Adam H Johnson
@ahjohnson.bsky.social
citationspod.bsky.social podcast, write @ The Nation, Real News, In These Times, things of that nature
columnblog.com
columnblog.com
I wrote a book about US media’s complicity in the Gaza genocide. It's available for pre-order. It’s a data-driven and, I hope, thorough account of how center-left media sold the American public on mass death in Gaza.
Out 4/21. 100% of royalties go to @mecaforpeace.bsky.social.
Out 4/21. 100% of royalties go to @mecaforpeace.bsky.social.
How to Sell a Genocide - Pluto Press
A gripping exposé of how the corporate media fuelled genocide in Gaza
www.plutobooks.com
November 24, 2025 at 7:29 PM
I wrote a book about US media’s complicity in the Gaza genocide. It's available for pre-order. It’s a data-driven and, I hope, thorough account of how center-left media sold the American public on mass death in Gaza.
Out 4/21. 100% of royalties go to @mecaforpeace.bsky.social.
Out 4/21. 100% of royalties go to @mecaforpeace.bsky.social.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In Ep 230, "How To Oppose Genocide Without Opposing Genocide (Part 1): Biden World's Reputation Laundering PR Tour," we detail attempts by ex-Biden officials to distance themselves from the horrors of Gaza and lay out the emerging Dem-aligned media industry of vibing past Dems' support for genocide.
How To Oppose Genocide Without Opposing Genocide (Part 1): Biden World's Reputation Laundering Tour
In this episode, we detail recent attempts by former Biden officials to rewrite history and absolve themselves of responsibility for the horrors of Gaza, and lay out the emerging Dem-aligned media ind
soundcloud.com
November 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
In Ep 230, "How To Oppose Genocide Without Opposing Genocide (Part 1): Biden World's Reputation Laundering PR Tour," we detail attempts by ex-Biden officials to distance themselves from the horrors of Gaza and lay out the emerging Dem-aligned media industry of vibing past Dems' support for genocide.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Leading up to NYC’s election, politicians launched a barrage of racist claims against Zohran Mamdani. Mainstream media outlets have barely covered it.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social reports on the Islamophobic vitriol, threats of deportation, & virtually no coverage.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social reports on the Islamophobic vitriol, threats of deportation, & virtually no coverage.
Why is Mainstream Media Ignoring Overtly Racist Attacks on Mamdani from Congressional Republicans?
Non-stop Islamophobic vitriol, threats of deportation, and virtually no coverage from CNN, NBC, CBS, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal or The Washington Post.
inthesetimes.com
November 15, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Leading up to NYC’s election, politicians launched a barrage of racist claims against Zohran Mamdani. Mainstream media outlets have barely covered it.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social reports on the Islamophobic vitriol, threats of deportation, & virtually no coverage.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social reports on the Islamophobic vitriol, threats of deportation, & virtually no coverage.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Times Union editorial board tackled this in June, and again last month:
November 15, 2025 at 11:44 AM
Times Union editorial board tackled this in June, and again last month:
Congressional republicans have been spewing racist attacks on Mamdani for weeks and it’s almost never mentioned in our media. Not only that, the person leading the hate campaign—Randy Fine—is treated by the same media as a good faith expert on antisemitism. I wrote about this obscene double standard
Why is Mainstream Media Ignoring Overtly Racist Attacks on Mamdani from Congressional Republicans?
Non-stop Islamopbohic vitriol, threats of deportation, and virtually no coverage from CNN, NBC, CBS, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal or The Washington Post.
inthesetimes.com
November 15, 2025 at 3:33 AM
Congressional republicans have been spewing racist attacks on Mamdani for weeks and it’s almost never mentioned in our media. Not only that, the person leading the hate campaign—Randy Fine—is treated by the same media as a good faith expert on antisemitism. I wrote about this obscene double standard
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
From the NYT editorial board to CNN panels, Zohran Mamdani is hearing unsolicited advice––and veiled threats––from US corporate media: by @ahjohnson.bsky.social
Elite media to Mamdani: Drop everything that made you successful and act more like a generic Democrat
From the NYT editorial board to CNN panels, Zohran Mamdani is hearing unsolicited advice––and veiled threats––from US corporate media.
therealnews.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:47 PM
From the NYT editorial board to CNN panels, Zohran Mamdani is hearing unsolicited advice––and veiled threats––from US corporate media: by @ahjohnson.bsky.social
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
As @ahjohnson.bsky.social points out here, the US media is stroking its chin & pondering why Trump wants to attack Venezuela. They somehow overlook his stated motivation, which is that Venezuela has the world's biggest oil reserves.
Media Pontificating About Trump’s Motives for Attacking Venezuela Keep Ignoring that he Openly Admitted It Was to Take Their Oil
BBC, Politico, WaPo, CNN entertain many reasons for why Trump wants regime change in Venezuela—while ignoring the most obvious.
www.columnblog.com
November 6, 2025 at 5:56 PM
As @ahjohnson.bsky.social points out here, the US media is stroking its chin & pondering why Trump wants to attack Venezuela. They somehow overlook his stated motivation, which is that Venezuela has the world's biggest oil reserves.
Trump has openly said his motive for attacking Venezuela is to seize its oil. But recent explainers in WaPo, Politico, BBC, CNN pontificating about Trump's motives do not mention this fact at all. I wrote about western media's bizarre refusal to state the obvious, even after Trump says it himself.
Media Pontificating About Trump’s Motives for Attacking Venezuela Keep Ignoring that he Openly Admitted It Was to Take Their Oil
BBC, Politico, WaPo, CNN entertain many reasons for why Trump wants regime change in Venezuela—while ignoring the most obvious.
www.columnblog.com
November 5, 2025 at 6:07 PM
Trump has openly said his motive for attacking Venezuela is to seize its oil. But recent explainers in WaPo, Politico, BBC, CNN pontificating about Trump's motives do not mention this fact at all. I wrote about western media's bizarre refusal to state the obvious, even after Trump says it himself.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Citations listeners! Join us this Wed Nov 5 at 5:30pmET/4:30pmCT for a YouTube live show on the media’s reaction to the NYC mayoral election. Will it be a Mamdani meltdown? Will there be executions in Central Park? Will the MSNBC/Pod Saves set successfully Obama-fy him? Find out!
November 3, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Citations listeners! Join us this Wed Nov 5 at 5:30pmET/4:30pmCT for a YouTube live show on the media’s reaction to the NYC mayoral election. Will it be a Mamdani meltdown? Will there be executions in Central Park? Will the MSNBC/Pod Saves set successfully Obama-fy him? Find out!
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In this Live Show Beg-a-Thon, "MAHA, TikTok and the Rise of Health-Branded Fascism," recorded on 10/13, we are joined by Justin Feldman to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
Citations Needed Live Show Beg-a-Thon: MAHA, TikTok and the Rise of Health-Branded Fascism
In this Live Show Beg-a-Thon from 10/13, we are joined by Justin Feldman to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our shitty for
soundcloud.com
October 31, 2025 at 2:58 PM
In this Live Show Beg-a-Thon, "MAHA, TikTok and the Rise of Health-Branded Fascism," recorded on 10/13, we are joined by Justin Feldman to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In this News Brief, we detail how the AP, Atlantic, Washington Post and New York Times are accepting Trump's framing that his attacks on Venezuela and Colombia are about "going after drug cartels" when it's clear they are—based on Trump's own words—about controlling Venezuela's oil.
News Brief: As Trump Attacks Venezuela, Media Takes His Absurd “Drug War” Pretext at Face Value
In this News Brief, we detail how the AP, Atlantic, Washington Post and New York Times are accepting Trump's framing that his attacks on Venezuela and Colombia are about
soundcloud.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:51 PM
In this News Brief, we detail how the AP, Atlantic, Washington Post and New York Times are accepting Trump's framing that his attacks on Venezuela and Colombia are about "going after drug cartels" when it's clear they are—based on Trump's own words—about controlling Venezuela's oil.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In this News Brief, "Media Helps Sell ICE Raids with Zero Dark Thirty Ride-Along Schlock," we discuss NYT, NBC, Fox, CBS and ABC's "embedded reports" of ICE raids that prime the public for ICE’s abductions and harassment of immigrants.
With guest @matthewccook5.bsky.social
With guest @matthewccook5.bsky.social
News Brief: Media Helps Sell ICE Raids with Zero Dark Thirty Ride-Along Schlock
In this News Brief, we are joined by Matthew Cunningham-Cook to discuss his recent media analysis of "embedded reports" of ICE raids that prime the public for brutal crackdowns on undocumented immigra
soundcloud.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:10 PM
In this News Brief, "Media Helps Sell ICE Raids with Zero Dark Thirty Ride-Along Schlock," we discuss NYT, NBC, Fox, CBS and ABC's "embedded reports" of ICE raids that prime the public for ICE’s abductions and harassment of immigrants.
With guest @matthewccook5.bsky.social
With guest @matthewccook5.bsky.social
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Folks I know there’s a lot going on, but if you’re free tmrw in Chicago plz support NU students been banned from classes for refusing to watch Israeli propaganda. Their lawyer (& mine), Rima Kapita, has filed an emergency order demanding the courts intervene. I filed an affidavit of support. 🙏🏾
October 19, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Folks I know there’s a lot going on, but if you’re free tmrw in Chicago plz support NU students been banned from classes for refusing to watch Israeli propaganda. Their lawyer (& mine), Rima Kapita, has filed an emergency order demanding the courts intervene. I filed an affidavit of support. 🙏🏾
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In this News Brief, "The Billionaire-Backed Groups Working to Push Dems Right in 2026 & 2028," we detail the major factions seeking to rewrite the history of the 2024 election as "woke" Gone Too Far, downplay Gaza, and prevent economic populism at all costs.
News Brief: The Billionaire-Backed Groups Working to Push Dems Right in 2026 and 2028
In this public News Brief, we detail three major factions that have emerged in 2025 seeking to rewrite the history of the 2024 election as
soundcloud.com
October 13, 2025 at 6:06 PM
In this News Brief, "The Billionaire-Backed Groups Working to Push Dems Right in 2026 & 2028," we detail the major factions seeking to rewrite the history of the 2024 election as "woke" Gone Too Far, downplay Gaza, and prevent economic populism at all costs.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Monday at 9:30 pm ET / 8:30 pm CT on our YouTube channel! Don't miss it!
October 10, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Monday at 9:30 pm ET / 8:30 pm CT on our YouTube channel! Don't miss it!
I wrote about the Bari Weiss take over of CBS News as part of a broader trend away from the pretense of liberal institutionalism into a genuinely post-reality tabloidism, marked by AI slop, unsophisticated Trumpian-Likudite propaganda and consolidation of traditional and social media.
The tabloid-ification of CBS News is a marked escalation in our trend towards AI-driven confectionary reality: by @ahjohnson.bsky.social
Bari Weiss and the post-liberal media order
The tabloid-ification of CBS News is a marked escalation in our trend towards AI-driven confectionary reality.
therealnews.com
October 8, 2025 at 10:05 PM
I wrote about the Bari Weiss take over of CBS News as part of a broader trend away from the pretense of liberal institutionalism into a genuinely post-reality tabloidism, marked by AI slop, unsophisticated Trumpian-Likudite propaganda and consolidation of traditional and social media.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In this News Brief, "IDF-Funding Mega-Billionaire Buys CBS News, Installs Bari Weiss to Enforce Ideological Discipline," we discuss the Ellisons' purchase of Paramount and the TikTok algorithm, their potential purchase of CNN, and how this will invariably incite more violence against Palestinians.
News Brief: IDF-Funding Mega-Billionaire Buys CBS News, Installs Bari Weiss to Enforce Ideological Discipline | Citations Needed
Get more from Citations Needed on Patreon
www.patreon.com
October 8, 2025 at 1:19 PM
In this News Brief, "IDF-Funding Mega-Billionaire Buys CBS News, Installs Bari Weiss to Enforce Ideological Discipline," we discuss the Ellisons' purchase of Paramount and the TikTok algorithm, their potential purchase of CNN, and how this will invariably incite more violence against Palestinians.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
For 2 years of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, not one Palestinian voice has been featured on NBC, ABC or CNN’s Sunday shows.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social writes about how the U.S. media has debated Palestinians’ annihilation without letting a single Palestinian speak.
inthesetimes.com/article/gaza...
@ahjohnson.bsky.social writes about how the U.S. media has debated Palestinians’ annihilation without letting a single Palestinian speak.
inthesetimes.com/article/gaza...
In 2 Years of Gaza Genocide, Sunday Shows on NBC, ABC and CNN Have Not Featured a Single Palestinian Guest
In a microcosm of the U.S. coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza, since Oct. 7, 2023, influential Sunday news shows have not seen fit to book any Palestinians.
inthesetimes.com
October 7, 2025 at 5:37 PM
For 2 years of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, not one Palestinian voice has been featured on NBC, ABC or CNN’s Sunday shows.
@ahjohnson.bsky.social writes about how the U.S. media has debated Palestinians’ annihilation without letting a single Palestinian speak.
inthesetimes.com/article/gaza...
@ahjohnson.bsky.social writes about how the U.S. media has debated Palestinians’ annihilation without letting a single Palestinian speak.
inthesetimes.com/article/gaza...
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
Please join us one week from today for a Beg-A-Thon live show @ 9:30ET/8:30CT! We will be joined by Justin Feldman
to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our shitty for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our shitty for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
October 6, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Please join us one week from today for a Beg-A-Thon live show @ 9:30ET/8:30CT! We will be joined by Justin Feldman
to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our shitty for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
to discuss the rise of MAHA, the broader Granola-to-Fascist Pipeline and how corporate-written food policies and our shitty for-profit medical system fuel hucksterism.
One thing I’d be nice if Schatz and others acknowledged is that even judging their hard right turn on immigration in Spring 2024 on its own terms it failed miserably. In July when Harris took over Trump led on “immigration” by 9pts, by election day he led 13pts. At best it, electorally, did nothing
October 5, 2025 at 4:39 PM
One thing I’d be nice if Schatz and others acknowledged is that even judging their hard right turn on immigration in Spring 2024 on its own terms it failed miserably. In July when Harris took over Trump led on “immigration” by 9pts, by election day he led 13pts. At best it, electorally, did nothing
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In Ep 229, "Sociopathic 'You Got To Hand it To 'Em' Punditry and the Rise of Politics as Sport" we detail the rise of detached "who's winning/who's losing" political analysis that reduces high stakes life and death issues to fodder for ESPN-type navel-gazing.
With guest @jackmirkinson.bsky.social
With guest @jackmirkinson.bsky.social
Episode 229: Sociopathic 'You Got To Hand it To 'Em' Punditry and the Rise of Politics as Sport
In this episode we detail the rise of detached
soundcloud.com
October 1, 2025 at 5:56 PM
In Ep 229, "Sociopathic 'You Got To Hand it To 'Em' Punditry and the Rise of Politics as Sport" we detail the rise of detached "who's winning/who's losing" political analysis that reduces high stakes life and death issues to fodder for ESPN-type navel-gazing.
With guest @jackmirkinson.bsky.social
With guest @jackmirkinson.bsky.social
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
In Ep 228, "Billionaires as Insta-Experts: How Our Media Conflates Extreme Wealth with Expertise," we break down the media convention of assuming the rich are per se experts on everything from education to "the economy" to poverty in Africa when, in reality, they are Just Some Guys.
Ep 228 - Billionaires as Insta-Experts: How Our Media Conflates Extreme Wealth with Expertise
Citations Needed is a podcast about the media, power, PR, and the history of bullshit. It is hosted by Nima Shirazi and Adam Johnson, and produced by Florence Barrau-Adams.
soundcloud.com
September 24, 2025 at 7:14 PM
In Ep 228, "Billionaires as Insta-Experts: How Our Media Conflates Extreme Wealth with Expertise," we break down the media convention of assuming the rich are per se experts on everything from education to "the economy" to poverty in Africa when, in reality, they are Just Some Guys.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
@ahjohnson.bsky.social of @citationspod.bsky.social on the White House’s weaponization of Kirk’s death and the broader rightward tilt of the media.
Trump’s Cult of Power Cancels Free Speech
Adam Johnson of “Citations Needed” on the White House’s weaponization of Charlie Kirk’s death and clampdown on free speech.
interc.pt
September 19, 2025 at 4:06 PM
@ahjohnson.bsky.social of @citationspod.bsky.social on the White House’s weaponization of Kirk’s death and the broader rightward tilt of the media.
Reposted by Adam H Johnson
My guest @ahjohnson.bsky.social is brilliant in this latest episode of @theintercept.com podcast. He perfectly explains why all of these institutional pillars, including media, appear to have fallen so quickly in the wake of an obvious smear campaign.
theintercept.com/2025/09/19/b...
theintercept.com/2025/09/19/b...
Trump’s Cult of Power Cancels Free Speech
Adam Johnson of “Citations Needed” on the White House’s weaponization of Charlie Kirk’s death and clampdown on free speech.
theintercept.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
My guest @ahjohnson.bsky.social is brilliant in this latest episode of @theintercept.com podcast. He perfectly explains why all of these institutional pillars, including media, appear to have fallen so quickly in the wake of an obvious smear campaign.
theintercept.com/2025/09/19/b...
theintercept.com/2025/09/19/b...