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Peter Sterne
@petersterne.com
20K followers 1.1K following 5.2K posts
State Editor at cityandstateny.bsky.social. Previously @nysfocus.bsky.social, @freedom.press and @politico.com. He/him.

Email: [email protected]

Signal: petersterne.91

https://petersterne.com
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petersterne.com
Peter Sterne @petersterne.com · May 15
Want to know what's really happening in NY politics?

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City & State is the premier multimedia news organization dedicated to covering New York and Pennsylvania's local and state politics and policy.
www.cityandstateny.com
petersterne.com
The Bluesky account on X is promoting AI vibe-coding now
A screenshot of an X post from @Bluesky: Vibe-coding, but make it social. Starting today you can use Attie to make sites: Games, quizzes, guestbooks, your top 8, or whatever you dream up. Go try it! The X post quotes a post from @Attie_AI which says: Announcing Attie site builder! Starting today, Attie users can build small social pages like a game, an AMA, or a quiz your friends will argue about for a week. We made a few to get you started. Go make a better one and share it
October 16, 2026 at 12:29 PM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
espiers.bsky.social
I have an essay in the November issue of The Nation about the Dem establishment class war on the youths, and by extension DSA and young progressives in general: www.thenation.com/article/poli...
Why Democratic Leaders Keep Waging War on the Young
The party's silver-haired establishment is caught up in an existential culture war.
www.thenation.com
October 15, 2026 at 12:36 PM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
theindypendent.bsky.social
We'll talk about Mayor Mamdani, the NYPD and whether he should fire Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch on today's Indypendent News Hour from 5-6 pm on WBAI 99.5 FM and wbai.org. Our guests will be noted police critic
@alexvitale.bsky.social and @petersterne.com of @cityandstateny.bsky.social
October 13, 2026 at 6:44 PM
petersterne.com
I'll be on the Indypendent News Hour on WBAI in a few minutes to talk with @alexvitale.bsky.social about Mamdani and the NYPD. Tune in live here! wbai.org/listen-live/
WBAI-FM Live Radio Player
wbai.org
October 13, 2026 at 9:01 PM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
greenb3ar.bsky.social
Okay the best political ad of the year is here from LA-DSA
October 13, 2026 at 12:58 AM
petersterne.com
I went to NY Comic-Con this weekend and got some incredible art. Fantasy illustrator @crystalsully.bsky.social uses invisible ink to draw skeletons onto Magic cards she’s illustrated. The animal’s skeleton (and her signature) only shows up under UV light.
Ordinary-looking Sunspine Lynx foil Magic card Same Magic card under UV light shows a cat-like skeleton drawn in UV-reactive link on top of the lynx, along with Crystal Sully’s signature and “NYCC 26”
October 13, 2026 at 12:47 AM
petersterne.com
I made a TikTok video about my new cover story! Check it out below and then read the story here: www.cityandstateny.com/politics/202...
September 15, 2026 at 5:19 PM
petersterne.com
I'll be on @theindypendent.bsky.social News Hour on @wbai.org at 5 p.m. to talk about Mayor Mamdani's new Office of Worker Power, his support for Amazon delivery workers and the manufactured controversy over his attendance at the 9/11 memorial.

Tune in here: wbai.org/listen-live/
WBAI-FM Live Radio Player
wbai.org
September 8, 2026 at 8:53 PM
petersterne.com
I talked to The Guardian about how not all leftist insurgents in Democratic primaries are actually "DSA candidates." www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Leftist insurgents are storming the midterms – just don’t call them all democratic socialists
Progressive candidates navigate their ties to the DSA as the group faces historic growth and mounting pressure
www.theguardian.com
September 7, 2026 at 4:49 AM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
mariotrujillo.bsky.social
ICE tried to conduct a dragnet search on REI customers in Minneapolis, apparently trying to ID a person who wore a particular beanie storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
On March 5, investigators issued a Section 1509 summons to REI seeking transaction information for all persons who had purchased a particular beanie, identified by item number, in the greater Minneapolis–St. Paul area from January 1, 2024, forward. Brisbois Decl., para. 3, Exhibit 3, Line 65. The summons requested the dates and locations of purchases, buyer identities and contact information, payment type, and complete credit- or debit-card numbers
August 31, 2026 at 10:18 PM
petersterne.com
Coyote vs. Acme was a really fun movie. Definitely recommend you check it out! It's essentially the modern "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" but in the form of an Erin Brockovich-style legal thriller rather than a noir detective story.
August 29, 2026 at 2:47 AM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
errant-signal.com
"Milo got arrested!"

"That's good!"

"By an unaccountable secret police force"

"That's bad"

"He supported them, though, so there's delicious irony at play."

"That's good!"

"But they came for him because fascist power has reached a point where petty infighting can lead to arrests"

"That's bad"
August 28, 2026 at 10:39 PM
petersterne.com
The key thing to understand about the modern Democratic Party is that it functions less as a political party and more as a coalition of rival political groups, including increasingly well-organized left groups like DSA.
August 29, 2026 at 1:14 AM
petersterne.com
I think it's pretty undeniable that AOC is laying the groundwork to run for president. That does not mean she will ultimately decide to pull the trigger and run. But she's obviously preparing for the possibility.
August 29, 2026 at 12:55 AM
petersterne.com
AOC apparently forgot to renew her DSA dues in 2019, so she hasn't technically been a member of the socialist group for the past 7 years. She rejoined DSA month and began paying monthly dues that automatically renew. www.cityandstateny.com/politics/202...
AOC rejoined DSA this month after 7-year absence
The socialist standard-bearer apparently forgot to renew her annual DSA membership when it expired in 2019.
www.cityandstateny.com
August 26, 2026 at 7:17 PM
petersterne.com
@chicagodsa.bsky.social WTTW reported that Chicago DSA declined to endorse 2 incumbent council members: Daniel La Spata and Jeanette Taylor.

Are those current SIOs who you decided to unendorse, or just progressive incumbents who applied unsuccessfully for DSA endorsement?
Chicago’s Democratic Socialists Back 2 City Council Challengers, While Declining to Endorse 2 Incumbents
Chicago DSA declined to endorse Ald. Daniel La Spata (1st Ward) because he would not tell the group he considers himself an anti-Zionist and Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th Ward) because she supported reve...
news.wttw.com
August 22, 2026 at 4:31 AM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
thenation.com
It turns out that people don’t actually want a Gestapo force rounding up immigrants all over America.
https://bit.ly/3UK5mEs
One of the Biggest Myths of the Trump Era Is Unraveling
It turns out that people don't actually want a Gestapo force rounding up immigrants all over America.
bit.ly
August 20, 2026 at 2:23 PM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
maplecocaine.bsky.social
Republican psy-op asks "Is this other fuckin thing a republican psy-op?? Look over there, not at me."
Headline from The Bulwark: Is the DSA a Repiblican Psy-Op?
August 18, 2026 at 12:24 AM
petersterne.com
Third Way, a centrist anti-left think tank, is hiring a "Director of Anti-Extremism" to lead a messaging campaign against the Democratic Socialists of America www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/44...
Third Way is a national think tank and advocacy organization that champions moderate policy and political ideas. Since our founding in 2005, we have served as a critical bulwark against political extremism by advancing values-driven, reform-oriented solutions on the defining issues of our time. Our work is grounded in the mainstream American values of opportunity, freedom, security, and democratic capitalism, and we advocate for the vital center across seven major areas: climate and energy, economy, education, health care, national security, politics, and social policy. The Director of Anti-Extremism will lead a project to combat the rise of far-left extreme voices and forces, and to mobilize the center left at the national level to fight extreme elements in the places where they are gaining power. New extreme forces on the far left are on the rise, and they represent a sharp break from a traditional left wing in American politics. Their ideas are not just unwise or unworkable, and their rhetoric is not simply heated. Instead, we are now confronted with a faction that is radical, illiberal, and, in many cases, overtly discriminatory. The rise of these voices in American politics pose distinct dangers for the center left. Where they take power, they govern badly, leaving the working- and middle-class voters for whom they claim to speak worse off and more disillusioned. And they champion politically toxic ideas and offensive rhetoric that can and will be used by the MAGA right to define all of their opponents, including those on the center left. Most voters still reject the idea and label of socialism. These extreme candidates still lose far more races than they win, and their agenda is broadly unpopular outside of blue bubbles. But the center left must take much more significant action to combat these far-left extreme forces. This position will spearhead that effort. As the Director of Anti-Extremism, a typical day might include… Assembling and updating a database of the DSA’s most extreme ideas and statements and a repository of voting records, affiliations, and issue positions to make available to allies and partners; Leading public opinion research to identify and test the contrasts that move base voters away from these extreme candidates; Overseeing the development of memos, talking points, rapid response materials, and other products that make the case against these extreme forces in American politics; Promoting and marketing our research and materials to ensure they reach decisionmakers quickly, repeatedly, and at scale through a coordinated distribution infrastructure; Recruiting and arming a group of young, diverse spokespeople to fight the DSA from a center-left perspective and assembling a broad coalition of organizational partners to make the case against extremism; Running an earned media program to create a drumbeat of our message in op-eds, television appearances, podcasts, and traditional and digital media engagement. Salary Range: $140,000 - $150,000, annually
August 13, 2026 at 1:44 AM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
greenwell.bsky.social
Reporting on what literacy means and why it feels so broken these days made me realize I had far more to say than could be captured in one feature. I’m so, so thrilled to say that now I get to write a whole book about it!
Publishers Marketplace Deal Report Category: Non-fiction: General/Other THE READING MACHINE By Megan Greenwell Imprint: Dey Street Books August 10, 2026 Former Deadspin editor-in-chief and author of BAD COMPANY Megan Greenwell's THE READING MACHINE, a narrative investigation into how policy and profit reshaped the relationship between American children and books, changing what literacy is for and leaving millions of students behind in the process, to Libby Burton at Dey Street Books, at auction, by Anna Sproul-Latimer at Neon Literary (NA). Rights: kent@neonliterary.com
August 11, 2026 at 3:11 PM
petersterne.com
NEW: NYC-DSA is 60% white, 14% Hispanic, 10% Asian and 9% Black, according to internal demographic data.

News outlets have routinely suggested that DSA is 85% white, based on a 2021 demographic survey. But new data shows DSA has become more racially diverse, especially in NYC.
NYC-DSA is 60% white, internal survey says
But the newest members of the Democratic Socialists of America are (slightly) more racially diverse.
www.cityandstateny.com
August 11, 2026 at 2:50 PM
Reposted by Peter Sterne
marisakabas.bsky.social
Exclusive from me — Daniel Moraff, one of the political operatives behind Graham Platner's rise and fall, has been accused of sexual assault.

Full story here:
Exclusive: Political operative behind Graham Platner's rise accused of sexual assault
A spokesperson for Daniel Moraff said: “Any suggestion that he committed a criminal offence is false and without foundation."
www.thehandbasket.co
July 27, 2026 at 9:27 PM
petersterne.com
Reminder: I’ll be on NewsNation at 10:40 p.m. with conservative commentator Katie Pavlich to respond to last night’s special episode on DSA. www.newsnationnow.com/news-nation-...
NewsNation Live
Listen: NewsNation broadcast audio
www.newsnationnow.com
July 23, 2026 at 2:25 AM
petersterne.com
You might have heard about this weekend's internal fight within DSA over its process to endorse a 2028 presidential candidate.

I tried to explain exactly what's happening: www.cityandstateny.com/politics/202...
DSA debates how to debate AOC presidential endorsement
Explaining the latest fight roiling the Democratic Socialists of America
www.cityandstateny.com
July 15, 2026 at 4:55 PM