@jonathanfriedman.com
Media, culture, and news strategist and nerd. Occasional producer. USC Marshall, Semafor, Bad Robot, CAA, Obama White House, The Verge, NYU Gallatin alum. Recovering tweeter @jonfriedman
"He talks about these issues very differently...but he has the same hypothesis, which is the fundamental issue in our country right now is the consolidation of power and wealth at the very top, and everyone else is being screwed."
Morris Katz on why Talarico won the Texas primary.
(FT) - Qatar’s energy minister has warned that war in the Middle East could “bring down the economies of the world”, predicting that all Gulf energy exporters would shut down production within weeks and drive oil to $150 a barrel.
@financialtimes.com
www.ft.com/content/be12...
What THE PITT manages to do week after week is extraordinary
Riveting, emotional, technically impressive… a perfect execution of a simple concept
A showcase of our busted healthcare system and the unsung heroes who defy odds to make it function
An absolute triumph #goodtv
"We are aware that stuff is happening that we should care about, but the fog of bullshit surrounding this stuff is so thick that we can barely make out its shape or heft..." www.newyorker.com/news/fault-l...
NEW @npr.org: The Justice Department has published additional Epstein files related to allegations that President Trump sexually abused a minor after an NPR investigation found dozens of pages were withheld.
But 37 pages of records are still not public.
More:
"Trump Says 'I Guess' Americans Should Worry About Iran Retaliating on U.S. Soil: 'Like I Said, Some People Will Die'
Quite the headline from People.com
people.com/trump-says-i...
ICE has arrested and detained a Nashville journalist who reported stories critical of ICE. She’s married to a U.S. citizen and has been seeking asylum here after fleeing death threats in Colombia because of her journalism there.
They’ve already sent her to Louisiana.
There’s tons of LA that is historic and should be maintained as such
And then there’s tons of LA that should be reimagined… the Westside Pavilion becoming this beautiful UCLA hub is one phenomenal example
“.. Asked whether Americans should be worried about retaliatory attacks at home, Trump acknowledges the possibility. ‘I guess,’ he says. .. ‘Like I said, some people will die. When you go to war, some people will die.”
@time.com
time.com/7382697/trum...
“They don’t do their own distribution, Amazon does it” — what is Gerry referring to here?
We told you Trump Rx was going to suck the day it was announced. Now it's been launched, there are barely any drugs on the platform, and most of them are cheaper elsewhere and only help a narrow group of people.
www.statnews.com/2026/03/05/t...
I continue to be gobsmacked at 1) how common this formulation is 2) how antisemitic and generally bigoted it is 3) and how for all the talk of anti-semitism this is never cited as an example even though it’s quite literally the original incarnation.
Of course, Kristi Noem deserved to be fired. But rather than spend energy celebrating this Trump setback, let's recognize that the disaster of today’s DHS runs much deeper than the (former) Secretary's incompetence - and keep stepping up the political pressure.
News in here: the “Ride the D” shirt did a year’s worth of sales in the first 24 hours, then over the next 3 days did another year’s worth.
No clue what that means re: $, but damn that’s smart work.
For Hegseth, a war crime is a feature not a bug.
Underrated
David Ellison says he wants to give HBO and Casey Bloys the independence and resources to do what they do best. Question is, what does he think that is, and can it mesh with what Cindy Holland is doing at Paramount+. My latest, up now at @vulture.com:
www.vulture.com/article/davi...
NEW: Dozens of states have sued the Trump administration over its tariffs -- again. This time, they're challenging his new, 10 percent tariff on most imports, saying he didn't meet the criteria under law to impose the tax www.nytimes.com/2026/03/05/u...
I’m frankly a bit surprised Trump fired Noem. It shows weakness and reminds people that accountability is possible.
Markwayne ran a family plumbing business before running for office. He has no national security or military background.
Targeting the “center left” or “center right” in your news coverage is still taking a political view as opposed to just reporting what happened
“…an additional 5% on income above $1 million, 10% above $2 million, and 12% above $5 million.” (via @jeffstein.bsky.social)
Not sure if these are the right marginal bracket levels or if this is good policy proposal, but do know our top bracket now being ~$650k is too low
“No front-page stories in NYT, WSJ, WaPo. No mention on NBC and CBS Sunday Shows. No stand alone segments on Evening News shows. A death count on par with the OKC bombing is relegated to the back page.” www.columnblog.com/p/corporate-...
Measure HLA passed two years ago today.
Some progress has been made, a lot hasn't.
Our thoughts two years in:
https://www.streetsforall.org/blog/measure-hla-two-years-in
Talked to Ezra Klein about the war in Iran - how we got here, where we're going, and what I'm worried about. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/03/o...
Like Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
By attacking Iran, Trump has degraded Ukraine’s ability to defend itself AND jacked up the price of oil that Putin can sell.
Gift link www.wsj.com/world/europe...
The most amazing thing about the latest GOP Nazi group chat story is that the ending is *exactly the same* as the ending of a different story by a different publication about an entirely different GOP Nazi group chat!
I remember finding King’s post very shocking & it’s sad to remember that at the time, it felt like a dangerous but fringe sentiment, not the Republican Party’s default setting
The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved a permit for Bill Gates' nuclear power company, TerraPower, to start building the first new nuclear plant in the U.S. in nearly a decade: www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/c...
