J. D. Lasica
American journalist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Daniel "J.D." Lasica is an American entrepreneur, author, public speaker and journalist. He has co-founded several tech startups with a focus on artificial intelligence and has written several books about media and technology.[1][2][3][4]
J. D. Lasica | |
|---|---|
J. D. Lasica (2008) | |
| Born | Joseph Daniel Lasica Passaic, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Education | Rutgers University (BA) |
| Occupations | Author, journalist, entrepreneur, public speaker |
| Notable work | Darknet: Hollywood's War Against the Digital Generation |
Early life and education
Lasica was born in Passaic, New Jersey and grew up in Elmwood Park, N.J. He graduated from Rutgers University, where he earned a BA in communication.[5] He is married to Mary, and the couple has a son.[6]
Journalism and media career
He began working in journalism in the 1980s as an editor and columnist at the Sacramento Bee.[7][8]
He left newspapers in 1997 to join Microsoft's Sidewalk.com city guide as copy chief and managing editor.[9] From 1997 to 2005, he wrote for publications such as the American Journalism Review (its first new media columnist), the Online Journalism Review (chief columnist), the Industry Standard, and Engadget.[10][11] He also edited the white paper We Media: How Audiences Are Shaping the Future of News and Information for the American Press Institute.[12]
He received a Knight News Challenge grant for his project Community Media Toolset and contributed to training modules for citizen journalists through the Center for Citizen Media.[13]
Entrepreneurship and AI
In 2005 Lasica co-founded Ourmedia, one of the first grassroots video-hosting communities, with Marc Canter.[14][15][16][17] He later founded Socialmedia.biz, a consulting firm, and in 2009 launched Socialbrite.org, a learning center for nonprofits.[18] He was also admitted to the Intel Insiders, a group of technology experts who advised Intel on social media and emerging tech trends.[19]
His subsequent ventures included the Agile Travel Group, which launched Cruiseable, an AI-powered cruise discovery platform,[20] as well as BingeBooks, a book discovery service backed by authors that uses artificial intelligence to provide recommendations.[21] He also co-founded Authors A.I., a company offering AI manuscript analysis through its proprietary system Marlowe.[22]
Books
Non-fiction
- Darknet: Hollywood’s War Against the Digital Generation (2005; reissued 2025 as Whose Media Is It?)[23][3]
- The Mobile Generation: Global Transformations at the Cellular Level (2007, Aspen Institute).[24]
- Civic Engagement on the Move: How Mobile Media Can Serve the Public Good (2008, Aspen Institute).[25]
- Identity in the Age of Cloud Computing (2009, Aspen Institute).[26]
Fiction
- Biohack (2018)
- Catch and Kill (2019)
- Firefall (2022)
- The Golden Relic (2024)
Public speaking
Lasica has spoken at international events including the United Nations (2012), Harvard’s Berkman Center, MIT, Princeton, Cannes Film Festival, SXSW, and Digital Hollywood.[4]
Recognition
His work in tech and media led to him being named one of the "Top 50 Silicon Valley Influencers" by NowPublic in 2008[27] and one of the "Top 100 Influencers in Social Media" by Social Technology Review in 2012.