Vittoria Elliott

As a reminder: if you’re a government employee and want to talk, you can find me on Signal at Vittoria89.82

Pete Hegseth Is Pushing Defense Employees to Volunteer With DHS The defense secretary has made clear that Pentagon managers are to encourage workers, including civilians, to volunteer to assist in the administration's immigration crackdown.

NEW: DOD employees are being pressured to volunteer to help with DHS's immigration crackdown. The work includes things like: “developing concepts of operation and campaign plans to execute internal arrests and raids as well as patrols along the Southwest Border”

www.wired.com/story/pete-h...

THREAD: I got laid off from NYMag/Vulture after 14 years. The family lost 75% of income + medical. Now mzs.press bookstore, once a side project. is do-or-die for Judith & I. I feel weird telling you this because others are doing much worse. But if you could like or share this, we'd be so grateful!

At Largest ICE Detention Camp, Staff Bet on Detainee Suicides, AP Reports Camp East Montana has received several 911 calls in the span of five months about immigrants trying to harm themselves.

Staff at the nation’s largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility have placed bets on which detainee will be the next to die by suicide, according to new reporting from the Associated Press based on 911 calls and detainee accounts.

We have the data. My longest columns have more readers, who read longer, and who share them the most.

No Help and Few Options for Travelers Stranded by Mideast Conflict

One woman who called the State Department helpline looking for help said they told her to "stop ranting and raving" and hung up on her.

Another woman said they asked her how to spell Oman.

www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/t...

🔴 LIVE NOW: Join our webinar with @telliotter.bsky.social, @royalpratt.bsky.social, @sovernnation.bsky.social, and @charlie4change.bsky.social to learn about how government officials are citing journalism as "doxxing" to threaten press freedom.

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8EB...

🔔 At the top of the hour: Government officials are citing journalism as "doxxing" to threaten press freedom.

Join our webinar with @telliotter.bsky.social, @royalpratt.bsky.social, @sovernnation.bsky.social, and @charlie4change.bsky.social to learn more.

RSVP: freedom.press/journalism-isnt-doxxing

And if you're a federal worker or someone involved in immigration work and you want to talk, you can reach me at Vittoria89.82 on Signal.

How Federal Agencies Got Caught Up in Trump's Anti-Immigration Crusade WIRED spoke with workers across seven government agencies—from the IRS to HUD—about how their work has been contorted to support ICE and other immigration efforts.

NEW from me: The Trump administration's immigration crack down is becoming a whole-of-government initiative as agencies whose work often has little to do with immigration, are getting pulled in. For @wired.com's InnerLoop newsletter this week: www.wired.com/story/how-th...

🔔 TODAY: Government officials are citing journalism as "doxxing" to threaten press freedom.

Join our webinar with @telliotter.bsky.social, @royalpratt.bsky.social, @sovernnation.bsky.social, and @charlie4change.bsky.social to learn more.

🕑 2 pm ET

RSVP: freedom.press/journalism-isnt-doxxing

All I can think about is Jeff Bezos saying that he slashed jobs at the Washington Post — including those of foreign correspondents in the Middle East — based on "the data," and a few weeks later a whole war breaks out in the Middle East that these laid off folks would have covered as true experts.

"They were girls who went to school to learn, with hopes and dreams for their future," Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai said. "Today, their lives were brutally cut short.”

Read more: https://wapo.st/4r7izC7

X Is Drowning in Disinformation Following US and Israel’s Attack on Iran WIRED has reviewed hundreds of posts on X that promote misleading claims about the locations and scale of the attack.

“Almost all of the most viral posts reviewed by WIRED on Saturday came from accounts with blue check marks, meaning they…could be eligible to earn money based on how much engagement their posts generate, even if the content is false.”

From @davidgilbert.bsky.social

🔔 Government officials are citing journalism as "doxxing" to threaten press freedom.

Join our webinar with @telliotter.bsky.social, @royalpratt.bsky.social, @sovernnation.bsky.social, and @charlie4change.bsky.social to learn more.

🗓️ March 4, 2 pm ET

RSVP: freedom.press/journalism-isnt-doxxing

@wired.com is nominated for the ASMEs!!! FOUR times!!!

I am so so proud of the whole WIRED newsroom, and just a special shout out to my politics team -- this time last year, we were barely sleeping as we unveiled a government takeover in real time. It's a real honor to have that recognized here!

He reported a stolen car. Then ICE arrested him at a police station, he says. DC police face criticism for allegedly assisting ICE in arresting immigrants at police stations

When Jose Argueta reported his car stolen, he did not realize that he would end up at an immigrant detention center.

Argueta’s account — part of a lawsuit over warrantless ICE arrests — renews concerns over local police’s cooperation with the agency.

Patel Ousts F.B.I. Personnel Tied to Inquiry Into Trump’s Retained Classified Records

Patel promised Senators in confirmation hearings: “There will be no politicization at the FBI. There will be no retributive actions taken by any FBI.”
He lied. He just fired another 10 agents who served in Jack Smith's investigation.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/u...

🔔 Government officials are citing journalism as "doxxing" to threaten press freedom.

Join our webinar with @telliotter.bsky.social, @royalpratt.bsky.social, @sovernnation.bsky.social, and @charlie4change.bsky.social to learn more.

🗓️ March 4, 2 pm ET

RSVP: freedom.press/journalism-isnt-doxxing

MAGA Is Raging Over the Epstein Files. But They're Not Mad at Donald Trump Trump supporters are angry at the lack of arrests after the latest Epstein file dump, but have targeted their ire at Kash Patel, Pam Bondi, and Steve Bannon rather than the president.

"For a bunch of ‘free thinkers,’ they're the most easily led people you can imagine," - @rothschildmd.bsky.social

www.wired.com/story/maga-i...

Fab scoop from @makenakelly.bsky.social

Judge Rules Government Cannot Search Washington Post Reporter’s Electronics

www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...

College Campuses Are in Upheaval Over Faculty Ties to Epstein From small art schools to large public universities, the new DOJ release of emails reveals just how deep the financier’s influence in academia went. Students are demanding accountability.

The Epstein documents released weeks ago are full of university administrators, professors, and trustees. With students demanding transparency and accountability from their schools, academia faces a nationwide reckoning over how it courts and indulges deep-pocketed benefactors.

Last fall, I reported about how much of a shitshow self-deportations + voluntary departures have been. Immigration lawyers alleged that DHS indicated to minors that their family members in the US could be arrested/deported if they didn’t agree to leave “voluntarily”

www.wired.com/story/trump-...

AI Added 'Basically Zero' to US Economic Growth Last Year, Goldman Sachs Says Imported chips and hardware mean the AI investemtns are translating into US GDP growth.

AI Added 'Basically Zero' to US Economic Growth Last Year, Goldman Sachs Says https://gizmodo.com/ai-added-basically-zero-to-us-economic-growth-last-year-goldman-sachs-says-2000725380

Never related to anything more in my life

Metadata Exposes Authors of ICE’s ‘Mega’ Detention Center Plans Comments and other data left on a PDF detailing Homeland Security's proposal to build “mega” detention and processing centers reveal the personnel involved in its creation.

A reminder to always wipe metadata and don't forget to remove comments before publishing something online 🤦

Scoop from @regret.bsky.social

www.wired.com/story/metada...

Last month, @wired.com reported about potential plans to love the Board of Peace into the USIP building. USIP, though funded by Congress, is an independent nonprofit and not part of the government.

Trump Admin's Plans for $500 Million USIP Building May Violate Court Order, Say Former Workers The State Department is poised to take over a building DOGE seized from the US Institute of Peace, former staffers claim—possibly for Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace.”

Today, Trump hosted the first meeting of the so-called Board of Peace at the building that served as the headquarters for the US Institute for Peace. But that building is still the subject of a major court case after being forcibly taken over by DOGE last year.

www.wired.com/story/trump-...

Inside the Homeland Security Forum Where ICE Agents Talk Shit About Other Agents Forum members have discussed their discomfort with mass deportation efforts, debate how federal agents have interacted with civilians, and complain about their working conditions.

New from me: In yet another forum, users claiming to be current and former Homeland Security Investigations officers complained about being roped into deportation efforts and their working conditions, and debated how ICE is interacting with the public. @wired.com

www.wired.com/story/hsi-fo...