Brooke Newman
LightNews LightNews
banner
brookenewman.bsky.social
Brooke Newman
@brookenewman.bsky.social
7.3K followers 1.9K following 3.2K posts
Historian, voracious reader, & cocktail 🍸 enthusiast. Upcoming book—THE CROWN’S SILENCE: The Hidden History of the British Monarchy & Slavery (Mariner, Jan. 2026). Link: https://tinyurl.com/5erj7z6x
All views, my own. Website: www.brookennewman.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
brookenewman.bsky.social
Brooke Newman @brookenewman.bsky.social · Oct 17
Heading to the printers soon and out in both the US/UK in three months!
#booksky 📚
Available for pre-order now wherever books are sold: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
Cover and spine of The Crown’s Silence
brookenewman.bsky.social
“Trump’s acts of extortion have no place in a democracy. They belong in a protection racket: If you support Trump, you are protected; if you do not, you are vulnerable. ... If you oppose Trump, you may be prosecuted. This is not how a representative government works. It is how the Mafia works.”
January 7, 2026 at 12:27 AM
brookenewman.bsky.social
🇬🇧 UK copies of THE CROWN’S SILENCE are in house! 🙌
A stack of books A stack of books
January 6, 2026 at 8:51 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
carriegibson.bsky.social
🚨The Great Resistance is officially out in the US. Many thanks to everyone who followed along with my chapter snippets and photos over the past 35 days. Now you can read the whole book! And I hope it can serve as a useful reminder of the power of people to end seemingly intractable problems. ❤️
Ultimately, what became clear was that there was no one way to freedom, except that it could not be limited to a single group of people. Freedom had to be for everyone, otherwise it was a lie. 
January 6, 2026 at 9:49 AM
brookenewman.bsky.social
The girls said goodbye to our elderly cat today, and now both of their childhood pets are gone. A tough moment that marks the end of an era. Hug your pets. ❤️
A cat being cuddled and loved one last time
January 5, 2026 at 10:21 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
Out in three weeks!! 😅👇 www.harpercollins.com/products/the...
Meredith Constant’s post saying she read an ARC of THE CROWN’S SILENCE—“a must-read.”
January 5, 2026 at 12:30 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
🤣
catconlan.net Catherine Partsch Conlan @catconlan.net · 3d
oh shit tomorrow is circle back day already
January 4, 2026 at 5:29 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
americanstudier.bsky.social
There’s a lot I don’t know about what 2026 might bring, but I promise you this: the #ScholarSunday threads will continue! Here’s my 257th of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy! 🗃️

blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 257 (1/4/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
There’s a lot I don’t know about what 2026 (or today) might bring, but I can promise you this: the #ScholarSunday threads will continue! Here’s my 257th of public scholarly writing, podcast episodes, ...
blackwhiteandread.com
January 4, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
drkarrschmidt.bsky.social
Going into day 3 of 2026 like
January 3, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
paleofuture.bsky.social
The Democratic Party's pitch to voters in 2026: A more thorough and orderly regime change war
wassermanschultz.house.gov Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz @wassermanschultz.house.gov · 4d
My statement on the capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, and need for a transition to democracy:
January 3, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
nikitagill.bsky.social
Ever relevant, this poem by Mary Oliver, especially today.
OF THE EMPIRE We will be known as a culture that feared death and adored power, that tried to vanquish insecurity for the few and cared little for the penury of the many. We will be known as a culture that taught and rewarded the amassing of things, that spoke little if at all about the quality of life for people (other people), for dogs, for rivers. All the world, in our eyes, they will say, was a commodity. And they will say that this structure was held together politically, which it was, and they will say also that our politics was no more than an apparatus to accommodate the feelings of the heart, and that the heart, in those days, was small, and hard, and full of meanness.
January 3, 2026 at 2:02 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
2026, SLOW DOWN already. We haven’t recovered from the horrors Trump unleashed in 2025… FFS.
audrelawdamercy.bsky.social Barred and Boujee aka Madiba Dennie @audrelawdamercy.bsky.social · 4d
Am I...am I understanding correctly that while we were sleeping the Trump administration attacked Venezuela and kidnapped its president and is saying Venezuela's president (and *not the US president, never that, no) is going to stand trial for crimes
January 3, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
asherelbein.bsky.social
I don't recall off hand who made the point about AI being, more than anything else, a machine for displacing responsibility. That increasingly looks like its most reliable feature
ketanjoshi.co Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 4d
This is a thread of major media outlets falsely anthropomorphising the "Grok" chatbot program and in doing so, actively and directly removing responsibility and accountability from individual people working at X who created a child pornography generator (Elon Musk, Nikita Bier etc)

#1: Reuters
Grok says safeguard lapses led to images of 'minors in minimal clothing' on X By Reuters January 2, 20267:40 PM GMT+1Updated 1 hour ago Illustration shows xAI and Grok logos xAI and Grok logos are seen in this illustration taken, February 16, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Jan 2 (Reuters) - Elon Musk's xAI artificial intelligence chatbot Grok said on Friday lapses in safeguards had resulted in "images depicting minors in minimal clothing" on social media platform X and that improvements were being made to prevent this. Screenshots shared by users on X showed Grok's public media tab filled with images that users said had been altered when they uploaded photos and prompted the bot to alter them. "There are isolated cases where users prompted for and received AI images depicting minors in minimal clothing," Grok said in a post on X. "xAI has safeguards, but improvements are ongoing to block such requests entirely." "As noted, we've identified lapses in safeguards and are urgently fixing them — CSAM is illegal and prohibited," Grok said, referring to Child Sexual Abuse Material. Grok gave no further details. When contacted by Reuters for comment by email, xAI replied with the message "Legacy Media Lies". In a separate reply to a user on X on Thursday, Grok said most cases could be prevented through advanced filters and monitoring although it said "no system is 100% foolproof," adding that xAI was prioritising improvements and reviewing details shared by users.
January 2, 2026 at 8:11 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
ceaubin.com
NEW TGS EPISODE: Brooke Newman @brookenewman.bsky.social and I dig up some dirt on James II and remind everybody that our modern monarchs have inherited a lot more than goodwill.
January 2, 2026 at 4:15 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
pgourevitch.bsky.social
universalize this please
evacide.bsky.social evacide @evacide.bsky.social · 5d
If you are a resident of California, the state now has a portal where you can demand deletion of your personal data from 500+ registered data brokers with a single request form, for free.

consumer.drop.privacy.ca.gov
consumer.drop.privacy.ca.gov
January 2, 2026 at 3:35 AM
brookenewman.bsky.social
Cover reveals are the best!! Check out the important new book coming soon from @unlawfulentries.bsky.social!!
unlawfulentries.bsky.social Anna O. Law @unlawfulentries.bsky.social · 5d
Cover reveal. It's about how & why colonies/states controlled international & domestic migration until 1888, why in the late 19th c the feds took over, & what it was like for politically disfavored groups to live under that arrangement of power. You can't understand voluntary migration history 1/
Cream colored book cover of Anna O. Law's Migration and the Origins of American Citizenship--African Americans, Native Americans, and Immigrants with a human figure behind an American flag
January 2, 2026 at 2:01 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
Out today on THIS GUY SUCKED pod! @thisguysucked.com @ceaubin.com
A screenshot of this guy sucked podcast episode on James II with Brooke Newman
January 1, 2026 at 3:32 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
THE CROWN’S SILENCE is available for pre-order on Audible and narrated by the fabulously talented Allyson Johnson!! It will be released on Jan 20th, a week before the hardback. 🥳 Happy New Year, and cheers to all the great books 📚 coming out in 2026!!
The audible home page for the Crown’s Silence, narrated by Allyson Johnson A headshot of the FAB voice actor Allyson Johnson The audible home page for the Crown’ Silence
January 1, 2026 at 3:03 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
My NYE 🥳 cocktail 🍸 plans. What are yours?

BITTER FRENCH
1 oz gin
¼ oz Campari
½ oz lemon juice
½ oz simple syrup
1–2 oz bubbly to top + grapefruit twist

OLD CUBAN
1½ oz aged rum
¾ oz lime juice
½ oz simple syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
6–8 mint leaves
1–2 oz bubbly to top + mint
two champagne flues on a tray with BITTER FRENCH cocktails A coupe with an OLD CUBAN cocktail
December 31, 2025 at 6:36 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
I made Greek lemon roasted chicken and potatoes. It smells amazing.
A casserole dish with chicken, potatoes, onion, lemon slices, Kalamata olives
December 31, 2025 at 12:26 AM
brookenewman.bsky.social
The UK-edition of THE CROWN’S SILENCE is currently 40% off—and the sale ends tomorrow!!
Code: BOXINGDAY40 Available via the publisher’s website 👇
harpercollins.co.uk/products/the...
Cover of the UK-edition of THE CROWN’S SILENCE with the Boxing Day 40% off code
December 30, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
brookenewman.bsky.social
Barnes & Noble has a pre-order sale for rewards members, from now 12/30 until Thursday 1/1. My book THE CROWN’S SILENCE is currently 25% off with code: PREORDER25. Please spread the word! www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-crowns...
Barnes and Noble pre-order advertisement for THE CROWN’S SILENCE
December 30, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
hystericalblkns.bsky.social
Thanks to everyone who read and shared the piece I wrote that was published in the G & M. I had no gift links but if you want to read it and cannot access it, now you can.

web.archive.org/web/20251228...
Opinion: The murder that led to an uprising around the world
The murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, proved, again, there are people to whom seemingly anything can be done with impunity
web.archive.org
December 30, 2025 at 11:22 AM
brookenewman.bsky.social
Barnes & Noble has a pre-order sale for rewards members, from now 12/30 until Thursday 1/1. My book THE CROWN’S SILENCE is currently 25% off with code: PREORDER25. Please spread the word! www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-crowns...
Barnes and Noble pre-order advertisement for THE CROWN’S SILENCE
December 30, 2025 at 12:49 PM
brookenewman.bsky.social
Enjoying a 🍸

SPICY DEAD LADY 🌶️
¾ oz. mezcal
¾ oz. Aperol
¾ oz. falernum
¾ oz. fresh lime juice
2 dashes habanero shrub (I used Bittermens Hellfire)

METHOD
add all ingredients to shaker/ shake with ice until chilled / fine strain into coupe / garnish with a lime wheel or lime twist
An orange-colored spicy dead lady cocktail in a coupe in front of a book case
December 30, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Reposted by Brooke Newman
ceaubin.com
THIS THURSDAY ON TGS: Brooke Newman @brookenewman.bsky.social and I talk monarchy, slavery, and why some people still get free passes more than three hundred years later.

Now accepting guesses on the Guy!
Man in armor with his face scribbled out
December 29, 2025 at 12:42 PM