Issue #148 Loop WP

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Hi, friend. 👋

Welcome to Issue #148 of Loop WP!

Last week, we took a trip down memory lane with Gravatar and all its recent changes, as it reminds us, “We are the original link in the bio.”

This week, a proposal from Matt Mullenweg in the WordPress Slack is causing shockwaves yet again, with many suggesting that the future of WordPress is under real threat.

Let’s go! 👇

I’ve talked about WordPress and “contribution” very recently:

• Issue #140 - What is contribution, and has contribution been reduced?

• Issue #139 - Perceived negative contribution.

Some Context

🎧 I was listening live on Monday, March 10th, to the latest WP Builds podcast, “This Week in WordPress #326”, when Taco Verdonschot dropped some breaking news (around the 19:26 mark) that Matt Mullenweg had proposed.

💡 Taco, Marieke van de Rakt and Marcus Burnette discuss Matt’s proposal for about 10 minutes or so after, and it’s worth a listen.

🤯 Matt’s proposal might not have been so shocking if you had read The Repository’s article about contributor burnout, “Core Committers Struggle to Keep WordPress Moving as Automattic Steps Back Again.”

The article also contains a breakdown of those hours.

(I wasn’t aware of the above article until after Matt’s proposal.)

🚨 Since the above article was published, Automattic’s hours have dropped to 17, and WPE (WP Engine) remains at 20 hours per week.

One WordPress Release Per Year!?

If you haven’t seen Matt’s proposal, I posted it on LinkedIn, Bluesky.

🤔 As you can imagine, the social media responses have been primarily negative, and the Slack reactions are slightly more nuanced (with many of Matt’s supporters being there).

⚠️ Some key points about Matt’s claims and their accuracy have also been made on social media. Perhaps the most interesting is the inclusion of WordPress.org.

🤔 I might discuss the social responses in more detail at a future point, but we’ll see.

For now, Matt Medeiros asked a good question on X, and the responses are growing.

Mixed Responses

You can read various social media responses yourself, friend, but I want to focus on the Slack reactions (at the time of writing this newsletter).

🧠 I will discuss the Slack reactions in more detail next week and summarise them below today.

⚡️ I also encourage you to read today’s article from The Repository and its coverage, especially the section on the withdrawal of support from other major contributors.

🤔 Matt argues that this withdrawal is in protest of WPE’s actions, but many in the community feel it is a result of a protest against Matt and Automattic's actions.

Slack Insights & Recommendations:

• The community generally does not favour significant long-term delays or drastic schedule changes. Instead, careful incremental adjustments, clearer priorities, and defined maintenance cycles would more effectively address underlying concerns.

• A clear short-term roadmap, structured flexibility, and explicit attention to contributor sustainability offer a robust path forward.

• Contributors universally value transparency and proactive communication from leadership around any adjustments.

💡 The replies raised deeper issues about how WordPress is managed, how the community feels, and how the ecosystem operates.

Discussions showed broad agreement on the end goal (a healthy WordPress project with happy users and contributors), even if there were disagreements on the means.

🚨 Remember, at the time of writing, this is Matt's proposal.

However, if it is implemented, it will require careful planning, clear communication, and an empathetic approach to the various stakeholders that make up WordPress.

💪 WordPress has arguably always been a collective effort and should remain that way.

We’ve Been Here Before (Sort of)

Matt (like anyone) can change their mind, especially as WordPress, the business environment and the community have evolved over the years. However, this is not the first time the WordPress release schedule has faced controversy.

• A community suggestion for allowing rare release delays​ (WordPress 6.5 - April 2024)

• WP Tavern on 5.9 delay and its reception​ (WordPress 5.9 - January 2022)

• Matt Mullenweg’s “Deadlines are not arbitrary” post (2010)​

Sponsorship Opportunities

🚨 The Google Doc contains all the details if you’re interested in sponsoring the Loop WP Newsletter.

Before You Go

🚨 It turns out I’ve missed a lot (perhaps intentionally) in the last three to four weeks in the WordPress drama; maybe you have to, friend?

Here’s another thought-provoking article on “succession” to leave you with:

⚡️ I will discuss Matt’s proposal again in more detail next week; perhaps we will know if it is no longer a proposal by then.

See you next week! 😀

Weekly WordPress News & Tips

This week's excellent and insightful WordPress News & Tips:

• 🎉 Unity in WordPress - Navigating fractures and embracing positivity with me! (Simon Harper). (WP Builds)

• Trademarks - WordPress Foundation Secures Trademarks for “Managed WordPress” and “Hosted WordPress” in UK and Australia. (The Repository)

• Client Proof - Custom WordPress Frontend Dashboard - NEW Options Pages. (WP Tuts)

• Free Webinar - Copywriting Challenge. (Progress Planner)

• Livestream - Building WordPress Plugins with AI with Nick Diego (Automattic), Brian Coords (WooCommerce/Automattic) & Vikas Singhal. (InstaWP)

• Innovative Changes - Making the switch to GenerateBlocks 2.0? (Jonathan Jernigen)

• Wow! - Building a WooCommerce AI Bundle Generator with React & AI Services. (Brian Coords)

• GREYD Demo - Global Content in WordPress w/ Jakob Trost. (Brendan O’Connell)

• Development - How to disable and lock Gutenberg blocks. (Kinsta)

• PublishPress - Publishers Still Choose WordPress. (The WP Minute)

If you have a question about this email or WordPress, reply, and I will answer you as soon as possible.

👋 Until next time,