Last year saw predictions of a coming "traffic apocalypse" for publishers, with Google's AI overviews killing click-throughs to news and other sites. In July, for instance, the Columbia Journalism Review noted that worldwide search traffic had fallen by 15 percent in the past year. Meanwhile, the Pew Research Center released a report showing that people who see an AI-generated summary on Google search are significantly less likely to click on external links than users who don't. The report also noted that people almost never click on the links included in the AI summary. But, notes Digiday, as we head into 2026, publishers are escalating the battle against AI search.

The new year brings something special to celebrate: the 10th anniversary edition of DART’s continuing feature on NYC’s best indie booksellers. Back in the day, when the big box bookstores loomed large, the future was uncertain for many of our beloved neighborhood booksellers. One such loss, still felt today, was St. Marks Bookstore, opposite Cooper Union’s Foundation Building.   Above: Codex, 1 Bleecker Street, New York, NY The first feature on NYC&rsqu...