The Verge Weekend Questionnaire – The Verge The Verge is about technology and how it makes us feel. Founded in 2011, we offer our audience everything from breaking news to reviews to award-winning features and investigations, on our site, in video, and in podcasts. 2026-06-04T18:16:28+00:00 https://www.theverge.com/rss/stream/943285 https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/01/verge-rss-large_80b47e.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1 Terrence O’Brien <![CDATA[Benn Jordan longs for the days of tech that didn’t spy on you]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=942609 2026-06-04T14:16:28-04:00 2026-06-06T11:00:00-04:00 YouTuber and musician Benn Jordan in a black jacket standing in a field.
Benn refuses to be pigeon holed. | Image: Benn Jordan

Benn Jordan may have initially gained notoriety for his music as Flashbulb and later, reviewing synths and effects pedals on YouTube under Benn and Gear. But about five years ago, Benn decided to take his YouTube channel in a different direction. He didn't stop covering music gear overnight, but as time progressed, his channel became more focused on science and technology investigations. He even turned the entire enterprise into a nonprofit.

While there will still be the occasional video focused on music or audio - say, poisoning AI music systems or storing data in bird song - lately Benn has been largely focused on the surveillance state. …

Read the full story at The Verge.

]]> Terrence O’Brien <![CDATA[Welcome to Night Vale host Cecil Baldwin shares his tech pet peeves]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=939930 2026-05-29T11:47:20-04:00 2026-05-30T12:00:00-04:00 Welcome to Night Vale Host Cecil Baldwin in a blazer, jeans, and boots, looking suave as hell.
Cecil Baldwin is a busy man with some dope boots. | Image: Cecil Baldwin

Cecil Baldwin's résumé includes appearances on Gravity Falls, narrating the documentary Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street, and performing as part of the New York Neo-Futurists theater company. But he is best known as the host of the podcast Welcome to Night Vale, a long-running fiction show that blends macabre Lovecraftian horror with absurdist comedy. As Cecil Palmer, the voice of Night Vale Community Radio, Baldwin keeps the people of the titular town abreast of all the goings ons with the Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your Home and offers tips on how to best maintain their Bloodstone circles.

He also cohosts Random Nu …

Read the full story at The Verge.

]]> Terrence O’Brien <![CDATA[The man behind the legendary MPC, Roger Linn, stays focused with a single browser tab]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=936426 2026-05-22T16:06:15-04:00 2026-05-23T11:00:00-04:00 Roger Linn, the inventor of the LM-1, the LinnDrum, and the MPC sitting outside.
Roger Linn lets his accomplishments do the talking. | Image: Roger Linn

Roger Linn is a legend in the world of musical instruments. He's been at the cutting edge of music technology for decades. He created the LM-1, the first drum machine to use samples, and its successor, the LinnDrum, is one of the most iconic drum machines of all time. They were used on countless records in the 1980s, including hits by Tom Petty, Queen, and Tears for Fears. But the most notable fan was probably Prince, who used them extensively on Purple Rain and 1999.

Somehow, those are not his greatest contributions to the music world. That would, undoubtedly, be the MPC. Linn partnered with Akai to create one of the most popular and impor …

Read the full story at The Verge.

]]> Terrence O’Brien <![CDATA[NPR’s Manoush Zomorodi talks about living with too much tech]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=930171 2026-05-18T16:02:56-04:00 2026-05-16T11:00:00-04:00 NPR’s Manoush Zomorodi siting at a desk with a microphone in front of her.
Manoush Zomorodi tackled tech’s effect on our brains, now she’s looking at our bodies. | Image: Tory WIlliams

Manoush Zomorodi is an accomplished reporter, podcast host, and author. Her new book, Body Electric, takes a comprehensive look at how technology is impacting our physical health. It's a collaboration between NPR and Columbia University Medical Center that picks up where her first title, Bored and Brilliant, left off. That book looked at how technology was hampering our mental health. I highly recommend it to anyone who feels like being constantly attached to a device is sapping their energy and creativity.

Both books grew out of her extensive podcasting work. After heading up WNYC's Note To Self, Zomorodi went on to host NPR's TED Radio H …

Read the full story at The Verge.

]]>