEI
Premiering today on Exploration Arcanum, I sit down with @shirachess.bsky.social , author of The Unseen Internet. In this far-reaching interview, we discuss #artificialintelligence, #meme magic, and the techno-paganisms of the 1990s. youtu.be/KXIBS-STFIE?...
The Unseen Internet | Shira Chess on AI, the Occult, Meme Magic & Technopaganism
YouTube video by Exploration Arcanum
youtu.be
I did a podcast with the delightful Rick Palmer from @sphericalpod.bsky.social where we talked about all kinds of things from the esoteric internet to the backrooms. Check it out!
Some Other Sphere Podcast@sphericalpod.bsky.social · 4w agoPodcast Wednesday! Episode 153 - Shira Chess - The Unseen Internet #Podcast #Paranormal #Occult #Cyberspace #Backrooms #Mysticism #WyrdWednesday @shirachess.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...
Episode 153 is out this week! My guest is author and academic Shira Chess, who joined me to discuss her latest book 'The Unseen Internet: Conjuring the Occult in Digital Discourse'. You can listen from Wednesday. @shirachess.bsky.social #Podcast #Paranormal #Occult #Cyberspace #Magic #Mysticism
@shirachess.bsky.social with former Mondo 2000 staffer/writer Allan Lundell's WTFUture show yeah!
016 WTFUture - Interview - Dr. Shira Chess - Cyberculture, Avatars and the Occult
YouTube video by Allan Lundell
youtube.com
For this month's newsletter I wrote about the messy-ass, iconic 20th century hacker St. Jude Milhon. I'm not going to lie; it gets parasocial AF. unseeninternet.substack.com/p/in-defense...
In Defense of Irresponsible Journalism @shirachess.bsky.social about Jude Milhon St. Jude’s work truly peaked in a 1992 Gonzo-style piece titled “The Grace Jones School for Girls.” In it, she fabricates a chance meeting with a teenager in an online chat room called “FUTURE NOW”...
In Defense of Irresponsible Journalism
Wherein St. Jude (Milhon) will not be canonized (much)
open.substack.com
For this month's newsletter I wrote about the messy-ass, iconic 20th century hacker St. Jude Milhon. I'm not going to lie; it gets parasocial AF. unseeninternet.substack.com/p/in-defense...
Can't get enough of the reflecting pool drama? Or do you just really really like algae or (alternatively) cleaning simulations? Play my #FreeRPGday submission, Reflecting America @ 250. It's a solo journaling RPG where you play as the reflecting pool wondering if you'll be clean by July 4th.
Reflecting America @ 250 by hegemonyrules
A solo journaling RPG where you play a reflecting pool. Will you be free of algae and muck before July 4th? Who knows!
hegemonyrules.itch.io
Some amazing quotes in this article about how Ford replaced hundreds of engineers with AI, which broke a bunch of shit causing billions in damage and forcing them to rehire those people. www.the-independent.com/tech/ford-ai...
• XaTuring: God of the Internet • Thee Temple of Psychick Youth • Reality Hackers magazine (Hi @rusirius.bsky.social) • Frasier Clark’s Zippy movement • PODSNET • Jacques Vallée and the Midnight Irregulars • alchemical formula to rip a hole in the fabric of reality @shirachess.bsky.social
Phil Hine@philh.bsky.social · 2mo agoMy suggestion that chaos servitors could be "programmed" using COBOL-derived conditional statements gets a brief mention in this essay on the intersection between internet tech and the occult.
The goal isn’t to replace the work of humans. It’s to make a case for its devaluation.
I keep seeing "all authors use AI, the real issue is they're being forced to be sneaky about it" headlines. Full stop No. This is a lie peddled for normalization. It's schoolyard-level pressure tactics "C'mon, all the cool kids are already doing it. We won't tell. It's fine. We're on your side."
Btw, @rusirius.bsky.social and I will be giving our first snippet reading from our unhinged book FREAKS IN THE MACHINE at his Deliria2 event in August. Obviously, you should be there.
R.U. Sirius@rusirius.bsky.social · 2mo agoa soft launch more details in a week
ICYMI: "Like Pomni and her cohort, we find ourselves on daily digital 'adventures' that are increasingly unpleasant and obligatory." @shirachess.bsky.social explains why The Amazing Digital Circus resonates so much with our current experiences:
We are All NPCs Now: Making Sense of The Amazing Digital Circus - Unwinnable
On the eve of a movie theater finale, Shira Chess examines The Amazing Digital Circus's place in our current moment of digital dehumanization.
buff.ly
I heard you like open-access journal articles on weird topics so I made you one. ❤️ I am happy to share my latest article for JCMS, "Conjuring a Magical Medium; or, How to Rip a Hole in the Fabric of Reality!" quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/i...
quod.lib.umich.edu
"Like Pomni and her cohort, we find ourselves on daily digital 'adventures' that are increasingly unpleasant and obligatory." @shirachess.bsky.social explains why The Amazing Digital Circus resonates so much with our current experiences:
We are All NPCs Now: Making Sense of The Amazing Digital Circus - Unwinnable
On the eve of a movie theater finale, Shira Chess examines The Amazing Digital Circus's place in our current moment of digital dehumanization.
unwinnable.com
I’m not sure how I feel about the term “ShiraMania” but @rusirius.bsky.social knows what mania looks like…
R.U. Sirius@rusirius.bsky.social · 2mo agoMore @shirachess.bsky.social It's ShiraMania today! "Conjuring a Magical Medium; or, How to Rip a Hole in the Fabric of Reality" & R.U. Sirius Reality Hackers Mondo 2000 for the assist "This is most resonantly seen in Reality Hackers magazine... become Mondo 2000... R. U. Sirius explains..." i do
I heard you like open-access journal articles on weird topics so I made you one. ❤️ I am happy to share my latest article for JCMS, "Conjuring a Magical Medium; or, How to Rip a Hole in the Fabric of Reality!" quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/i...
quod.lib.umich.edu
Shira Chess on The Amazing Digital Circus ... I've only watched one episode so far but I'm now encouraged to see the rest (and the movie that's supposed to come out). and of course @shirachess.bsky.social text is always spot on
We are All NPCs Now: Making Sense of The Amazing Digital Circus - Unwinnable
On the eve of a movie theater finale, Shira Chess examines The Amazing Digital Circus's place in our current moment of digital dehumanization.
unwinnable.com
This is an excellent piece, and I think it also describes why LitRPG is such a growing genre in the literary sphere
Stu Horvath@stuhorvath.com · 2mo agoTonight, The Amazing Digital Circus finale screens in theaters and @shirachess.bsky.social explains the show's greater significance for folks who've never heard of it (you, probably).
Tonight, The Amazing Digital Circus finale screens in theaters and @shirachess.bsky.social explains the show's greater significance for folks who've never heard of it (you, probably).
We are All NPCs Now: Making Sense of The Amazing Digital Circus - Unwinnable
On the eve of a movie theater finale, Shira Chess examines The Amazing Digital Circus's place in our current moment of digital dehumanization.
unwinnable.com
If you are over the age of 25 you may not get The Amazing Digital Circus… I wrote this for @unwinnable.com as an explainer!
Stu Horvath@stuhorvath.com · 2mo agoTonight, The Amazing Digital Circus finale screens in theaters and @shirachess.bsky.social explains the show's greater significance for folks who've never heard of it (you, probably).
