I want to begin this introduction to our 25th anniversary essay series by telling you what an exciting and must-read collection it is. Our team has commissioned 25 essays on the history of digital media, which more or less overlaps with the 25 years we’re celebrating here at TPM this year. We solicited contributions from a wide range of contributors — people who first made their mark at different points in the history of digital media, people who’ve worked in different parts of the digital beast, people from very different political persuasions. We have Semafor’s Dave Weigel on Elon Musk and X; Jacobin founder Bhaskar Sunkara on the rise of Substack; Gawker founder Elizabeth Spiers on blogging; Marisa Kabas of the Handbasket on journalists as personal brands; Marcy Wheeler (Emptywheel) on troll culture and the rise of Trumpism. That only scratches the surface on the series we’re kicking off today, and running through our two-day anniversary event in New York City on Nov. 6 and 7.