Stories and links that are of interest or relevance to leaders, strategists, campaigners and organisers.
Inequality and the economy
Grace Blakeley (@graceblakeley)
Epstein’s relationship with Mandelson shows us how capitalism really works
Jeff Bezos Just Taught Liberal Elites How Oligarchy Really Works
Bezos was feted as the savior of the Washington Post in 2013, now he’s reviled for mass layoffs. But it’s also Google who helped crush the paper. Liberal elites are starting to learn about oligarchy.
Did Steve Bannon stop Labor winning in 2019?
Steve Bannon’s claim that he orchestrated Clive Palmer’s 2019 campaign against Labor throws new light on the extent of interference by the US far right.
Global affairs
The Epstein Files Reveal What Powerful People See In Video Games [Update]
Epstein’s apparent associations paint an ugly picture
How Not to Defeat Authoritarianism
Moderation used to help Democrats win, but its advantages now have been greatly exaggerated.
Epstein’s victims deserve more attention than his ‘client list’
Powerful men connected to Jeffrey Epstein are named, dissected and speculated about. The survivors, unless they work hard to step forward, remain a blurred mass in the background.
Poll: Majority of Americans Oppose Immigration Agents Being Sent to Their States
A majority of Americans also recognized that the Trump administration was dishonest about the killing of Alex Pretti.
NSA detected foreign intelligence phone call about a person close to Trump
Whistleblower says that Tulsi Gabbard blocked agency from sharing report and delivered it to White House chief of staff
Federal Agents Left Behind “Death Cards” After Capturing Immigrants
ICE agents dropped customized ace of spades playing cards, recalling a practice by U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War.
Homeland Security Spying on Reddit Users
Leak show feds tracking anti-ICE Reddit users like “Budget-Chicken-2425”
ICE plans to build mega warehouses for immigration detention spark growing concern
Sources at two government contractors told NBC News they were worried that new warehouses — and the large numbers of immigrants who would be housed in them — would present safety problems.
Trump Has Lost The Culture
And his greediest collaborators are awakening to the fact that they made a terrible bet.
Gig model of Russian subversion is a nightmare for Western intelligence services
The model works well for the Kremlin because it allows it to easily recruit freelancers, or “disposable agents” as they’re sometimes called.
Prison-Style Free Speech Censorship Is Coming for the Rest of Us
The outcome of a court case could decide whether the Trump administration can criminalize simply possessing political literature.
A White House Staffer Appears to Run Massive Pro-Trump X Account
A popular right-wing account that called a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes “a masterpiece” appears to be run by a White House staffer, according to records reviewed by WIRED.
Data, tech and privacy
Calls to halt UK Palantir contracts grow amid ‘lack of transparency’ over deals
Opposition MPs urge Labour to pause public contracts with the US tech firm after attempts to examine deals blocked
How to Organize Safely in the Age of Surveillance
From threat modeling to encrypted collaboration apps, we’ve collected experts’ tips and tools for safely and effectively building a group—even while being targeted and tracked by the powerful.
This App Warns You if Someone Is Wearing Smart Glasses Nearby
The creator of Nearby Glasses made the app after reading 404 Media’s coverage of how people are using Meta’s Ray-Bans smartglasses to film people without their knowledge or consent. “I consider it to be a tiny part of resistance against surveillance tech.”
AI and the future of work
Debunking the AI food delivery hoax that fooled Reddit
A “whistleblower” tried to corroborate his viral post with AI-generated evidence. This is how I caught him. PLUS: Grok’s image-generation crisis, and the rapture over Claude Opus 4.5
It Turns Out That When Waymos Are Stumped, They Get Intervention From Workers in the Philippines
During a Congressional hearing, Waymo’s chief safety officer, Mauricio Peña, was grilled over the company’s reliance on overseas workers.
Microsoft’s AI Efforts Are Faceplanting
Microsoft continues to double down on AI, but its own customers just aren’t that impressed what it’s offering.
For Spain’s Sánchez, the fight against tech billionaires is personal
The prime minister has endured years of abuse on the social media platforms he now seeks to regulate.
The Left Doesn’t Hate Technology, We Hate Being Exploited
Techno-cynics are all just wounded techno-optimists.
The Data Lords Are Taxing Our Water and Power to Build Their Castles
Data center dukes and barons appropriate land and resources while indirectly taxing the middle and lower class through higher utility bills.
Campaigning, communications and social media
Why this Senate candidate’s Super Bowl ad is such a big flex
Plus: This symbol could help more safely document ICE raids
Society, media, news and culture
Is compulsory voting a bulwark against parties on the extremes?
Polls and international experience complicate the conventional wisdom
Political Gadgets – Interests Database
Search politicians’ declared interests (House and Senate). Machinery for democracy. Lift the lid on votes, money, lobbying, and more.
The New Epstein Files Are Reopening the Pizzagate Box
The documents contain nearly 900 references to “pizza.”
Epstein met with 4chan’s founder just as the site’s infamous political thread began
Newly released Epstein emails offer clues to meetings with the founder of 4chan, the site known as a hub for far-right propaganda and QAnon conspiracy theories.
Pasts Imperfect (2.19.26)
This week, classicist Curtis Dozier discusses new books—including his own—that critique Classics and the ways it is instrumentalized. Then, the role of Blackness in the imagery of the Middle Ages, an important new Edmonia Lewis retrospective, repatriating the Benin Bronzes, the pre-Inca Chincha Kingdom’s use of bird guano
Old Tactics, New Techniques: The Structural Danger of Far-Right Networks
Even as Australia moves to ban neo-Nazi groups like Thomas Sewell’s National Socialist Network, the ecosystem that sustains them remains intact. From Sewell to Robert Rundo’s Active Clubs, far-right actors evade bans by shedding formal structures while keeping ideology, networks, and recruitment alive online—allowing movements tied to real-world violence to persist long after their names disappear.
One hundred accounts are behind the majority of conspiracy theory content in Canada
Researchers analyzed more than 14 million social media posts from accounts in Canada and found that 87 per cent of conspiratorial claims come from influencers, with just 100 users responsible for nearly 70 per cent of online conspiracy claims. Users on Elon Musk’s X were the biggest culprits.
Climate Change
How Bold Corporate Climate Change Goals Deteriorate Over Time
For years, many people have argued that the free market will be sufficient to address the climate crisis. But is that the case? In a study of five Australian companies over a 10-year period, researchers found that initial bold statements about a commitment to addressing climate change often deteriorate over time, acquiescing to shareholder demands. This process follows three stages: framing, localizing, and normalizing. In the end, the authors argue that relying solely on a market response to the climate crisis might be misguided; instead, increased regulation and a shift in thinking about shareholder primacy may also be necessary.