Staying informed

Books

For starters, please don’t buy any of these off Amazon, since Jeff Bezos has plenty of money and is actively working to destroy democracy in the U.S. It’s better to check a book out from a library, buy used, or buy new via Bookshop.org (which supports local small bookstores).

Now, on to some good reading:

The Authoritarians (free PDF or ePub download), Dr. Bob Altemeyer. Written in 2006 during the Bush 2.0 years, but sadly still relevant — if you’ve wondered how people can enthusiastically follow a demagogue, this is your book.

Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. First published in 1941, it discusses the tendency to turn from the dangers and responsibilities inherent to freedom, instead running into the waiting embrace of totalitarianism.

The Origins of Totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt. An analysis of the conditions that led to the Nazi and Soviet regimes, exploring how propaganda, scapegoats, terror, and political isolation all aided the slide.

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century, Timothy Snyder. A scholar of the holocaust looks at Trumpism, resulting in a pocket-sized volume with advice for daily living.

The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense, Suzette Haden Elgin. Many helpful tips when it comes to having discussions with MAGA folks. It’s been out of print for a while, so you’ll either need to buy a used copy, or find one in your favorite local library.

Indivisible: A Practical Guide to Democracy on the Brink (free PDF download), produced by Indivisible.org. In their own words, it contains “strategies, tactics, & tips for how everyday Americans can fight back together wherever we live.”

Reliable news

The national media has been captured by the oligarchs, as have major papers (New York Times, Washington Post) — but you can still find impartial news online. Here are some good options:

MeidasTouch News — progressive news network, has many branches (podcasts, blogs, etc.)

The Guardian — a British daily newspaper that’s got good international / US coverage

The Associated Press — a U.S. not-for-profit news agency, has resisted censorship demands to date

Ground News — find your own blind spots while getting up to date

1440.com — an unbiased summary of the news, delivered to your email inbox every morning

WTFJHT (“What The F*** Just Happened Today?”) — a daily email newsletter somewhat similar to 1440, but focused on politics; billed as “a political newsletter for normal people.”

Under the Desk News — a one-person independent news channel, on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and Substack.

Check your “facts”

Did a friend or relative send you a juicy bit of “news?” Check it before you pass it along:

Snopes — the original fact-checking site

FactCheck.org — a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center

Resources for protests

The Protesters’ Guide to Smartphone Security — Privacy Guides

Attending a Protest — Electronic Frontier Foundation

Creators on Substack

Substack has recently become home for a lot of good writers, many of them columnists or journalists displaced from berths at once-good media outlets. You can read all of these for free, but most have extra perks for paid subscribers.

Robert Reich — Labor Secretary for Bill Clinton, professor and political commentator since then

Paul Krugman — Nobel Prize winning economist, formerly of the New York Times

Letters from an American — Heather Cox Richardson

It’s in the Water — Stuart Rojstaczer

Rogan’s List — Susan Rogan, not that… guy…

Off Message — Brian Beutler

Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance — former United States Attorney, currently a law professor and a legal analyst for MSNBC and NBC

Hacking, but Legal — Jackie Singh on cybersecurity and the intersection of tech & culture

Hopium Chronicles — Simon Rosenberg, with “strategies to defeat MAGA, tell our story more effectively, and ensure freedom and democracy prevail.” Attempts to be upbeat, or at least encouraging.

Jim Acosta — formerly CNN’s Chief White House Correspondent, now flying solo.

Ann Telnaes — editorial cartoonist, formerly of the Washington Post

Video

The Century of the Self (YouTube) — a 2002 British television documentary series by Adam Curtis. It focuses on the work of psychoanalysts Sigmund Freud and Anna Freud, and PR consultant Edward Bernays (Freud’s nephew). In episode one, Curtis says, “This series is about how those in power have used Freud’s theories to try and control the dangerous crowd in an age of mass democracy.” The Century of the Self asks deeper questions about the roots and methods of consumerism and commodification and their implications. The original series consists of 4 1-hour episodes; on YouTube, it’s a single 4-hour video — grab some coffee, and settle in to a comfortable chair.

PoliticsGirl (YouTube channel) — Leigh McGowan’s no-nonsense casual take on political events. Politics Girl is just about everywhere — YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Threads, Instagram, BlueSky.

Professor Neil (YouTube channel, mostly shorts) — a Canadian English professor, pushing back on toxic masculinity and the like.

stuarth2o (Stuart Rojstaczer’s YouTube channel, also mostly shorts) — a geophysics professor and novelist, he’s got some thoughts…

all_things_democracy (a.k.a. Democracy and Freedom) — an Instagram account with lots of good short videos (“reels”).

Podcasts

MeidasTouch — political commentary to parallel their reporting

PoliticsGirl — the place for long-form PoliticsGirl discussions (audio)

The Coffee Klatch with Robert Reich — a now-weekly discussion of politics

Get More Smarter — a “weekly-ish” podcast on Colorado politics

Unbiased Politics with Jordan Berman — on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube

BlueSky Accounts

50501 Movement — organizers of the 50 protests / 50 states / 1 movement protests

Robert Reich — bite-sized takes on issues of the day

Inequality Media — also Robert Reich

Inequality Media Civic Action — also Robert Reich

Alt National Park Service — a coalition of federal employees who have been breaking news about the current administration’s activities

Jon Cooper — Democratic strategist, formerly Long Island Campaign Chair for Barack Obama

George Conway — lawyer, activist, helped start up the Lincoln Project

Molly Jong-Fast — author, political commentator

Rachel Bitecofer — political analyst, commentator

Stuart Rojstaczer — geophysics professor, novelist

Accountable.US — non-partisan organization, investigates special interests

Get More Smarter — summary posts paralleling the podcast of the same name

Democracy and Freedom (a.k.a., all_things_democracy) — this account started out focused on bodily autonomy / womens’ rights, but has since expanded to more general discussions of impingements on democracy.