Peter Biles

Peter Biles is a novelist, short story writer, poet, and essayist. He is the author of three books, most recently the novel Through the Eye of Old Man Kyle. His essays, stories, blogs, and op-eds have been published in places like The American Spectator, Plough, and RealClearBooks & Culture, among many others.

Archives

Washington Post Fires Hundreds of Journalists

_{The Post has struggled in recent years and even saw a major dip in subscriptions back in 2024}_{Peter Biles
February 4, 2026}

Owner Jeff Bezos has not yet succeeded in making the company financially viable in a time when so much media and journalism is now being independently created.

The Decline of K-12 Literacy and What Might Help

_{An emphasis on storytelling might at least partially serve as a solution in K-12.}_{Peter Biles
January 26, 2026}

High school students struggle in places afflicted with poverty, family breakdown, and other social woes. However, it doesn't necessarily follow that students from wealthier regions are demonstrating academic excellence.

Grok’s Deepfake Capacities Modified Following Pushback

_{Deepfakes and AI-generated content are only becoming more prevalent on sites like X.}_{Peter Biles
January 14, 2026}

Grok, X’s AI program, came under fire when its users began creating explicit images and videos of real people. AI-generated deepfakes began to abound until finally, X took action to modify the AI bot’s capabilities. According to X’s Safety account: We have implemented technological measures to prevent the Grok account from allowing the editing of images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis. This restriction applies to all users, including paid subscribers. Additionally, image creation and the ability to edit images via the Grok account on the X platform are now only available to paid subscribers. This adds an extra layer of protection by helping to ensure that individuals who attempt to abuse the Grok account to violate the law or our policies can …

In 2026, Real Artistry Will Help Brands and Businesses

_{2025 was AI's big year. Will 2026 follow suit, or will the scales start to balance?}_{Peter Biles
January 2, 2026}

Enter Porsche, the car company, and it's advertisement, contrasting with Coca-Cola, shows the time-tested beauties of hand-drawn and CGI animation.

AI Data Centers Are Using Water, and Lots of It

_{Will studies like this spark a new kind of pushback in the coming year?}_{Peter Biles
December 23, 2025}

The study has arrived on the heels of Time Magazine’s decision to elect a number of AI company CEOs as its annual “Person of the Year.”

AI Developers Named Time’s “Person of the Year”

_{The decision drew a lot of criticism.}_{Peter Biles
December 12, 2025}

On the cover of the magazine issue, tech giants including Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg are pictured sitting on a construction beam.

New ChatGPT Ads Assume People Can’t Think for Themselves

_{ChatGPT wants to do it all for you.}_{Peter Biles
December 9, 2025}

This sort of thinking assumes that modern people are no longer intelligent enough to do the things that former generations easily managed.

How to Ruin a Generation: Give Everyone Smartphones

_{What is all of this digital content doing to the souls of kids? To everyone?}_{Peter Biles
December 4, 2025}

For those familiar with the novel Brave New World, this distracted, dopamine-addled brand of a society was all but predicted almost a century ago.

New Allegations Claim Meta Dismissed Risks to Children

_{New complaints, same story: Meta cares more about business growth than protecting kids}_{Peter Biles
November 25, 2025}

This new litany of complaints feels like it will be a lot tougher for the tech behemoth to successfully battle.

What Qualifies as a Book Ban?

_{If a novel has sold millions of copies and can be easily bought in almost any bookstore, how is it "banned"?}_{Peter Biles
November 12, 2025}

Many people on social media pushed back against the claim that Atwood’s famous, bestselling book has in any way been “banned.”

Tech Addiction is Reaching a Frightening New Level

_{Young people are spending endless time online seeking drug-like states of mind}_{Peter Biles
November 5, 2025}

Kolitz wraps up his article by stressing how this new type of addiction isn’t so far removed from the more culturally accepted forms of mindless scrolling.

On the State of Men and Reading

_{Valuable advice to students: Learn how to read deeply}_{Peter Biles
October 30, 2025}

Reading great books might not immediately come to mind, but according to professor Shilo Brooks, it just might be a part of the answer.

The Enduring Relevance of The Brothers Karamazov

_{Dostoevsky opposed materialism and pointed readers to beauty and mystery}_{Peter Biles
October 24, 2025}

The book may not present neat answers to our problems, but it presents a vital picture of what it looks like to cherish life and hold onto to the inherent value of human life.

Altman Says Adults Can Use ChatGPT to Create “Erotic” Content

_{Pushback against Altman's post was swift, as one might expect}_{Peter Biles
October 16, 2025}

If anything, these AI tech moguls are giving away their rather sordid conception of the human person.

AI Psychosis and the Need for Human Exceptionalism

_{I pronounce you husband and chatbot?}_{Peter Biles
October 14, 2025}

AI is a tool with certain potentials and limits across various fields, but basic anthropological confusion can do a lot of damage. What happens when AI programs cease to be seen as mere tools, meant to used in limited ways and used wisely, and are considered “persons?” It sounds silly to pose the question, but that’s where we are. Futurism writer Frank Landymore reports on an Ohio legislative measure to ban human-AI marital unions. The bill must be intended to be preventative, since AI bots and programs aren’t recognized as legal persons (yet), but it speaks to a cultural trend that, if undealt with, could blow out of proportion. Landymore writes, Popular chatbots are capable of being eerily lifelike, effortlessly playing along with any conversation …