Social Media
The right dominates the online media ecosystem, seeping into sports, comedy, and other supposedly nonpolitical spaces
KAYLA GOGARTY
Media Matters
As Americans increasingly get their news from online shows and streamers, the influence of this media ecosystem becomes more prominent — and Media Matters has found that the most popular of this content is overwhelmingly right-leaning.
Published On: 03/14/2025
Democracy • Press Freedom • Threat Management
What to Expect When You’re Expecting Catastrophe
Laurie Winer
Thinking About
Magical thinking is far from new. Adolf Hitler came to power amid similar lies and conspiracy theories. We should know where that leads. And, while MAGA may ignore the mountains of books written on fascism, the rest of us are not in the dark about what comes next.
Published On: 03/13/2025
Democracy • Technology
Inside Elon Musk’s ‘Digital Coup’
BY MAKENA KELLY, DAVID GILBERT, VITTORIA ELLIOTT, KATE KNIBBS, DHRUV MEHROTRA, DELL CAMERON, TIM MARCHMAN, LEAH FEIGER, AND ZOË SCHIFFER
wired.com
Musk’s loyalists at DOGE have infiltrated dozens of federal agencies, pushed out tens of thousands of workers, and siphoned millions of people’s most sensitive data. The next step: Unleash the AI.
Published On: 03/13/2025
Journalism • Press Freedom
The Campaign to Silence Journalists & Undermine Free Speech
Tonya Mosely
Fresh Air
In his book Murder the Truth, author David Enrich explores how Justice Thomas' words coincide with a surge in legal threats and litigation against journalists and media outlets.
Published On: 03/11/2025
Canada • Safety
American family seeks asylum in Canada, citing Trump
Dalson Chen and Jacob Barker
CBC News
A family from Illinois is anxiously awaiting a decision from a Canadian tribunal as they seek asylum north of the border, claiming that America's politics have made them feel unsafe. Kaitlyn and Ted Berg say they made the recent decision to uproot their children as they witnessed the fallout of November's presidential election.
Published On: 03/11/2025
Technology • Threat Management
Hegseth halts cyber operations against Russia, adding to an ugly pattern
Steve Benen
Maddow Blog
Late last week, a publication called The Record, which focuses on news related to cybersecurity, published a report that seemed hard to believe. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the outlet reported, “ordered U.S. Cyber Command to stand down from all planning against Russia, including offensive digital actions.”
Published On: 03/10/2025
Safety • Threat Management
Mutual Aid
SCOT NAKAGAWA
The Anti-Authoritarian Playbook
Mutual aid is a form of collective care in which communities come together to share resources, provide for one another’s needs, and build systems of support independent of the state or corporate entities.
Published On: 03/10/2025
Safety • Threat Management
Taking Heart
Robert Reich
Robert Reich Substack
A few people I know are coping by remaining in denial. They continue to normalize what’s happening in the familiar terms of Republican versus Democrat, right versus left, conservative versus liberal or progressive.
Published On: 03/09/2025
Democracy • Technology
‘Startup Nation’ Groups Say They’re Meeting Trump Officials to Push for Deregulated ‘Freedom Cities’
CAROLINE HASKINS AND VITTORIA ELLIOTT
Wired
Trey Goff, the chief of staff of the startup nation known as Próspera, tells WIRED that he and other Próspera representatives working under an advocacy group called the Freedom Cities Coalition have been meeting with the Trump administration about the idea in recent weeks. He claims the administration has been very receptive. In 2023, Trump floated the idea of creating 10 freedom cities. Now, Goff says that Próspera’s vision is to create “not just 10, but as many as the market can handle.”
Published On: 03/07/2025
Journalism • Press Freedom
Shattered by a perfect storm: How Trump’s cuts are crippling journalism beyond the United States
Gretel Kahn, Marina Adami, Eduardo Suárez
Reuters Institute
Before Trump’s inauguration, the US government supported independent journalism in more than 30 countries. Most of this funding was channelled through USAID. According to a USAID factsheet recently mentioned by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and now taken offline, the agency funded training and support for 6,200 journalists and assisted 707 outlets.
Published On: 03/07/2025