We asked our writers to each give us a list of their favorite stories and/or podcasts they did this past year. Without further ado, here they are. Click on the headline to read the story or listen to the podcast.

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Amanda Smith

Adult Industry Creators Turn to Crypto to Fight Financial Discrimination and Censorship

• Crypto and the adult film industry have a lot in common — like being shut off from banks — but they are finding ways of working together to solve mutual problems

The FTX Contagion Continues, Threatening the Future of the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund

• Reconciling allegedly stolen money from FTX users that was donated to charities will likely be decided by the courts

From Facebook to ‘DeFi for the 99 Percent,’ Erbil Karaman and Huma Are Decentralizing Access

• Centralized tech behemoths’ incentives are all wrong

The Ugly Examination of Caroline Ellison – the Female Face Behind FTX

• Sexism and misogyny reared their ugly heads last week as Caroline Ellison took the stand in the SBF trial

EthDenver 2023’s Optimism, Beyond the Bear. A Roundup.

• Did you miss EthDenver 2023? We’ve got you covered

Fed Driven Crypto De-Banking Rumors Afoot

• We look into fears there’s a U.S. crackdown on crypto coming

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MacEagon Voyce

This Machine Kills Copyright: Minting a Bob Dylan Song As a Way to Resurrect Folk Traditions

• Can web3 and blockchain usher in a new era of common ownership in creative endeavors like music more akin to the folk era? Here’s 9,000 words to say it can

‘On-Chain Summer’ Gets Off to an Optimistic Start Atop the Eiffel Tower at EthCC

• Crypto and the history and legacy of the Eiffel Tower have surprisingly a lot in common

Exploring the Fundamentals and Nuance of Community in On-Chain Music at Water & Music’s Wavelengths Conference

• Are blockchain and web3 a help or a hinderance to music, and what does community mean if it can’t scale?

Improving Crypto Infrastructure, “On-Chain Summer” and a Web3 “renaissance” at EthCC 2023

• A roundup of the most interesting ideas and social happenings from Paris

Big Brother and the Hodling Company podcast: Cherie Hu | Founder at Water & Music

• Hu’s able to balance the expressive and the technical, the ultimate balancing act that music tech so rarely nails

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Miriam Feiler

How a DAO Is Logging Evidence of War Crimes in Iran and Ukraine on the Blockchain

• The lessons learned by a DAO community in Ukraine are being used to help Iranian protesters

Winemaker Chris Milliken Shares Why the Global Wine Industry Hasn’t Acquired a Taste for Blockchain

• Early experiments with NFTs didn’t affect consumer attitudes toward the authenticity of a vintage

Microchipped Multidisciplinary Artist Lans King Fuses His Body and Art to Limn the Frontiers of Technology

• A chip, serial number 04:7D:AF:32:0A:54:81, implanted in King’s hand, points to a hash on the Ethereum blockchain containing information about his artwork and NFTs

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Stephen Laddin

Lights Camera Crypto podcast with artist Ruben Rojas

• Artist Ruben Rojas shares how his well-paid but unfulfilling career in real estate and finance ultimately led him to start creating murals for himself, and how murals turned evolved to canvas and to fashion, leading him to create one of the most recognizable brands around love and positivity in the Web3/digital space and throughout the world.

Cool Cats Rises As First NFT Collection to Float In Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

• How crypto is expanding the reach of mainstream art in the U.S.

Game of Silks’ Digital Community Is Crafting a Real World Impact

• The web3 platform wants to become the DraftKings of the horse racing industry

Starling Lab’s Mission to Authenticate Our Digital World

• Preserving the authenticity of information literally starts at the source

Lights Camera Crypto podcast with Sarah Buxton | CEO of Gala Music & Gala Film

• Hear Bux talk about how embracing failure can actually lead to an increase in innovation

Lights Camera Crypto podcast with Paul Gerben

• Less is more as Gerben has gone about deciding what digital art he releases as NFTs

Lights Camera Crypto podcast with Sarana Haeata, Co-founder of Aslan Ruby Digital Art Studio

• Co-founder of Aslan Ruby Digital Art Studio Sarana Haeata opens up about initially refusing "the call" to be an artist, discovering digital art due to circumstance, and how her Māori background influences her perspective as a human and storyteller