Chelsea Stark

For some additional vibes on Nexstar's local TV station network, I worked for a local TV station Nexstar took over managing in 2009. When they did, their health plans no longer covered birth control pills.

For some Helldivers 2 players, the fascist role-play has gone too far ‘They talk like we’re actually soldiers’

This story is a year old and very important. As someone who knows jack shit about right wing references and ideology but knows plenty about gaming culture, Helldivers was specifically attracting fascist freaks even though the devs went to great lengths to explain the concept of satire.

the shooter was an online gamer. it's important for newsrooms to understand video games more than ever. that's where i step in. so umamusume: pretty derby (ウマ娘 プリティーダービー) is a gacha horse racing simulator based on real life japanese race horses. in the world of umamusume, anime girls replace horses,

I think people need to mention this part, when talking about how culture desk work is dangerous. Rarely do news organizations understand when threats are real and how to respond.

As reporters wrestle how to cover another deeply online shooting suspect, I'm trying to imagine a scenario 30 years ago where shell casings had sports or music references instead of gaming ones. We continue to shout that gaming IS youth culture, but newsrooms can't speak about (or to) youth culture.

lol i was gonna say, this stance is hard to defend, Adam. But also disadvantaged against gen x for sure!

holy shit, thank you!!! i'm dying listening to this

four long cucumbers, one cut in half, on a cutting board. Also, a bunch of dill.

it’s been two months since i got laid off. In case you were wondering how it’s going, i’ve reached the “making pickles” stage of my unemployment journey, Send me your homemade pickle advice!

is going to atlantic terminal at 11 am on a Thursday a “perk” of unemployment?

for anyone in NYC looking: I was able to buy a Switch 2 at the best buy in atlantic terminal about 45 minutes ago. They said they had “plenty”.

Aww, i'm so glad you checked in, Julie. It's been so long. I will do that. <3

Danny! it's so nice to hear from you after all this time. Thank you so much. I'm glad our work meant so much to you and so many people.

14 years ago I pitched what would become Polygon to a startup called Sports Blogs Inc on the unfurnished third floor of a DC townhome. I held a laptop on my knees and went through a deck.

Today that same company -- now called Vox Media -- sold Polygon to Valnet.

here's that Starter Pack of Polygon people you were looking for bsky.app/starter-pack...

I'm still in shock and so so deeply angry about Vox Media's decision to sell Polygon. I am one of the over 20 people laid off today from the best damn website out there. I'm so proud of the place we built, and the workplace I helped shape. I'm sure I'll have more to say soon, but processing it now

i tried using the mouse on everything available to me (pants! back of my laptop! my arm!) and it all worked.

Snoop and Tom Brady: say no to hate

Kendrick: actually

F.C.C. Chair Orders Investigation Into NPR and PBS Stations Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, recently expressed concern about NPR and PBS’s sponsorships.

"[Brendan] Carr, who was appointed by President Trump, said the investigation would focus on the stations’ practice of airing sponsorships." 🤔

I forgot this movie was from 2001! which was when I was a senior in high school. My recollections of Jones starting to get sinister was he became a 9/11 truther a couple years later.

I'm from Austin, so Jones was really a long-time joke on our public access channels. Like I remember when I was in high school watching a far different flavor of Jones get arrested after refusing to get fingerprinted with his drivers license. He was just kind of "local weirdo" then.

My last story for @polygon.com

I'm so grateful to @charliehall.bsky.social for giving me the space to write about indie TTRPGs, about things that matter, about tariffs and censorship and platform migration.

And with my final act, I used that platform to do some good.

Responded to your comment in the post!

Don’t let Arco be the most overlooked game of the year A breathtaking revenge saga told as a pixel RPG

I asked another coworker who is also a parent, and he said Arco! www.polygon.com/gaming/47511...

Culture Shock We explore some of the many ways media changes when released in different territories

My latest project is live: Culture Shock. 14-ish stories running this week about localization and cultural differences in media. Articles today by @duncanfyfe.net, Gab Hernandez, @plante.bsky.social, and I. Art by @davidhellman.bsky.social. www.polygon.com/special-issu...

How long until gaming companies start rolling back these sorts of important programs? Maybe it’s already happening? If you know something or have thoughts, let’s talk for a potential story. I’m on Signal at nicolecarpenter.87 and email at nicole@polygon.com.

You will see many important ways to help and donate to the people of Los Angeles. Here's one I don't want overlooked.

LA's Fire Department

I'm the child of a firefighter and I've seen the immediate danger and long-term trauma of tragic events. Consider giving to LAFD Foundation

supportlafd.org

Text reads: "Among Us" is a child-friendly whodunnit game in which a group of friends run around several space station-like maps. The “crewmates,” who are simply drawn, cartoonish-looking astronauts, run around the ship and complete tasks. Follow along for live coverage The intent of the game? One member is a killer and attempts to off the other crewmates. The death animations are silly and shown as someone getting stabbed in the back or having their neck snapped. Once a body is discovered, a crewmate reports it and a conversation ensues to deduce who the gamers think committed the crime. If they’re wrong, an innocent player will be ejected in a humorous animation of them floating off into space. If they’re right, the crewmates win. If the “killer” gets all the crewmates or gets all the innocent ones ejected, they win. The game has been wildly popular, especially during the pandemic, and particularly among young children because of its simple mechanics, colorful cartoonish nature, and unpredictability. The game is so beloved by younger gamers, dressing as a “crewmate” is often a popular children’s costume at Halloween

Does anyone know NBC's updates policy? because the Among Us piece got a significant correction and context boost without any kind of Update/Correction note to the reader.

Reminder to the media: Research video games before reporting on them No, Among Us doesn’t turn someone into an assassin

And also this, which we can now trot out every 8-10 months until the earth stops spinning

www.polygon.com/opinion/4935...

We found everything we could about Luigi Mangione’s gaming history — and it doesn’t say much about him A look into the suspect’s gaming history

These hobbies are as common as they come these days, especially for a 26-year-old. Good stuff on Polygon today. 👀

www.polygon.com/analysis/493...

I get a lot of emails from people asking if they can pay us to get rid of the chumboxes and bad ads on the site. It took some doing…. but now you can! And if you sign up for a yearly subscription to The Verge, we’ll send you our latest print magazine: CONTENT GOBLINS www.theverge.com/2024/12/3/24...