Aaron Schaffer
@aaronschaffer.com
news researcher doing OSINT things and more at @washingtonpost.com. signal: aaronschaffer.01 https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/aaron-schaffer/
Pinned
Aaron Schaffer
@aaronschaffer.com
· Nov 15
Noticing a bunch of new followers on here recently and I wanted to say hi and introduce myself! I’m on the @washingtonpost.com news research team, where I dig into court records, databases, online footprints, archives, and a million other things! Oh, and I’m also a member of @postguild.bsky.social
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
FT Exclusive: Goldman Sachs general counsel Kathy Ruemmler said she will resign this summer after documents released by the US Department of Justice revealed the extent of her ties with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein ft.trib.al/E7RdaEU
February 13, 2026 at 1:16 AM
FT Exclusive: Goldman Sachs general counsel Kathy Ruemmler said she will resign this summer after documents released by the US Department of Justice revealed the extent of her ties with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein ft.trib.al/E7RdaEU
It's always a good idea to read @geoffreyfowler.bsky.social substack.com/@geoffreyfow...
The truth about covering tech at Bezos’s Washington Post
And why ‘We the users’ matters more than ever
substack.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:10 PM
It's always a good idea to read @geoffreyfowler.bsky.social substack.com/@geoffreyfow...
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Paige’s last story for us, now atop the homepage, shows what we lost.
She could have done a quick hit on Oz telling Americans to delay retirement, but instead delivered a comprehensive piece rich in policy analysis, data, voices of real people and a rare non-TV interview with Oz wapo.st/4rHUCC6
She could have done a quick hit on Oz telling Americans to delay retirement, but instead delivered a comprehensive piece rich in policy analysis, data, voices of real people and a rare non-TV interview with Oz wapo.st/4rHUCC6
February 8, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Paige’s last story for us, now atop the homepage, shows what we lost.
She could have done a quick hit on Oz telling Americans to delay retirement, but instead delivered a comprehensive piece rich in policy analysis, data, voices of real people and a rare non-TV interview with Oz wapo.st/4rHUCC6
She could have done a quick hit on Oz telling Americans to delay retirement, but instead delivered a comprehensive piece rich in policy analysis, data, voices of real people and a rare non-TV interview with Oz wapo.st/4rHUCC6
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
2. Just incredible, backbreaking work to do this sort of forensic investigation in general… to do it when there was no internet in Iran is staggering.
Please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social
Please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social
Iranian forces massacred protesters fleeing burning market, witnesses say
A rare detailed account of Iran’s crackdown, produced by The Post, reveals the brutality used by security forces in one of many such cities rocked by violence.
bit.ly
February 8, 2026 at 10:22 PM
2. Just incredible, backbreaking work to do this sort of forensic investigation in general… to do it when there was no internet in Iran is staggering.
Please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social
Please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Haven't seen a sports-specific starter pack for Washington Post folks affected by recent layoffs so created one below - please show them your support and give a follow (let me know if I've missed anyone too!)
February 8, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Haven't seen a sports-specific starter pack for Washington Post folks affected by recent layoffs so created one below - please show them your support and give a follow (let me know if I've missed anyone too!)
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
So many have given to The Post Guild’s fundraising effort, and we are floored. But we also ask you to consider supporting the fundraiser for our international staff and staff in our bureaus who aren’t Guild eligible. They are absolutely vital to coverage. www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Donate to Support for Washington Post international employees, organized by Michelle Lee
Among the hundreds of journalists laid off by The Washington Post on … Michelle Lee needs your support for Support for Washington Post international employees
www.gofundme.com
February 5, 2026 at 9:54 PM
So many have given to The Post Guild’s fundraising effort, and we are floored. But we also ask you to consider supporting the fundraiser for our international staff and staff in our bureaus who aren’t Guild eligible. They are absolutely vital to coverage. www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
"No Subject"
Will Lewis—the loathsome stooge who just fired hundreds of people for Bezos at the Washington Post—announces his departure from the Post with the same thumping gracelessness that has characterized his whole miserable tenure.
February 7, 2026 at 11:34 PM
"No Subject"
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Will Lewis has just told staff at the Washington Post he is stepping down
February 7, 2026 at 10:39 PM
Will Lewis has just told staff at the Washington Post he is stepping down
One of the best parts of my job at The Washington Post is that I get to work with journalists in every section of the newspaper and see them work behind-the-scenes. To say they are collegial and talented does not do them justice. They are the best.
February 7, 2026 at 3:57 AM
One of the best parts of my job at The Washington Post is that I get to work with journalists in every section of the newspaper and see them work behind-the-scenes. To say they are collegial and talented does not do them justice. They are the best.
Proud to have worked on this story (and many others) with @joemenn.bsky.social. He is a legend and it is so stupid that he was laid off. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
Epstein’s network included Russian tech investors with past Kremlin ties
Documents released by the Justice Department show that Epstein had links with Russian tech investors who had drawn scrutiny from U.S. intelligence officials.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 6, 2026 at 12:37 PM
Proud to have worked on this story (and many others) with @joemenn.bsky.social. He is a legend and it is so stupid that he was laid off. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
I've been on a different team than this group for years but I've (greedily) tried to work with them as much as possible because they're an awe-inspiring group of journalists and so fun to work with. Hire them ASAP or you'll be sorry!
February 6, 2026 at 4:22 AM
I've been on a different team than this group for years but I've (greedily) tried to work with them as much as possible because they're an awe-inspiring group of journalists and so fun to work with. Hire them ASAP or you'll be sorry!
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
THEY ARE THE BEST IN THE BIZ. HIRE THEM ASAP
@geoffreyfowler.bsky.social
@joemenn.bsky.social
@naominix.bsky.social
@heatherkelly.bsky.social
@tatumhunter.bsky.social
@ceodonovan.bsky.social
@lisabonos.bsky.social
x.com/evadou
@danielleabril.bsky.social
@pranshuverma.bsky.social
@geoffreyfowler.bsky.social
@joemenn.bsky.social
@naominix.bsky.social
@heatherkelly.bsky.social
@tatumhunter.bsky.social
@ceodonovan.bsky.social
@lisabonos.bsky.social
x.com/evadou
@danielleabril.bsky.social
@pranshuverma.bsky.social
February 6, 2026 at 4:14 AM
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
imagine having one of the best tech reporters of all time on your staff and then choosing to lay them off
My story on Elon Musk cutting safeguards at xAI is on the front page of today's @washingtonpost.com. I’m also among 100’s of reporters laid off. I absolutely loved my job my brilliant coworkers & the thrill of reporting @ the center of forces upending the world: AI & Silicon Valley’s political power
February 6, 2026 at 2:47 AM
imagine having one of the best tech reporters of all time on your staff and then choosing to lay them off
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
. @nickijhabvala.bsky.social: "Will Lewis was too busy to join the call to tell his staff he’s destroying the @washingtonpost.com sports department yesterday … but he did have time to walk the red carpet at NFL Honors here in San Francisco today. Amazing."
February 6, 2026 at 12:48 AM
. @nickijhabvala.bsky.social: "Will Lewis was too busy to join the call to tell his staff he’s destroying the @washingtonpost.com sports department yesterday … but he did have time to walk the red carpet at NFL Honors here in San Francisco today. Amazing."
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Definitely worth noting since it wasn't announced in that way.
It is worth noting the Post slashed the bulk of its arts coverage, including most of the critics, ending a great tradition in journalism.
February 4, 2026 at 5:42 PM
Definitely worth noting since it wasn't announced in that way.
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
I expected the cuts would be bad but I'm honestly stunned and sickened seeing how many great journalists the Washington Post just lost. People who nailed huge investigations, documented war zones, exposed horrific crimes, dropped all at once for failures they did not cause.
February 4, 2026 at 4:29 PM
I expected the cuts would be bad but I'm honestly stunned and sickened seeing how many great journalists the Washington Post just lost. People who nailed huge investigations, documented war zones, exposed horrific crimes, dropped all at once for failures they did not cause.
So many incredible journalists got laid off today. Heroes, mentors, friends. Just an absolutely devastating day. Starting a thread here with some of their incredible work, and how to follow and support them.
February 4, 2026 at 2:56 PM
So many incredible journalists got laid off today. Heroes, mentors, friends. Just an absolutely devastating day. Starting a thread here with some of their incredible work, and how to follow and support them.
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
I wasn't laid off today and I don't know why. So many better people and better reporters were and there's no way to make it make sense.
February 4, 2026 at 2:17 PM
I wasn't laid off today and I don't know why. So many better people and better reporters were and there's no way to make it make sense.
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
“What do you want to accomplish?”
“I want to make the Olympic team.”
That childhood dream was no longer just Maxim Naumov's own.
“I want to make the Olympic team.”
That childhood dream was no longer just Maxim Naumov's own.
How Maxim Naumov learned to embrace his grief to earn a spot at the Olympics
After his parents died in a plane crash, the activity he feared most ended up being the one that healed him.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 31, 2026 at 2:49 PM
“What do you want to accomplish?”
“I want to make the Olympic team.”
That childhood dream was no longer just Maxim Naumov's own.
“I want to make the Olympic team.”
That childhood dream was no longer just Maxim Naumov's own.
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Four days before Trump’s inauguration, lieutenants to an Abu Dhabi royal secretly signed a deal w/the Trump family to buy a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for $500M, according to docs & people familiar. The buyer paid half up front, steering $187M to Trump entities.
www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
‘Spy Sheikh’ Bought Secret Stake in Trump Company
$500 million investment for 49% of World Liberty came months before U.A.E. won access to tightly guarded American AI chips.
www.wsj.com
February 1, 2026 at 4:23 PM
Four days before Trump’s inauguration, lieutenants to an Abu Dhabi royal secretly signed a deal w/the Trump family to buy a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for $500M, according to docs & people familiar. The buyer paid half up front, steering $187M to Trump entities.
www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
some of my favorite snippets from newly released court docs in the Anthropic copyright book case. eye-opening stuff on Project Panama, their plan to "destructively scan all the books in the world" in order to train AI
January 27, 2026 at 6:44 PM
some of my favorite snippets from newly released court docs in the Anthropic copyright book case. eye-opening stuff on Project Panama, their plan to "destructively scan all the books in the world" in order to train AI
It's called Project Panama. The goal? "Destructively scan all the books in the world."
The kind of deep reporting with @willoremus.com and @nitasha.bsky.social that I love doing at @washingtonpost.com. wapo.st/4rjXAMQ
The kind of deep reporting with @willoremus.com and @nitasha.bsky.social that I love doing at @washingtonpost.com. wapo.st/4rjXAMQ
How Silicon Valley built AI: Buying, scanning and destroying millions of books
Court filings reveal how AI companies raced to obtain more books to feed chatbots, including by buying, scanning and disposing of millions of titles.
wapo.st
January 27, 2026 at 3:52 PM
It's called Project Panama. The goal? "Destructively scan all the books in the world."
The kind of deep reporting with @willoremus.com and @nitasha.bsky.social that I love doing at @washingtonpost.com. wapo.st/4rjXAMQ
The kind of deep reporting with @willoremus.com and @nitasha.bsky.social that I love doing at @washingtonpost.com. wapo.st/4rjXAMQ
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
Cutting the reporters, photographers, researchers and editors who bring you vital information amid a sea of slop, propaganda and lies is not a winning strategy. #SaveThePost
January 26, 2026 at 10:07 PM
Cutting the reporters, photographers, researchers and editors who bring you vital information amid a sea of slop, propaganda and lies is not a winning strategy. #SaveThePost
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
As @washingtonpost.com international & local correspondents, we have risked our lives, side by side, because we believe reporting from the ground serves the public good. To choke that engine of brave, committed colleagues would be devastating. If you value our work, tell Jeff Bezos to #SaveThePost.
January 26, 2026 at 6:38 PM
As @washingtonpost.com international & local correspondents, we have risked our lives, side by side, because we believe reporting from the ground serves the public good. To choke that engine of brave, committed colleagues would be devastating. If you value our work, tell Jeff Bezos to #SaveThePost.
Reposted by Aaron Schaffer
If nothing else, I’ve always hoped our work in the Washington Post’s sports section could give readers a meaningful connection to (and understanding of) something bigger than themselves.
I’ve seen today: It has. Forever grateful to be a part of this team. #SaveThePost
I’ve seen today: It has. Forever grateful to be a part of this team. #SaveThePost
January 26, 2026 at 7:20 PM
If nothing else, I’ve always hoped our work in the Washington Post’s sports section could give readers a meaningful connection to (and understanding of) something bigger than themselves.
I’ve seen today: It has. Forever grateful to be a part of this team. #SaveThePost
I’ve seen today: It has. Forever grateful to be a part of this team. #SaveThePost