Tara Haelle
LightNews LightNews
banner
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Tara Haelle
@tarahaelle.bsky.social
7.1K followers 640 following 790 posts
Science/health journalist • teacher • author • photographer 📷• kidlit • dog lover 🦮• rat mom 🐀• Texan • ADHD • neurodivergent • she/her
Pro: 👩‍⚖️🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️✊🏽💉😷📚⚖️
tarahaelle.net
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Tara Haelle
jasondtx.bsky.social
If Watergate had happened in the current media environment, Deep Throat would have just had a Substack and publish articles ending with "And you won't believe who hired these plumbers... Subscribe to get my next article in this series!"

This is a Ryan Lizza post.
November 26, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
anamariecox.bsky.social
People will die, and are currently dying, because RFK was granted one of the most powerful megaphones in the country. Two people who could have thrown barriers in front of his climb decided not to; there's a sex scandal here but it is not the biggest scandal.
November 26, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
asherelbein.bsky.social
The reason that we reporters are focused so intensely on the L'affair Nuzzi is that, as Olivia notes, it is a basically apocalyptic scandal in the most literal sense of that term: a dropping of masks. It's acting as confirmation of every hideous story anybody's ever told about political journalists
oliviamesser.bsky.social Olivia Messer @oliviamesser.bsky.social · 1d
this was bad before, but these are the most troubling and serious allegations you can make about a journalist. if they’re true, i genuinely can’t think of a worse scandal in the history of political journalism. devastating to our industry, to public trust as a whole, and to everyone in its orbit
November 27, 2025 at 2:14 AM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
oliviamesser.bsky.social
this fuckin guy ...dropping allegations of journalistic malpractice and source betrayal in separate piece meal events like it’s delicious media gossip and then writing, “we haven’t reached the halfway point, and I haven’t yet described the most bizarre, consequential, and newsworthy events”
November 26, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
alexblackwood.bsky.social
Tip of the hat to @tarahaelle.bsky.social for this interesting item. I had no idea there was so much variation in how many days out a weather forecast is accurate.
US map showing: How many days out is the temperature forecast accurate? No more than 2 days out: The Great Plains has some of the most unpredictable weather in the U.S. 3 to 4 days out: (most of the US) 5 to 6 days out: The southwest has accurate forecasts 5 to 6 days out At least 7 days out: In the south of Florida, the forecast is spot-on even a week out Source: National Digital Forecast Database. The analysis includes forecasts from April 2023 to March 2024.
November 26, 2025 at 12:18 AM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
One last reminder today of the upcoming important webinar TUESDAY, DEC 2, at 11am ET on what journalists should expect & know ahead of the upcoming #CDC #vaccine #ACIP meeting next week, esp re #hepB birth dose and #MMWR. Register at bit.ly/CDC-Dec-2025. Please share widely!
Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Key Issues Before a Key Meeting: Essential Vaccine Information for Reporters. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.
When the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) meets on December 4 and 5, they will be considering changes, some dramatic, that could affect vaccine access and protection throughout the…
bit.ly
November 26, 2025 at 9:36 PM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Join this important webinar TUESDAY, DEC 2, at 11am ET on what journalists should expect & know ahead of the upcoming #CDC #vaccine #ACIP meeting next week, esp re #hepB birth dose and #MMWR. Register at bit.ly/CDC-Dec-2025. Please share widely!
November 26, 2025 at 5:42 PM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Join an important webinar TUESDAY, DEC 2, at 11am ET on what journalists should expect & know ahead of the upcoming #CDC #vaccine #ACIP meeting next week, esp re #hepB birth dose and #MMWR. Register at bit.ly/CDC-Dec-2025. Please share widely!
November 26, 2025 at 2:35 PM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Holy Great Replacement Theory! And what a bizarre thing to hear from a Jewish “intellectual” who is trying to explain how the Right became… so Far Right… while parroting their propagandist claims?
sethcotlar.bsky.social Seth Cotlar @sethcotlar.bsky.social · 7d
This is a wild thing for someone who calls themselves an intellectual to say with a straight face to the New York Times. This is not a historical account based on an understanding of the history--this is just pure far right, Christian Nationalist propaganda/conspiracy theory ca. 1962-1980s.
Hazony: I think America is suffering terribly. Or at least significant portions of America. Certainly these young people that we're talking about on the right. Let's start with something very basic. After World War II, there's a project to replace the old America - the old Protestant America - to replace that framework with what we today call liberal democracy. It was going on before that, but came to its dramatic moment when God and Scripture were removed from the public schools in the 1960s. There they grew up in a world where every choice that you make is up to you, and all the choices are equal. Where even their parents, even in church or synagogue, were told: Do what makes you feel good. Generate the values from yourself. Do whatever you think is right for you — which it's not inherently a bad thing to say, obviously, but in a context in which nobody's saying: Listen, kids, marriage is better than not being married. Having children is better than not having children. Going to serve in the Army is better than not going to serve in the Army - all of these kinds of very fundamental moral and political guardrails that give you a direction, it's all been shot away. And once it's all shot away, you don't have the basis for a common national culture, and you don't have the basis for continued existence of a nation. It is palpably tottering in the direction of dissolution and civil war all the time.
November 21, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
leahmcelrath.bsky.social
Below 30% approval on inflation/cost of living means the disapproval is cutting into Trump’s base.
November 20, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
codeblackamerica.bsky.social
Tomorrow, the AMA is giving a platform to Dr. Oz — CMS Administrator destroying Medicare and Medicaid.

Residents can’t freely dissent or the AMA will punish them.

This isn’t “dialogue.” It’s coercion.

We wrote the position statement the AMA won’t.

Document link:
drive.proton.me/urls/9CR5SB3...
REPORT OF THE AD HOC WORKING GROUP ON PHYSICIAN WORKFORCE CONDITIONS, SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY, AND RESIDENT ORGANIZING IN THE POST-2020 POLICY ENVIRONMENT Position Statement on the Dr. Mehmet Oz Event: Threats to Scientific Integrity and the Coercion of Resident Physicians Executive Summary The American medical profession is undergoing a structural realignment driven by three converging forces: the accelerating unionization of resident physicians [1]; the collapse of scientific and public‑health norms in the United States due to the political capture of federal agencies [2]; and a widening gap between the priorities of organized medicine’s legacy institutions and the lived reality of trainees. Medical students and residents now occupy the most precarious position in the physician workforce while simultaneously holding the greatest leverage to redirect the profession’s trajectory. The present moment is shaped by the consolidation of political power by the current Republican administration and the placement of high‑profile COVID‑19 contrarians—individuals whose pandemic‑era claims were repeatedly discredited—into leadership roles within federal science and health agencies [3]. This shift has destabilized traditional assumptions about evidence‑based governance, regulatory oversight, and the civic role of physicians. Meanwhile, the resident workforce—the backbone of the U.S. hospital system—faces unprecedented strain: declining inflation‑adjusted wages, chronic understaffing, escalating retaliation risks, and high levels of burnout. Residents organizing through CIR/SEIU have secured major gains across the country [4], while the AMA has only recently adopted policies supportive of collective bargaining for residents. This report outlines the structural dynamics shaping the profession, the interaction between political disinformation and medical licensure, the implications for trainees, and recommendations for coordinated action between CIR, medical students, and aligned… 1997 Balanced Budget Act [6]. These decisions often relied on the belief that physician oversupply would reduce quality or compress income. COVID‑19 exposed the fragility of this system. Several U.S.-licensed physicians—including some with academic affiliations—used their credentials to oppose public‑health measures and promote unproven treatments. Their claims were amplified by political networks and media ecosystems, contributing to public distrust and increased mortality [7]. Disciplinary action against these physicians was rare. State medical boards were slow or unwilling to intervene [8]. Meanwhile, prominent contrarian physicians consolidated political influence and now occupy key federal health leadership roles. II. Recent Developments Affecting Trainees Residents have responded to worsening conditions by organizing at an unprecedented rate. CIR/SEIU now represents tens of thousands of residents across major academic systems. Recent wins include wage increases, due‑process rights, parental‑leave expansions, and improved safety provisions [9]. Medical students increasingly view collective action as the only viable mechanism for improving training conditions. This generational shift is redefining the culture of medicine and the relationship between physicians and institutional authority. The AMA, historically ambivalent toward physician unionization, adopted policy in 2024 recognizing the legitimacy of resident collective bargaining [10]. However, the AMA’s primary legislative focus remains national scope‑of‑practice battles and physician payment reform, leaving trainees without a national body focused primarily on workplace safety, retaliation protections, or fair compensation. III. Scientific Integrity Under Political Pressure The integration of discredited COVID‑19 contrarian physicians into federal leadership represents a fundamental change in the environment for scientific practice [11]. Their elevation undermines the authority of evidence‑based instit… Third, trainees who advocate for evidence‑based care may face institutional retaliation, while physicians spreading disinformation face minimal consequences. This asymmetry distorts the professional environment and pushes trainees toward organized collective protection. IV. Areas of Alignment and Conflict Between AMA Policy and Trainee Needs While the AMA and resident unions share interest in scientific integrity and physician well‑being, their priorities diverge significantly. Residents require safe staffing, fair compensation, due‑process protections, and freedom from retaliation. The AMA has historically prioritized national legislative battles (such as scope‑of‑practice) over the day‑to‑day realities of residency training. However, the rise of political interference in scientific institutions creates an emerging area of alignment: both trainees and segments of organized medicine recognize that defending evidence‑based practice is essential to the profession’s future. V. Risk Assessment for Trainees in the Current Environment Trainees now operate in a structurally unstable ecosystem shaped by political capture of federal science agencies [12], increasing right‑wing disinformation targeting medicine [13], academic‑center fragility, declining public trust, weak state board enforcement, and widespread vulnerability to employer retaliation. These forces combine to create a historic level of risk for trainees, and senior leadership has not adequately communicated these stakes to medical students or residents. VI. Recommendations for Residents, Students, and CIR Leadership Residents must assert themselves as central actors in the profession’s future. Recommendations include strengthening organizing capacity across academic centers, building communication channels independent of employer oversight, establishing reporting pathways for retaliation or scientific interference, coordinating with allied organizations (including the AMA when aligned), creating educational… 2. Washington Post, ‘How COVID Contrarians Entered Federal Health Leadership,’ 2025. 3. New York Times and Science Magazine analyses of federal leadership turnover, 2024–2025. 4. CIR/SEIU contract gains at UC, UPenn, Mass General Brigham, 2022–2025. 5. COGME projections (1980–1999); AAMC workforce policy archives. 6. Congressional Research Service (CRS) Report on Medicare GME caps, 1997–2024. 7. ProPublica, ‘The Doctors Who Undermined COVID Response,’ 2022; BMJ analyses of excess mortality linked to disinformation. 8. FSMB public statements, 2021–2025; analysis of state board disciplinary data. 9. SEIU/CIR contract summaries from 2022–2025 bargaining cycles. 10. AMA YPS and HOD Actions, Policy D‑405.001, 2024. 11. Science Magazine, ‘Erosion of Scientific Norms in Federal Agencies,’ 2025. 12. NYT and WaPo reporting on federal appointments, 2024–2025. 13. Center for Countering Digital Hate reports, 2021–2025.
November 16, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
famousartthief.bsky.social
buzz grambo is a star wars ass name but he’s doing the lord’s work so may the force be with you buzz grambo
November 20, 2025 at 3:54 PM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
REMINDER! Join us Wednesday midday to hear from three top-level former #CDC folks. We'll be asking all those questions you've been wondering, and attendees can submit questions during the webinar as well!

healthjournalism.org/event/trust-...
Trust, public health reporting and the CDC: Insider perspectives
In this webinar, we'll talk with former CDC officials on where to go for reliable reporting resources after the dismantling of the agency.
healthjournalism.org
November 19, 2025 at 1:47 AM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
I could repost and favorite this 1,000 times and it wouldn’t be enough.
jackjenkins.me Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 13d
Oh wow @reuters.com got the photo here:
November 14, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
jackjenkins.me
Oh wow @reuters.com got the photo here:
“Faith leader, Michael Woolf, minister at Lake Street Church of Evanston, is detained by Illinois State Police during a protest against immigration actions, outside the Broadview ICE facility in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., November 14, 2025. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska”
November 14, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
jasondtx.bsky.social
I am having difficulty processing that there have been times I've spent HOURS agonizing over a three sentence email inquiring about a job and these rich and powerful men have the writing skills of a Pomeranian on speed. #Epstein
November 13, 2025 at 5:18 AM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Help me, BlueSky peeps! I NEED YOUR IDEAS! I’m giving a talk to high schoolers on the past, present & future of U.S. & global public health, and I want to end with HOPEFUL points. What are some positive/hopeful things going on or coming in public health right now?
November 12, 2025 at 6:25 AM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
thejenniwren.teamlh.social
Rep Jim McGovern taking no prisoners is giving me life! 🔥

Brilliant snark.
November 12, 2025 at 3:14 AM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Join @healthjournalism.org for a webinar with @drdemetre.bsky.social, @drdebhoury.bsky.social and Daniel Jernigan next Wednesday and find out what went down at the #CDC, what will happen next, and what needs to happen to preserve the integrity of public health infrastructure in the U.S.
November 11, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
aetiology.bsky.social
This looks amazing!
November 11, 2025 at 9:38 PM
tarahaelle.bsky.social
Remember when several high-ranking #CDC officials resigned after #RFKJr refused to follow scientific evidence & federal procedures in #vaccines & #publichealth policy? Here's a chance to hear from three of them on Nov 19 w @healthjournalism.org
Register here!
healthjournalism.org/event/trust-...
Trust, public health reporting and the CDC: Insider perspectives
In this webinar, we'll talk with former CDC officials on where to go for reliable reporting resources after the dismantling of the agency.
healthjournalism.org
November 11, 2025 at 9:29 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
emilyhughes.bsky.social
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
brittanytrang.com Brittany Trang @brittanytrang.com · 19d
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.

Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."

Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 12:55 AM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
The excerpts I'm posting are taken from over a dozen sworn declarations submitted in a lawsuit seeking to force ICE to improve conditions. I'll link to the docket at the end of the thread.

One thing comes through clearly in these declarations: the cells are FILTHY.
5. ICE officers placed me in a crowded room with hundreds of other people. The room was filthy and there were bottles and sandwich wrappers all over the floor. 6. There was one shower at Broadview, but it was not working. I could not shower. I did not have access to soap, hand sanitizer, toothpaste, or a toothbrush. No one received a change of clothes. Many people were detained in their work clothes, and the room smelled very badly of sweat and body odor. The room was hot, which made the smell even worse. When people asked the officers to turn the AC up because it was very hot in the room, the officers ignored the requests.
November 4, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
Today's hearing, which @jonseidel.bsky.social has been livetweeting, is in a lawsuit about conditions inside Broadview. One man held for 3 days broke into tears as he testified to the awful conditions.

Multiple sworn declarations says ICE uses the threat of longer stays to get deportation orders. 🧵
7. The officer told me that I had to sign my deportation paperwork. He told me that if I did not sign the paperwork, I would remain detained there at Broadview until I agreed to sign. I felt that I had no choice but to sign the paperwork. 8. The deportation paperwork was in English, but I am not able to read English. The deportation paperwork was not provided to me in Spanish, a language that I know and understand. The deportation officer did not translate the deportation paperwork for me into Spanish. He just told me that it was a paper for deportation and that I had to sign it. 9. I asked to speak with a lawyer. The officer said no. He said I had no right to speak with a lawyer. He emphasized that until I signed the deportation paperwork, I would be stuck there in detention at Broadview. 10. I signed the deportation paperwork.
November 4, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Reposted by Tara Haelle
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
WOW. A federal judge says he's going to issue a Temporary Restraining Order requiring ICE to make changes at the Broadview facility in Chicago, a facility that until January was only for stays under 12 hours "absent exceptional circumstances," but has become, in Judge Gettleman's words, "a prison."
jonseidel.bsky.social Jon Seidel @jonseidel.bsky.social · 23d
U.S. Robert Gettleman is now giving his thoughts. He says, "I think the evidence has been pretty strong that this facility is no longer just a temporary holding facility. …

"It has really become a prison."
jonseidel.bsky.social Jon Seidel @jonseidel.bsky.social · 23d
DOJ's Jana Brady steps up next but says she'll largely "rest on our brief that we filed."

She wants any TRO to not "interfere with the executive branch."
November 4, 2025 at 10:29 PM