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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 12d

In today’s Substack I explain the relationship among ABC, Nexstar, and the FCC. When you read this, you will understand why Nexstar caved.

substack.com/@drmaraeinst...

Kimmel/Nexstar/The FCC, Lush Cosmetics does it again...and ICE, not so great

To Understand Kimmel, You Have to Understand Broadcast TV

substack.com

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 12d

Next Tuesday, September 30th, I will be speaking live at NYU. Click the link to sign up.

Hope to see you there!

steinhardt.nyu.edu/events/every...

Is Everything a Cult?

Mara Einstein explains how social media and digital technologies have made us vulnerable to cult tactics, and why marketers are driven to implement these approaches in order to grab our attention and ...

steinhardt.nyu.edu

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 14d

Here’s a link to a conversation I recently had with Ellen Donnelly. I was glad we were able to get into the valorizing of the gig economy and hype of digital entrepreneurship, in addition to cults, MLMs, and coaching scams.

ellen-fromtheask.beehiiv.com/p/drmaraeins...

"If they promise you $10k months: run, don't walk, the other way"

The Cult of Entrepreneurship: Not Everyone Should Join It. A Q&A with Dr Mara Einstein on | The Interview, Sept '25

ellen-fromtheask.beehiiv.com

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 20d

Awesome! Thank you. Please do let me know what you think.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 20d

Then you’ll love my book Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults. And right now it’s on sale!

www.amazon.com/Hoodwinked-M...

Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults

Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults [Einstein PhD, Mara, Rushkoff, Douglas] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults

www.amazon.com

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 20d

deadline.com/2025/08/nexs...

Nexstar To Acquire Tegna For $6.2B In Local TV Megadeal Fueled By Donald Trump Deregulation

Nexstar, the No. 1 owner of TV stations in the U.S., is acquiring rival Tegna in a deal that challenges decade-old limits on control of local media.

deadline.com

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 20d

This would make them bigger than the broadcast networks. This is hair-on-fire kind of scary.

This is why I still teach about the broadcast industry. Because of stories like this.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · 20d

Some are suggesting the real reason Jimmy Kimmel got canceled is that Nexstar needs approval from the FCC to buy Tegna’s TV stations. This deal would enable Nexstar to own stations that cover 80% of the US. Current regulation is that no company can own stations covering more than 39% of the US.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Sep 8

This week, I’m on IndoctriNATION.

Cult recruitment and retention tactics, facilitated by digital media, are why the country is where it is now. I implore you to listen, and learn—not only how we got here—but how we could get out.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Sep 3

Ice recruitment advertising is, well, not the best. I talked about that with Johana Bhuiyan for The Guardian

It was an interesting interview, because I had to balance between criticizing what DHS was doing wrong without telling them how they could do it better.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

From Uncle Sam to social media memes: inside homeland security’s push to swell Ice ranks

Homeland security lowers hiring standards and floods social media with patriotic, often xenophobic, recruitment posts

www.theguardian.com

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Aug 18

This should be of interest to anyone in the green space as well as professors teaching marketing or sustainability.

This article/video is available in perpetuity, thanks to Project MUSE.

This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

lnkd.in

Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Aug 18

This link is to a talk I gave at Michigan State University about greenwashing. The talk is contextualized within a broader discussion about the rise of cause marketing and the purpose washing that followed.

muse.jhu.edu/article/965618

Project MUSE - Sustainable Consumption Is an Oxymoron

muse.jhu.edu

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Reposted by Dr. Mara Einstein

George Conway 👊🇺🇸🔥 @gtconway.bsky.social · Aug 16

690 11K 23K

Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Aug 2

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 30

In new polling for NYC mayor, Mamdani is leading.

Mamdani 50%
Cuomo 22%
Sliwa (R) 13%
Adams 7%

This race is not just about millennials and Gen Z. These numbers also mean that Jews are looking at him as a viable candidate.

The MSM needs to stop acting like Mamdani is the also-ran.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 30

Especially since their stock is up.

Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 30

Exactly.

Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 29

No one. And the stock is up, but it doesn’t mean they’ve saved the brand. Sales were down 5% last year.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 28

Some people are saying the American Eagle ad is simply an homage to Calvin Klein and Brooke Shields in the 80s.

Here’s the ad:

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 27

And he does it proactively. His takedowns of the NY Post are chef’s kiss.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 26

This is why Mamdani is ahead in NYC. He’s in it to fight, he’s got a plan, and he’s got the communications chops to engage and inform people.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 25

Living in New York feels like being in a split screen. On one side, we see the hope and joy of Mamdani and the other we see the pain and terror of Trump and demise of democracy.

youtu.be/yPbtARzHHHw?si

Wu-Tang, JB, and Zohran bring the ruckus

YouTube video by Zohran Mamdani for NYC

youtu.be

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 23

C. It’s the cleanest one for a small thumbnail. And more people are likely to be drawn in by the word fake than by ad.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 22

Exactly.

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Dr. Mara Einstein @drmaraeinstein.bsky.social · Jul 22

“The fascination with cults fundamentally rests in the idea that people believe that they can’t be drawn into one,” says Dr. Mara Einstein, author of Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults.

tinyurl.com/59a3afz3

The Cult Content Boom: What’s Behind Our Obsession?

Why can’t we look away from stories about cults? The real story may not be about those who fall prey, but about realizing that we’re all vulnerable to manipulation.

tinyurl.com

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