I’m Richard MacManus, a technology journalist and founder of ReadWriteWeb (2003–2012), one of the most influential publications of the Web 2.0 era. At its peak, RWW was ranked among the world’s top 10 blogs and syndicated by The New York Times.
For more than two decades, I’ve analyzed the evolution of the web — from early blogging platforms and social media to today’s AI-driven systems. My work focuses on how web platforms, developer ecosystems and artificial intelligence are reshaping digital culture and infrastructure.
I publish Cybercultural, an independent long-form project exploring internet history and the systems that shaped the modern web.
My latest book, Bubble Blog: From Outsider to Insider in Silicon Valley’s Web 2.0 Revolution, is a memoir of building ReadWriteWeb and navigating the technological shifts that defined the Web 2.0 era — including the rise of social media, smartphones and cloud computing.
- Paperback, US$19.99: Amazon | Bookshop.org
- eBook, US$9.99: Amazon Kindle Store | Apple Books | Google Play
Originally from New Zealand, I’m now based in the UK.
Where to Find Me
- 🐘 Mastodon: @ricmac@mastodon.social
- 🦋 Bluesky: @ricmac.cybercultural.com
- 🌐 Internet history: Cybercultural.com
- 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ricmac
(I no longer post on X or Threads.)
Books
- Bubble Blog (2024) — Memoir of the Web 2.0 era and the rise of ReadWriteWeb.
- Presence (2016) — Fiction exploring the future of the metaverse.
- Trackers (2014) — How technology helps us monitor and improve our health.
Archive & Media
I’ve got an online archive of my writing going back to the early 2000s, with a particular focus on my work from 2003-2012 at ReadWriteWeb.
See also external media coverage, from RWW through to my current projects.