Molly White's Citation Needed

Keep up with the happenings in the tech world without all the boosterism. Cryptocurrency critic, technology researcher, and software engineer <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molly_White_(writer)" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Molly White</a> publishes Citation Needed, a newsletter that features weekly explainers of developments in the cryptocurrency industry, with summaries of the latest disasters featured on her well-known project<i> </i><a href="https://web3isgoinggreat.com/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Web3 is Going Just Great</a>. She also does deep dives into important events in the broader technology industry, with added critical context that is too often missing.

Prediction markets are booming. Oversight is barely there.

Prediction markets once lived on the academic fringe. Now they’re trading billions on politics, sports, and celebrity gossip — under rules never designed for retail gamblers. Originally published on September 16, 2025.

09-16
26:30

Issue 92 – The scam of all scams

The Trumps “debank” major customers from their “anti-debanking” cryptocurrency venture, and a CFTC nominee says the Winklevosses are blackballing him. Originally published on September 12, 2025.

09-12
28:47

Trump Jr.-advised prediction markets invite bets on president’s demise

President Trump’s deregulatory agenda emboldened prediction markets to push boundaries around permitted event contracts. Now sites advised by his son are allowing bets on his death. Originally published on September 2, 2025.

09-02
08:30

Issue 91 – GDP on the blockchain

The regulator set to take on primary crypto oversight is down to a single Commissioner, and new pro-crypto PACs focus on installing more Republicans in the midterms. Originally published on August 27, 2025.

08-27
28:48

As he builds US power, Justin Sun fights to control his story

A crypto billionaire who once feared arrest in the US is now a Trump business adviser and White House guest. His lawsuit against Bloomberg reveals what he doesn't want Americans to know about his crypto fortune. Originallly published on August 19, 2025.

08-19
26:06

Issue 90 – Crime szn bro

The Trump administration cracks down on software to limit surveillance of crypto transactions, while celebrating a “deregulatory blitz” tailored for its billionaire benefactors. Originally published on August 13, 2025.

08-14
37:03

Curate your own newspaper with RSS

Escape newsletter inbox chaos and algorithmic surveillance by building your own enshittification-proof newspaper from the writers you already read. Originally published on July 31, 2025.

07-31
14:45

The Tornado Cash case: When politics sabotage a prosecution

The Trump administration’s regulatory whiplash has left prosecutors scrambling with misattributed chat messages and questionable victim testimony. Originally published on July 28, 2025.

07-29
13:00

Issue 89 – Crypto wins in Washington with midnight calls, chocolate bars, and a $141 million threat

Trump stands to profit from a $2 billion bitcoin bet as the crypto industry pushes through bills aimed at bolstering the sector. Originally published on July 23, 2025.

07-23
20:28

Issue 88 – The stockchain

Crypto firms hope putting a blockchain veneer on traditional equities will allow them to sidestep lessons learned in the 1929 Wall Street crash, crypto firms look to become banks, and Congress celebrates crypto surveillance while claiming to outlaw it. Originally published on July 11, 2025.

07-11
31:43

Issue 87 – SO ORDERED

Trump’s crypto empire attracts more foreign millions, the FHFA pushes crypto on mortgage lenders, and Mamdani’s mayoral primary win makes billionaires sweat. Originally published on July 1, 2025.

07-01
23:53

Issue 86 – State power sponsored by Coinbase

The GENIUS Act passes the Senate after explicit threats to Democrats from the crypto lobby, and shady crypto billionaire Justin Sun cozies up even closer to the Trump family. Originally published on June 19, 2025.

06-19
18:46

It matters. I care.

Originally published on June 11, 2025.

06-11
04:56

Issue 85 – All the President’s tokens

As Trump’s web of crypto projects gets tangled up in itself, a regulator warns of “regulatory Jenga” in the crypto sector that echoes the 2008 financial crisis. Originally published on June 5, 2025.

06-05
33:41

Trump to launch branded crypto trading application

New crypto trading and wallet application, created in partnership with Magic Eden, invites fans of President Trump to buy his memecoin. Originally published on June 3, 2025.

06-03
09:27

OpenAI featured chatbot is pushing extreme surgeries to “subhuman” men

OpenAI's featured chatbot recommends $200,000 in surgeries while promoting incel ideology. Originally published on May 31, 2025.

05-31
11:00

Issue 84 – Rogue overseas support agents

Coinbase’s substantial data breach coincides with a convenient terms of service update, while the GENIUS Act stablecoin bill regains momentum in the Senate. Originally published on May 20, 2025.

05-20
22:26

Issue 83 – Trump’s crypto-backed plan to auction off access to the White House

Trump’s crypto conflicts continue to multiply as Democratic legislators demand ethics inquiries and block industry-backed bills. Originally published on May 12, 2025.

05-12
25:37

Meet Trump’s memecoin dinner guests

Trump's crypto-for-access dinner triggers broad ethics alarms, and 73% non-US attendance raises fresh concerns over foreign influence. Originally published on May 7, 2025.

05-08
12:45

Issue 82 – E-moluments

As Celsius victims detail their devastation even under the weak crypto regulations of the past, the Trump administration continues to dismantle those same rules while he pumps his personal memecoin with promises of private access. Originally published on April 24, 2025.

04-24
28:08

Recommend Channels