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John Light

@johnalight.bsky.social

35K followers 1.3K following 220 posts

I’m an editor at TPM. signal: johnalight.99 email: [email protected]

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Reposted by John Light

Quinta Jurecic @qjurecic.bsky.social · 16h

Hey guys. It's your boy J Edgar here. I have something new that I'm really excited to share with you—it's called COINTELPRO and I really think you're gonna love it

Will Oremus @willoremus.com · 16h

Obviously not the main point here, but it's interesting how this is framed as content rather than policy.

"BREAKING" is typically what journalists or influencers say when they have a big story -- not what government officials say when they launch "undercover" operations

Reposted by John Light

Elizabeth Lopatto @lopatto.bsky.social · 23h

please read my memo www.theverge.com/business/793...

Memo to Bari Weiss Re: CBS News: You’re doomed

Bari Weiss has sold her company, The Free Press, to manage the decline of broadcast news at CBS. How many ways can it go wrong?

www.theverge.com

Reposted by John Light

Kate Riga @kateriga.bsky.social · 2d

Dispatch for those catching up: talkingpointsmemo.com/news/judge-m...

Judge Hands Down Second, Emergency Ruling Protecting Portland From National Guard Occupation

A federal judge handed down a ruling from the bench Sunday night...

talkingpointsmemo.com

Reposted by John Light

Kate Riga @kateriga.bsky.social · 2d

In real time during hearing, Judge Immergut grants Oregon/California's motion for another temporary restraining order - now talking through scope of relief based on "conduct of defendants," which she sees in "direct contravention" to first order

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 2d

Kate is liveblogging a highly unusual Sunday evening federal court hearing as Portland, Oregon and California attempt to block the Texas and California National Guards from being sent to Portland. (The administration is also trying to send the Texas Guard to Chicago.)

Kate Riga @kateriga.bsky.social · 2d

1) Trump-appointed judge rules admin cannot deploy Oregon National Guard to Portland 2) Trump admin deploys California Guard there instead, circumventing her ruling 3) CA joins Portland/Oregon in filing for a second temporary restraining order 4) judge schedules emergency hearing (about to start)

Reposted by John Light

William B. Fuckley @opinionhaver.bsky.social · 3d

My hot take is that Bari Weiss is an extremely effective specific kind of propagandist because the free press produces relatively factual deporting, but is relentlessly *laser focused* on issues that are wedges in the enemies coalition. Rather than dismissing her should be thinking about how to copy

Brendan Nyhan @brendannyhan.bsky.social · 3d

This. She's not far right but she's directionally anti-left.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

We'll see.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

But I think it's possible that because of this deal, the Free Press and Weiss may see their place in the discourse erode. Far from definite ... just possible.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

It's sad for a network with so much history. And it's sad to see this money continually, predictably handed over to writers who tell rich people what they want to hear. It's sad, too, because it is another cultural victory for reactionaries.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

At CBS, she'll be surrounded by standards people and lawyers and seasoned editors and reporters who, I suspect, will blunt her impact. That's assuming she chooses to stay and learn how to work within that bureaucracy. She might create a fiefdom within the newsroom; she might give up.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

Meanwhile, Weiss' views and relative inexperience are not uncommon among people who run major news outlets. Those news outlets are already doing what they're doing — sometimes bad work, often good — regardless of who is in charge.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

The acquisition of niche digital news sites by big legacy media corporations rarely works out well for those sites. Their independence — their ability to do whatever they want for good or ill on a whim — is part of the whole thing.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 4d

I have a counterintuitive take on the Bari Weiss thing: I would not necessarily assume this deal will expand Weiss', or the Free Press', impact.

Reposted by John Light

Hunter Walker @hunterw.bsky.social · 4d

Having some degree of plausible deniability is one reason memes and cartoon imagery have gained traction in white supremacist circles. And now, some of those same memes and images are popular on the Trump administration’s social media. talkingpointsmemo.com/news/dhs-inc...

DHS Includes ‘White Supremacist’ Meme in Video Promoting Deportation Blitz

A video posted on X by the Department of Homeland Security included...

talkingpointsmemo.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 6d

Employees at the Department of Labor were offered a suggestion on how to phrase their out-of-office message due to the shutdown: blame it on the Democrats. “Unfortunately, Democrat Senators are blocking passage of H.R. 5371 in the Senate which has led to a lapse in appropriations,” reads a template.

Government Shutdown, Day One

Follow along with our coverage here:

talkingpointsmemo.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 6d

If you've followed this case at all, there's some schadenfreude here. Right-wing judge who tried to ban abortion pill now very grumpy that the Supreme Court overturned his ruling (last year). He also rages at Ken Paxton.

Kacsmaryk Transfers Mifepristone Case To Court Made Up Of Mostly Trump Judges

Arch-conservative federal district court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, with much vitriol aimed at...

talkingpointsmemo.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 7d

"That argument rests on a flawed premise: that the right had been devoted to open debate and restrained government power, only reluctantly abandoning these principles to counter left-wing illiberalism."

Opinion | The Right Didn’t Catch Cancel Culture From the Left

www.nytimes.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 8d

Small, publicly funded outlets like this are shutting down following a successful Republican vote in July to zero out their funding.

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 8d

My first job in journalism (technically it was an internship in which my disembodied, 19-year-old hand held a microphone in front of various local political figures from whom we needed a soundbite) was at NJ PBS, then called New Jersey Network.

With NJ PBS shutting down in 2026, some on its board of trustees and chair resign

"The recent cuts by the federal government and New Jersey state government have been very significant," NJ PBS said in a statement.

www.cbsnews.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 8d

My first job in journalism (technically it was an internship in which my disembodied, 19-year-old hand held a microphone in front of various local political figures from whom we needed a soundbite) was at NJ PBS, then called New Jersey Network.

With NJ PBS shutting down in 2026, some on its board of trustees and chair resign

"The recent cuts by the federal government and New Jersey state government have been very significant," NJ PBS said in a statement.

www.cbsnews.com

Reposted by John Light

Josh Kovensky @joshkovensky.bsky.social · 8d

DHS Had a Program to Stop Political Violence. The White House Shut It Down.
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/dhs-had...

DHS Had a Program to Stop Political Violence. Trump Largely Abandoned It.

In July, Franklin School District Superintendent Dan LeGallo got a surprise letter...

talkingpointsmemo.com

Reposted by John Light

Jules Roscoe @julesaroscoe.bsky.social · 8d

A long time coming for @404media.co: @jasonkoebler.bsky.social and I looked at hundreds of pages of court docs to see what lawyers say when they're caught using AI. Some good ones include being a lawyer is hard, good advertising, and "I didn't mess up actually":

www.404media.co/18-lawyers-c...

18 Lawyers Caught Using AI Explain Why They Did It

Lawyers blame IT, family emergencies, their own poor judgment, their assistants, illness, and more.

www.404media.co

Reposted by John Light

Sarah Posner @sarahposner.bsky.social · 11d

GOP lawmaker calls for Dem congresswoman to be executed for urging Trump protests azmirror.com/2025/09/25/j...

GOP lawmaker calls for Dem congresswoman to be executed for urging Trump protests

Arizona GOP Rep. John Gillette calls for hanging Democratic congresswoman over nonviolent protest remarks

Reposted by John Light

Justin Levitt @justinlevitt.bsky.social · 15d

The subhead of this piece is "The Underpants Gnomes Are Coming For Our Elections."

I couldn't think of a better way to convey the magical thinking that imagines Trump to be in charge of the elections process ... or a better way to dispel that illusion.

Don’t Give Donald Trump’s Half-Baked Elections Plans More Juice Than They Deserve

This article is part of TPM Cafe, TPM’s home for opinion and news...

talkingpointsmemo.com

John Light @johnalight.bsky.social · 18d

"The cause of ending cancel culture launched a thousand MAGA-aligned influencer careers; it is the supposed raison d’être of entire MAGA-friendly publications. Now that the government they serve has turned the page on free speech, what do they do?"

Trump Administration Loses Plot During ‘Free Speech’ Struggle Session

Hello it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕️ To some extent,...

talkingpointsmemo.com

Reposted by John Light

Bill Grueskin @bgrueskin.bsky.social · 18d

“In the Pentagon press room, there’s a wall of photographs under metal lettering that reads ‘Pentagon Correspondents’ with the faces of the men and women who cover the Defense Department for major news outlets.

“On Friday, all 30 slots for photographs were empty.”

Scott Nover @scottnover.bsky.social · 18d

NEW: The Pentagon told journalists it will require them to pledge they won’t gather any information — even unclassified — that hasn’t been expressly authorized for release, and will revoke the press credentials of those who do not obey. @washingtonpost.com

Pentagon demands journalists pledge to not obtain unauthorized material

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is imposing strict new rules that would severely limit the ability of journalists to report on the Pentagon.

www.washingtonpost.com