Josh Cain
LightNews LightNews
banner
joshcain.bsky.social
Josh Cain
@joshcain.bsky.social
1.1K followers 1.7K following 1.5K posts
Recovering reporter. Now I organize. IATSE Local 871. Former Newsguild-CWA. Forever SCNG Guild.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
joshcain.bsky.social
Josh Cain @joshcain.bsky.social · Nov 27
Reposted by Josh Cain
enriquebedlam.bsky.social
Me: "I wish Disney would stop being so draconian and protective of their IP"
a cartoon hand reaching out towards a purple object
ALT: a cartoon hand reaching out towards a purple object
media.tenor.com
December 11, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
brandibuchman.bsky.social
Saying Trump admin officials "misled" the court and removed him without lawful authority, Judge Xinis demanded Kilmar Abrego Garcia's release immediately.

(Govt ordered to notify him no later than 5pm ET today of his exact time and location for release.)

www.huffpost.com/entry/judge-...
Judge Orders Kilmar Abrego Garcia Be Removed From ICE Custody Immediately
The judge overseeing the case said Abrego Garcia was held at a notorious El Salvador prison without "lawful authority."
www.huffpost.com
December 11, 2025 at 5:33 PM
joshcain.bsky.social
damn brother that's a tough one
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 13h
GLASHEEN: Antifa is our primary concern right now. That's the most immediate violent threat we're facing

BENNIE THOMPSON: Where is antifa headquartered?

GLASHEEN: ... ... ... we are building out the infrastructure right now

THOMPSON: What does that mean?
December 11, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
audrelawdamercy.bsky.social
The titular wokeness being rolled back is the Civil Rights Act of 1964
paulwaldman.bsky.social Paul Waldman @paulwaldman.bsky.social · 1d
Washington Post editorial board really speaking truth to power
Washington Post editorial: "Pam Bondi's welcome woke rollback"
December 11, 2025 at 2:53 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
cwarzel.bsky.social
ah yes, everyone remembers that moment after 9/11 where everyone got cancelled and we started the extremely woke war on terror www.piratewires.com/p/heather-co...
Tom was always a right-of-center guy. Wealthy, in tech, but never particularly partisan: “I was never a card-carrying anything.” 9/11 changed that. The smoke had hardly cleared before, he felt, the mainstream talking heads were suggesting that the US had essentially asked for it. Then, language changed. You weren’t supposed to say the word “terrorist” anymore. “I was just appalled,” he told me.
December 10, 2025 at 11:32 PM
joshcain.bsky.social
big fan of the wikipedia editor maintaining the Dylan Byers controversies list
On November 21, 2017, Byers posted a tweet on his account implying that the recent sexual harassment scandals in media and entertainment were draining those industries of talent. The tweet was later deleted. In 2012, Byers drew scrutiny when he reported in Politico that US President Barack Obama's girlfriend in Dreams from My Father was a composite character, which was already acknowledged by Obama in the book. Politico issued an extensive correction at the top of the original article. In the aftermath of the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing, Byers amplified, via a tweet, a false conspiracy made by Redditors claiming that the second suspect was Sunil Tripathi, who in fact had died by suicide due to depression prior to the marathon.
December 11, 2025 at 3:33 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
brendelbored.bsky.social
It’s sort of interesting that giving Sonic the Hedgehog a gun was a big deal but Nintendo has given Kirby a gun a few different times and no one really reacts because it’s like “yeah he’d have one”
December 11, 2025 at 2:47 AM
joshcain.bsky.social
y'all it turns out Nate Silver and Matt Yglesias are very lazy
quinnae.com Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 10d
I took on the mythology of the "Kamala is for they/them" ad. Since the morning after the 2024 election, trans people have been scapegoated for Harris' loss, with that infamous ad at the centre of recriminations.

But a deeper analysis shows that voters are largely indifferent to trans people.
Trans Panic? More Like Trans Apathetic
2025 shows trans rights aren't electoral poison. The truth? Most people just don't care that much.
www.liberalcurrents.com
December 11, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
dispatchnewsguild.bsky.social
It’s a huge day for the journalists of The Columbus Dispatch and The Newark Advocate. Here’s why we are unionizing.

Read the full mission statement on our website: cwalocals.org/columbusdisp...
December 10, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
jamellebouie.net
the defensiveness and incredulity of a good chunk of the commentary class toward arguments about trump’s racism is, imho, downstream of the same impulse behind the endless trump voter safaris and self-flagellation about being out of touch with the heartland
adamserwer.bsky.social Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 1d
Thinking back to how people were "hysterical" for calling trump white supremacist and now he's doing nordic theory on the campaign trail
December 10, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
sharonk.bsky.social
it remains absolutely funny to me that the one thing that unites MAGA and Blue Labour is "we are too high up on the value chain and we need to go back"
commontruth.bsky.social Ste 🇬🇧🟰 @commontruth.bsky.social · 1d
Over 50% of the UK goes to uni. 50% of our economy doesn’t require this, and we are misallocating high value human capital, this is the problem that you for some reason, are pretending not to grasp.
December 10, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
keribla.bsky.social
Max Huntsman, the inspector general tasked with holding the LA Sheriff’s Department to account, is retiring… and going out with a bang in this letter 🔥
December 9, 2025 at 6:43 AM
joshcain.bsky.social
For folks thinking Netflix is the better option to Paramount here, what was worse for American media and democracy: Facebook killing most newspapers or Jeff Bezos buying the Washington Post
wario64.bsky.social Wario64 @wario64.bsky.social · 7d
Netflix Wins the Warner Bros. Discovery Bidding War, Enters Exclusive Deal Talks (Netflix offering $30 a share and a $5 billion break-up fee) www.thewrap.com/netflix-wins...
December 5, 2025 at 6:28 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
beijingpalmer.bsky.social
new york democrats shouldn't be let anywhere near power. the ideal democratic leader is a guy who won by 2 percent and actually thinks of the GOP, rather than other Democrats, as the enemy.
December 3, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
jortsthecat.bsky.social
This is so incredible. You have to see the photos. These workers held the line for THREE YEARS www.publicsource.org/post-gazette...
PITTSBURGH'S Public Source Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh journalists return to their jobs at the Post-Gazette after three years on strike After a court ruling in their favor, long-striking journalists declared victory and returned to a pivotal Southwestern Pennsylvania newsroom. They return as union organizing continues throughout the region. Stephanie Strasburg November 24, 2025 Natalie Duleba, local secretary of the guild, hugs Jon Schleuss, president of the NewsGuild Communications of America, as she hands him the mic. "The first day of this strike, our folks went over across the street and they sat down at a table, and they started talking about that they were going to take care of each other," said Schleuss, acknowledging the guild could not have known how long the path back to work would be. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/Pittsburgh's Public Source)
November 25, 2025 at 5:29 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
parkermolloy.com
What? nypost.com/2025/11/24/m...
NY Post headline: Vanity Fair to publish ‘abstract nude portrait’ of Olivia Nuzzi — as scandal-plagued journalist accused of shirking job duties: report
November 24, 2025 at 8:01 PM
joshcain.bsky.social
You know what I think Isaac Chotiner is right to be suspicious of the Semafor article credulously arguing that it's fine for the Saudis to be real life Bene Gesserit
From the Semafor op ed Chotiner said was a little suspicious: "There’s a recurring trap in how we analyze Saudi Arabia’s monarchs: focusing on too narrow a timeframe. Nowhere is that clearer than in the debate over Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The murder of columnist Jamal Khashoggi will likely follow him forever in the Western press, as was evident during his Washington visit last week. But that’s not the metric by which his subjects will judge a reign that could stretch across half a century." LOL uh ok so should we not care MBS killed a guy oUr pLaNs aRe MeAsUreD iN CenTUrieS lmao ok weirdo
November 25, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
segyges.bsky.social
i don't really wonder why isaac chotiner is like this. i wonder why our journalists in general aren't like this.
November 25, 2025 at 4:17 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
brendelbored.bsky.social
Not really familiar with this new Chotiner fight but I will be using this treasure in the replies from time to time
Ben Smith @semaforben Meaning -- I am dumb?
November 25, 2025 at 2:38 AM
joshcain.bsky.social
Oh yes of course, "Semafor Gulf," sure
karenho.bsky.social Karen K. Ho @karenho.bsky.social · 17d
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
Isaac Chotiner: "You would have to be brain-dead to read this piece and not immediately wonder who is funding Semafor Gulf." Quote post of Ben Smith saying: "Fascinating @msergie piece on covering a monarchy" about a Semafor article on Saudi Arabia's crown prince Smith responds to Chotiner: "That's a hell of an allegation/implication, Isaac. To figure out the literal answer to your question, you'd either have to look and see who the sponsors are in the email (I haven't checked today!) or read our publicly disclosed list of investors. I believe you're trying to imply that it's the Saudi government? Have you read more of our coverage, or just this tweet? My impression — correct me if I'm wrong — is that you're working on zero information and smearing us in general, and an experienced journalist @msergie whose work I suspect you're totally unfamiliar with in particular." Chotiner responds:"I’m not making any allegation. I’m making a simple point about how an average reader—myself included—might respond after reading this ridiculous piece" Ben Smith: "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge." Noah Kulwin: "The point is not about who funds your reporting/if your colleague is a “stooge”. Isaac’s comment is that the reporting is so bad so as to make a reader wonder who is funding it" Smith: A reader, sure. A journalist who can do very basic homework, kind of lame. Chotiner: "You are right, I’ll do some homework now by perusing Jay Solomon Semafor pieces, and reading Jason Greenblatt Semafor columns. In the meantime, I will formally say that I am making no accusation and was just astonished at how inane the piece was" Chotiner quote-posts with "I see Semafor loves running column after column by this guy (https://semafor.com/author/faisal-j-abbas), who also publishes pro-Saudi conspiracies about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi https://arabnews.com/node/1386291" Ben Smith's post says "I hope I'm not overreacting, but it makes me crazy when people I think of as reporters do this "just asking questions" stuff. Feel free to report it out by googling/asking me/reading our various scoops and reports about the region — these two just now" and links to two Semafor articles Chotiner quote posts Ben Smith: "You might have heard that the UAE is helping destroy Sudan, but at the next Semafor event, all is well." Screenshot says "Held at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Semafor will spotlight insights from the Global Findex 2025 report and the Global Digital Connectivity Tracker, translating global research into actionable, locally relevant conversations. As the third stop on The Next 3 Billion Tour, this edition explores how the Gulf's growing investments in Africa can accelerate digital connectivity and financial inclusion. With Abu Dhabi's focus on sustainable finance, digital transformation, and cross-border collaboration, it offers a strong platform to examine how technology and capital can work together to expand access and opportunity." Ben Smith's post says "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge."
November 25, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
karenho.bsky.social
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
Isaac Chotiner: "You would have to be brain-dead to read this piece and not immediately wonder who is funding Semafor Gulf." Quote post of Ben Smith saying: "Fascinating @msergie piece on covering a monarchy" about a Semafor article on Saudi Arabia's crown prince Smith responds to Chotiner: "That's a hell of an allegation/implication, Isaac. To figure out the literal answer to your question, you'd either have to look and see who the sponsors are in the email (I haven't checked today!) or read our publicly disclosed list of investors. I believe you're trying to imply that it's the Saudi government? Have you read more of our coverage, or just this tweet? My impression — correct me if I'm wrong — is that you're working on zero information and smearing us in general, and an experienced journalist @msergie whose work I suspect you're totally unfamiliar with in particular." Chotiner responds:"I’m not making any allegation. I’m making a simple point about how an average reader—myself included—might respond after reading this ridiculous piece" Ben Smith: "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge." Noah Kulwin: "The point is not about who funds your reporting/if your colleague is a “stooge”. Isaac’s comment is that the reporting is so bad so as to make a reader wonder who is funding it" Smith: A reader, sure. A journalist who can do very basic homework, kind of lame. Chotiner: "You are right, I’ll do some homework now by perusing Jay Solomon Semafor pieces, and reading Jason Greenblatt Semafor columns. In the meantime, I will formally say that I am making no accusation and was just astonished at how inane the piece was" Chotiner quote-posts with "I see Semafor loves running column after column by this guy (https://semafor.com/author/faisal-j-abbas), who also publishes pro-Saudi conspiracies about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi https://arabnews.com/node/1386291" Ben Smith's post says "I hope I'm not overreacting, but it makes me crazy when people I think of as reporters do this "just asking questions" stuff. Feel free to report it out by googling/asking me/reading our various scoops and reports about the region — these two just now" and links to two Semafor articles Chotiner quote posts Ben Smith: "You might have heard that the UAE is helping destroy Sudan, but at the next Semafor event, all is well." Screenshot says "Held at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Semafor will spotlight insights from the Global Findex 2025 report and the Global Digital Connectivity Tracker, translating global research into actionable, locally relevant conversations. As the third stop on The Next 3 Billion Tour, this edition explores how the Gulf's growing investments in Africa can accelerate digital connectivity and financial inclusion. With Abu Dhabi's focus on sustainable finance, digital transformation, and cross-border collaboration, it offers a strong platform to examine how technology and capital can work together to expand access and opportunity." Ben Smith's post says "Just asking questions! Come on. You genuinely know better. Or read Mohammed's long career of work covering the Gulf and the Syrian war before you imply he's some kind of stooge."
November 25, 2025 at 1:09 AM
joshcain.bsky.social
Give the monkey guy a cigar to chomp on and some space Jimi Hendrix to listen to while laying down covering fire with his laser M60 machine gun, and Rogue One would be a masterpiece
November 24, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
self.agency
donald trump endorsed zohran mamdani before chuck schumer lmao
November 21, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Reposted by Josh Cain
theharvardcrimson.bsky.social
#BREAKING: Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers will immediately leave his role as an instructor at Harvard while the University investigates his ties to child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Summers Will Not Finish Semester of Teaching as Harvard Investigates Epstein Ties | News | The Harvard Crimson
Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers will immediately leave his role as an instructor at Harvard while the University investigates his ties to child sex trafficker Jeffrey E. Epstein.
www.thecrimson.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Reposted by Josh Cain
parkermolloy.com
This is the lady who wrote Michelle Obama's "When they go low, we go high" speech
jakemgrumbach.bsky.social Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 23d
I'm struck by this clip of former Obama speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz saying Holocaust education has backfired in part because people Palestinians as victims: "They think the lesson of the Holocaust is…you fight the big powerful people hurting the weak people."

www.reddit.com/r/JewsOfCons...
From the JewsOfConscience community on Reddit: Former Obama speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz speaking to the Jewish Federation and lamenting that young people are learning the wrong lessons from Holocaust e...
Explore this post and more from the JewsOfConscience community
www.reddit.com
November 19, 2025 at 4:46 PM