Matthew Shaer
@matthewshaer.bsky.social
Contributing writer at the New York Times Magazine, Emerson Fellow at New America, host of the Origin Stories podcast. Red Sox fan. Please God don't ask me about the "progress" on my "book"
Sometimes you learn the most from writers working in very different disciplines than your own.
So: Huge thanks to @alexiscoe.bsky.social for agreeing to talk about shaking up the historical canon and the risks (and pleasures) of researching very dead white dudes: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
So: Huge thanks to @alexiscoe.bsky.social for agreeing to talk about shaking up the historical canon and the risks (and pleasures) of researching very dead white dudes: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
Alexis Coe on You Never Forget Your First
Podcast Episode · Origin Stories · 01/28/2026 · 34m
podcasts.apple.com
January 28, 2026 at 6:07 PM
Sometimes you learn the most from writers working in very different disciplines than your own.
So: Huge thanks to @alexiscoe.bsky.social for agreeing to talk about shaking up the historical canon and the risks (and pleasures) of researching very dead white dudes: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
So: Huge thanks to @alexiscoe.bsky.social for agreeing to talk about shaking up the historical canon and the risks (and pleasures) of researching very dead white dudes: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
January 26, 2026 at 1:45 PM
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
In December, I traveled to Montgomery to visit the Legacy Museum, which traces the story of Black America from slavery to Jim Crow to mass incarceration. I wanted to understand how the museum & its affiliated sites were operating in a moment where so much of the history they present is under attack.
The Power of Private Museums
The Equal Justice Initiative’s historical sites in Montgomery, Alabama, show what’s possible when history isn’t subject to federal funding cuts or executive orders.
www.theatlantic.com
January 19, 2026 at 4:35 PM
In December, I traveled to Montgomery to visit the Legacy Museum, which traces the story of Black America from slavery to Jim Crow to mass incarceration. I wanted to understand how the museum & its affiliated sites were operating in a moment where so much of the history they present is under attack.
From the journalist’s book of psalms
January 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM
From the journalist’s book of psalms
Some of the greatest writing advice every dispensed: “If a story is not about the hearer he will not listen. And here I make a rule — a great and lasting story is about everyone or it will not last.”
January 12, 2026 at 10:42 PM
Some of the greatest writing advice every dispensed: “If a story is not about the hearer he will not listen. And here I make a rule — a great and lasting story is about everyone or it will not last.”
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
A few hundred protesting ICE at the Atlanta field office
January 11, 2026 at 8:28 PM
A few hundred protesting ICE at the Atlanta field office
Been waiting for the long form treatment of this one - what a story.
In a @phillymag.com exclusive, here's the inside story of how Sasha Suda's reign at the Philadelphia Art Museum fell apart so spectacularly, and the board of directors who made it happen.
Inside the Philadelphia Art Museum’s Epic Meltdown
The exclusive story behind the brutal ouster of Sasha Suda and the new civil war at Philadelphia’s premiere cultural institution
www.phillymag.com
January 10, 2026 at 3:32 PM
Been waiting for the long form treatment of this one - what a story.
Terrifyingly accurate depiction of the editing process by larskenseth.bsky.social
January 6, 2026 at 10:36 PM
Terrifyingly accurate depiction of the editing process by larskenseth.bsky.social
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
Our Local Reporting Network is open again for proposals! We're looking for accountability journalism projects from around the country. We cover your salary (up to $80k plus a stipend for benefits) plus provide editing and other support. Apply here:
Local Reporting Network Fellow
Remote, United States
job-boards.greenhouse.io
January 6, 2026 at 3:09 PM
Our Local Reporting Network is open again for proposals! We're looking for accountability journalism projects from around the country. We cover your salary (up to $80k plus a stipend for benefits) plus provide editing and other support. Apply here:
Now that I’ve finally dragged myself over to this app, I figure it’s time to share a few favorite Origin Stories interviews from last year, starting with this episode on the making of @brian-goldstone.bsky.social’s NYT best of the year/Obama-endorsed masterpiece: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
Brian Goldstone on There Is No Place for Us
Podcast Episode · Origin Stories · 10/16/2025 · 31m
podcasts.apple.com
January 6, 2026 at 3:52 PM
Now that I’ve finally dragged myself over to this app, I figure it’s time to share a few favorite Origin Stories interviews from last year, starting with this episode on the making of @brian-goldstone.bsky.social’s NYT best of the year/Obama-endorsed masterpiece: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
My new @wired.com essay about how Trump's coup in Venezuela follows two particularly troubling patterns — Our long, poor history of interventions in Latin America, and Trump's uniquely crazy lack of planning: setshttps://www.wired.com/story/3-keys-understanding-trumps-retro-coup-in-venezuela/
January 6, 2026 at 3:02 PM
My new @wired.com essay about how Trump's coup in Venezuela follows two particularly troubling patterns — Our long, poor history of interventions in Latin America, and Trump's uniquely crazy lack of planning: setshttps://www.wired.com/story/3-keys-understanding-trumps-retro-coup-in-venezuela/
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
really fantastic job opportunity for folks with editorial experience (relatedly, if y’all are ever in the market for a labor reporter, PLEASE lmk @19thnews.org!) 19thnews.org/19th-news-ed...
We're hiring an Editor
The 19th is hiring an editor to work closely with the editorial director to assign, shape, edit and publish stories to fulfill The 19th’s mission of serving women and LGBTQ+ people with timely, high-q...
19thnews.org
January 6, 2026 at 12:50 AM
really fantastic job opportunity for folks with editorial experience (relatedly, if y’all are ever in the market for a labor reporter, PLEASE lmk @19thnews.org!) 19thnews.org/19th-news-ed...
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
I'm putting together a piece about how much investigative journalism actually costs. If you are an investigative journalist and you're willing to share (not for attribution) what you make and how many hours (years!) you put in, my DMs are open. Estimates fine, just want to get a sense of it.
January 5, 2026 at 7:18 PM
I'm putting together a piece about how much investigative journalism actually costs. If you are an investigative journalist and you're willing to share (not for attribution) what you make and how many hours (years!) you put in, my DMs are open. Estimates fine, just want to get a sense of it.
Reposted by Matthew Shaer
@charleylocke.bsky.social and I designed a class to help freelancers make more money from more sources, and have more fun doing it. Not just how to pitch, but how to find lucrative work, how to build community, how to manage your money. We’d love it you joined us. flyingsolofreelancing.com
January 5, 2026 at 6:08 PM
@charleylocke.bsky.social and I designed a class to help freelancers make more money from more sources, and have more fun doing it. Not just how to pitch, but how to find lucrative work, how to build community, how to manage your money. We’d love it you joined us. flyingsolofreelancing.com
When his kid started getting bullied, Rick Kuehner pleaded for assistance from local police and school officials.
By the time help arrived, a different teenager was dead, and an entire Arizona community had been thrown into chaos.
Out this weekend in print: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/m...
By the time help arrived, a different teenager was dead, and an entire Arizona community had been thrown into chaos.
Out this weekend in print: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/m...
He Tried to Protect His Son From Bullies. He Didn’t Know How Far They Would Go.
www.nytimes.com
January 5, 2026 at 4:54 PM
When his kid started getting bullied, Rick Kuehner pleaded for assistance from local police and school officials.
By the time help arrived, a different teenager was dead, and an entire Arizona community had been thrown into chaos.
Out this weekend in print: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/m...
By the time help arrived, a different teenager was dead, and an entire Arizona community had been thrown into chaos.
Out this weekend in print: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/m...
The most rewarding assignment of the year is almost always the one for the @nytimes.com mag's Lives They Lived issue. No exception in 2025. Mabel was a legend – grateful to her family for opening up about what drove her, on and off the track: www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The Track and Field Star Who Casually Shattered Race and Gender Barriers
Mabel Landry Staton was one of the first Black, female long-jumpers in the history of the Olympics.
www.nytimes.com
January 5, 2026 at 4:15 PM
The most rewarding assignment of the year is almost always the one for the @nytimes.com mag's Lives They Lived issue. No exception in 2025. Mabel was a legend – grateful to her family for opening up about what drove her, on and off the track: www.nytimes.com/interactive/...