Clearing out my dad’s house and I now have a ton of photos by which to prod various generations of @Harpers editors and interns, starting with my own intern cohort
This was when novelty Chia Pets first took “off”
Sure, now he’s a fancy pants political editor at NBC but back then @mmurraypolitics was just East Village dart board Jesus
seen here in the most 90s intern shot ever
Where are we going and why is Ben in a tux? @lmrattner?
This shot could only happen at a @Harpers anniversary party
The Caucasity
Not all all stages (think @patricksymmes may get credit/blame)
1/ Whether or not Biden explicitly endorses Harris, it's hard to imagine who would a) decide to go up against her and b) wind up on top with the amount of time left.
Maybe a year ago or even six months ago. But now?
2/ Biden cannot make his delegates vote for Harris. Sure, if he was like "imho, she's the only one for the job" they'd be *even more* likely to go for her. But they're not legally bound to follow his lead.
To many, this signals chaos ahead. But another way to think about it...
3/ Is that a process that wasn't kicked off by Biden being super explicit about his wishes would still likely wind up with Harris, but with less worry that voters would feel they were forced to supporters.
1/ Today we began to roll out an incredible 2.5 year project with @reveal and @publicintegrity. We found 1250 formerly enslaved people who WERE given the 40 Acres Gen Sherman promised them, only to have it seized back after Lincoln was killed motherjones.com/politics/2024/…
2/ It began when @AlexiaCampbell found some documents deep in the US Archives…
@AlexiaCampbell 3/ Years of document dives, many reporting trips, and a giant database build later, @publicintegrity reporters not only found land titles given to 1,250 emancipated people (there are likely thousands more) but traced the geneology of many: motherjones.com/politics/2024/…
1/For years, the mother of mass shooter Elliot Rogers has been quietly helping experts prevent future massacres. For the past two years, she's been talking to @markfollman. This is an important story, unlike any other: motherjones.com/criminal-justi…
2/ Family, friends, the many therapists he saw—they all knew he struggled. But nobody thought he was suicidal, much less murderous. How can we all learn from missed signals, and ensure that our communities have threat assessment teams to flag and help divert potential killers?
3/ Elliot Roger is especially infamous b/c left behind misogynistic rants. But the media label of “intel ringleader,” say the experts who’ve studied him for 10 years, is skewed, and it’s help fuel copycat cases. And this is important, generally, because...
1/ Jesus, Blue Wave twitter has, yet again, completely lost its mind re @maggieNYT. Guys, texting with sources is how you get the inside dope and "start writing" isn't an order from Trump HQ, it's like, start your process and I'll maybe feed you something.
2/ Does a reporter coax info out of someone by...coaxing, yes, yes they do. It's a game of cat and mouse where each side hopes to get something from the other. The journalist: info. The source: sympathy/spin/down payment on future leakage, etc.
3/ In a case like this the source and the journo have known each other for years, maybe decades. They are each doing a dance to get what they want. Nobody in this case is a media naif.
1/ Today, we launched a giant project on American Oligarchy.
From the rise of Trump, to crippling housing prices, to reality TV, there's nothing that explains America's crises like seemingly limitless power (and oft farcical vanity) of the super rich: motherjones.com/politics/2024/…
2/ First, a quick video preview of what a full issue of @MotherJones magazine, plus a lot more online, holds: tiktok.com/@motherjonesma…
1/ Sure seems like big news orgs should update their "what we know and don't know" stories about the bombing at the hospital to mention in the first graph that the hospital itself was not hit or even sustained much damage! npr.org/2023/10/18/120…
2/ NPR doesn't have a transcript up yet but listen to this 3-min piece that's a good rundown of the whole situation npr.org/2023/10/19/120…
3/ The cynic in me thinks news orgs that were too hasty in their assessments are now hiding behind language like the bombing "at" the hospital. (Rather than "of.")