He’s an NYT tech reporter, so that lines up with your observations.

He’s inherently a part of the ongoing NYT vs Silicon Valley spat, so probably being circulated more in tech circles as that plays out.

This spat is news to me. What's going on?

Reading this sort of stuff will just make you bitter and resentful. It’s a step away from using a slur to describe journalists they don’t like.

Well, we're going to need a new slur for journalists, something which is reminiscent of their rampant hypocrisy, their agendas, and general desire to throw stones without repercussion. "My side's violence is speech; your side's speech is violence" is the new refrain and how I would love to hear coined a word which can adequately encompass that kind of loathsomeness.

Just take the blue pill, never question anything!

Traditional east coast media is losing their grip on narrative formation and they're lashing out at intellectual figures outside of their social group, especially from the west coast indie-intellectual scene (e.g. Scott Alexander).

What in the heck is an indie-intellectual?

In this context it would likely be someone who provides intellectual leadership through writing, but is not employed by a large media company like The New York Times.

Little fish who failed in the big pond who now cultivate followings in littler ponds

Scott Alexander is from Michigan. I don't know if blogging is really a West Coast thing, I thought of it as more DC but maybe that's just because of politics.

It's because he's pumping his book, as seen at the end of the article as well as his other articles, his Twitter, etc.

As someone who once competed with him for stories: Cade is a very strong writer with a robust pedigree who really gets the current state of play in ML, and has the chops to write about it for a general audience. At his best, his articles are able to help non-experts understand the stakes and wonder that make up this corner of the tech world.