john whitehouse
@existentialfish.com
@ media matters. this is a personal account.
everything is real but it's also just as fake
everything is real but it's also just as fake
Reposted by john whitehouse
For these guys, it was never about illegal immigration, it was never about cultural assimilation. You can be born in America, drinking beer as you cheer on the Longhorns, but its not enough if you are not white.
Benny Johnson and Jack Posobiec defended Bo French’s racist post, saying that “there’s nothing wrong with wanting Texas to stay Texas” and “I don't see anything hateful about it”
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
MAGA media back GOP nominee’s racist social media post complaining about nonwhite college students in Texas
www.mediamatters.org
September 14, 2026 at 8:40 PM
For these guys, it was never about illegal immigration, it was never about cultural assimilation. You can be born in America, drinking beer as you cheer on the Longhorns, but its not enough if you are not white.
Reposted by john whitehouse
Benny Johnson and Jack Posobiec defended Bo French’s racist post, saying that “there’s nothing wrong with wanting Texas to stay Texas” and “I don't see anything hateful about it”
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
MAGA media back GOP nominee’s racist social media post complaining about nonwhite college students in Texas
www.mediamatters.org
September 14, 2026 at 7:12 PM
Benny Johnson and Jack Posobiec defended Bo French’s racist post, saying that “there’s nothing wrong with wanting Texas to stay Texas” and “I don't see anything hateful about it”
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
www.mediamatters.org/benny-johnso...
Reposted by john whitehouse
Stop being so cynical about the six-figure gift to the president's son, people give him gifts like that all the time!!
Bettina Trump, wife of Trump Jr., posts a lengthy Instagram caption responding to @propublica.org’s reporting that a Russian oligarch paid for over $170,000 of her wedding.
September 14, 2026 at 3:01 PM
Stop being so cynical about the six-figure gift to the president's son, people give him gifts like that all the time!!
Reposted by john whitehouse
Compare to Fox News ratings for last month -- there was basically no bump from regular programming. www.adweek.com/tvnewser/her...
September 11, 2026 at 4:52 PM
Compare to Fox News ratings for last month -- there was basically no bump from regular programming. www.adweek.com/tvnewser/her...
Reposted by john whitehouse
Too many people online seem to conflate left politics with being obnoxious and scathing and Mamdani is such a model for combining a principled ideological vision with civility and grace. You shake hands, you act like a grown up even whether others aren’t. You show up.
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani shaking hands at the Sept. 11 ceremony via ABC7NY
September 11, 2026 at 1:43 PM
Too many people online seem to conflate left politics with being obnoxious and scathing and Mamdani is such a model for combining a principled ideological vision with civility and grace. You shake hands, you act like a grown up even whether others aren’t. You show up.
Reposted by john whitehouse
Looking at his life there were basically three things that he did right and that you can try to do leftishly
September 10, 2026 at 2:17 PM
Looking at his life there were basically three things that he did right and that you can try to do leftishly
lot of times discussion (esp here) gravitates towards ideology of this or that, but sometimes things are less ideological and more just that a lot of cynicism curdles the brain
September 9, 2026 at 11:22 PM
lot of times discussion (esp here) gravitates towards ideology of this or that, but sometimes things are less ideological and more just that a lot of cynicism curdles the brain
Reposted by john whitehouse
I think that’s true, and it’s a real asymmetry with consequences. The right never gets bored like that. The WSJ published a six-volume set of its Whitewater editorial. Sean Hannity will talk about Hillary’s emails or Benghazi or Hunter Biden endlessly, shamelessly, and until it has an impact.
I think one reason this happens is that the perfidy of people like Carlson is a settled issue for the broader left, so it’s boring to write about, discuss etc. Add to that how depressing it is to have to think about these assholes all the time, and that dampens willingness to cover the subject. 1/2
Very few people in the left/liberal/progressive media and commentary space are personally demonstrating interest in, say, Vance's Carlson problem. No one's posting about it, no one's writing their own takes, it's not in their podcasts, etc etc...
September 4, 2026 at 9:10 PM
I think that’s true, and it’s a real asymmetry with consequences. The right never gets bored like that. The WSJ published a six-volume set of its Whitewater editorial. Sean Hannity will talk about Hillary’s emails or Benghazi or Hunter Biden endlessly, shamelessly, and until it has an impact.
Reposted by john whitehouse
This is a very strong piece about the media double standard.
I'll add, though, that there seems to be very little interest on the left lately in the object-level coverage and criticism of the GOP's ties to extremists that would signal to reporters that it should be a major story.
I'll add, though, that there seems to be very little interest on the left lately in the object-level coverage and criticism of the GOP's ties to extremists that would signal to reporters that it should be a major story.
September 4, 2026 at 4:08 PM
This is a very strong piece about the media double standard.
I'll add, though, that there seems to be very little interest on the left lately in the object-level coverage and criticism of the GOP's ties to extremists that would signal to reporters that it should be a major story.
I'll add, though, that there seems to be very little interest on the left lately in the object-level coverage and criticism of the GOP's ties to extremists that would signal to reporters that it should be a major story.
Reposted by john whitehouse
You can just do things (write articles about the GOP's connections to far-right antisemites then post about them here). www.mediamatters.org/jd-vance/jd-...
JD Vance’s wildly disingenuous response to his Tucker Carlson problem
www.mediamatters.org
September 4, 2026 at 5:03 PM
You can just do things (write articles about the GOP's connections to far-right antisemites then post about them here). www.mediamatters.org/jd-vance/jd-...
Reposted by john whitehouse
My latest: Turning Point USA’s upcoming campus tour features influencer Joshua Haymes, a Christian nationalist who believes women shouldn’t have the right to vote and Hitler was “misunderstood” numbertwopencil.substack.com/p/turning-po...
September 2, 2026 at 4:19 PM
My latest: Turning Point USA’s upcoming campus tour features influencer Joshua Haymes, a Christian nationalist who believes women shouldn’t have the right to vote and Hitler was “misunderstood” numbertwopencil.substack.com/p/turning-po...
Reposted by john whitehouse
Speaking of grotesque MAGA associations, JD Vance was asked yesterday about Tucker Carlson's antisemitism promotion and dodged the question because he owes his political success to the former Fox host. www.mediamatters.org/jd-vance/tuc...
September 1, 2026 at 7:13 PM
Speaking of grotesque MAGA associations, JD Vance was asked yesterday about Tucker Carlson's antisemitism promotion and dodged the question because he owes his political success to the former Fox host. www.mediamatters.org/jd-vance/tuc...
Reposted by john whitehouse
You know who else has compared COVID to 9/11? Greg Gutfeld. Neil Cavuto. Donald Trump.
(And thanks to @johnknefel.bsky.social who put this list together via www.mediamatters.org/cbs/embracin...)
(And thanks to @johnknefel.bsky.social who put this list together via www.mediamatters.org/cbs/embracin...)
August 31, 2026 at 8:30 PM
You know who else has compared COVID to 9/11? Greg Gutfeld. Neil Cavuto. Donald Trump.
(And thanks to @johnknefel.bsky.social who put this list together via www.mediamatters.org/cbs/embracin...)
(And thanks to @johnknefel.bsky.social who put this list together via www.mediamatters.org/cbs/embracin...)
Reposted by john whitehouse
CBS News trying to manufacture a scandal out of drawing comparisons between the pandemic and 9/11 death tolls. The thing is, that point of comparison was incredibly common at the time. It was everywhere, and trying to smear El-Sayed now is disgusting, if totally predictable under Weiss and Ellison
Embracing blatant Islamophobia, CBS News makes bizarre attempt to tie El-Sayed to 9/11
www.mediamatters.org
August 31, 2026 at 6:44 PM
CBS News trying to manufacture a scandal out of drawing comparisons between the pandemic and 9/11 death tolls. The thing is, that point of comparison was incredibly common at the time. It was everywhere, and trying to smear El-Sayed now is disgusting, if totally predictable under Weiss and Ellison
Reposted by john whitehouse
A far-right ethnonationalist movement turning the machinery of the state against its early activists once they are deemed insufficiently loyal — now I’ve heard everything.
Laura Loomer is taking credit for Milo getting detained by ICE.
August 28, 2026 at 6:12 PM
A far-right ethnonationalist movement turning the machinery of the state against its early activists once they are deemed insufficiently loyal — now I’ve heard everything.
Reposted by john whitehouse
By any objective measure, Trump has failed in his war of aggression against Iran. But, what if the opposite was true? What if victory was at hand? That would really be something.
Luckily for the White House, that alternative reality is just one right-wing cable news program or MAGA livestream away
Luckily for the White House, that alternative reality is just one right-wing cable news program or MAGA livestream away
The delusional right-wing media figures declaring victory in Iran
www.mediamatters.org
August 28, 2026 at 1:59 PM
By any objective measure, Trump has failed in his war of aggression against Iran. But, what if the opposite was true? What if victory was at hand? That would really be something.
Luckily for the White House, that alternative reality is just one right-wing cable news program or MAGA livestream away
Luckily for the White House, that alternative reality is just one right-wing cable news program or MAGA livestream away
Reposted by john whitehouse
Explicit call for ethnonationalist purges -- and while Bovino is publicly mad at the administration, they're doing more to carry out this strategy now than they were when he was working there.
August 27, 2026 at 6:05 PM
Explicit call for ethnonationalist purges -- and while Bovino is publicly mad at the administration, they're doing more to carry out this strategy now than they were when he was working there.
Reposted by john whitehouse
When you question why Topic A isn't getting as much attention as Topic B, ask yourself: Have I personally been extremely focused on following every twist and turn of Topic B, devouring content on it and chiming in on my own platforms, while ignoring Topic A?
August 27, 2026 at 5:31 PM
When you question why Topic A isn't getting as much attention as Topic B, ask yourself: Have I personally been extremely focused on following every twist and turn of Topic B, devouring content on it and chiming in on my own platforms, while ignoring Topic A?
Reposted by john whitehouse
The thing about complaining that Topic A isn't getting as much attention as Topic B is that if you yourself aren't driving attention to Topic B you end up keeping the focus on Topic A (and revealing that you actually care more about Topic A than Topic B).
August 27, 2026 at 5:00 PM
The thing about complaining that Topic A isn't getting as much attention as Topic B is that if you yourself aren't driving attention to Topic B you end up keeping the focus on Topic A (and revealing that you actually care more about Topic A than Topic B).
Reposted by john whitehouse
The grand jury report on the Florida embezzlement scheme is blood-boiling. It's clear beyond serious dispute that the current AG of Florida was part of a shameless, calculated plan to steal public funds from sick children to gift the Republican Party & his own PAC. drive.google.com/file/d/15YSC...
Grand_Jury_Report.pdf
drive.google.com
August 27, 2026 at 4:49 PM
The grand jury report on the Florida embezzlement scheme is blood-boiling. It's clear beyond serious dispute that the current AG of Florida was part of a shameless, calculated plan to steal public funds from sick children to gift the Republican Party & his own PAC. drive.google.com/file/d/15YSC...
Reposted by john whitehouse
look these people are all crooks
DEVELOPING STORY: A Florida grand jury investigating the Hope Florida scandal found that key members of the DeSantis administration engaged in a “sophisticated scheme” to divert $10 million of a Medicaid settlement into a political activities and the Republican Party of Florida.
Hope Florida grand jury describes public money ‘misused for political purposes’
The not-yet released reported was obtained by CBS News Miami and detailed wrongdoing but also an inability to bring criminal charges.
www.sun-sentinel.com
August 27, 2026 at 1:56 PM
look these people are all crooks
Reposted by john whitehouse
No one has explained to me how popularism and deliverism are supposed to work if this is how a nontrivial share of swing voters understand the issues
August 24, 2026 at 12:35 AM
No one has explained to me how popularism and deliverism are supposed to work if this is how a nontrivial share of swing voters understand the issues
i think it's bad that military spouses are hesitant to speak up about horrific conditions due to "fear of reprisal"
August 22, 2026 at 6:39 PM
i think it's bad that military spouses are hesitant to speak up about horrific conditions due to "fear of reprisal"