Erin Cunningham
@erinmcunningham.bsky.social
🧿 former Mideast editor + correspondent at WashPost, now in DC. Previously: Cairo, Kabul, Gaza, Istanbul, Baghdad.
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
SCOOP: ICE is asking Social Security for peoples' in-person appointment dates and times, and SSA staff are being told to give it to them. From me + @leahfeiger.bsky.social + @zoeschiffer.bsky.social @wired.com
wired.com/story/social...
wired.com/story/social...
Social Security Workers Are Being Told to Hand Over Appointment Details to ICE
The recent request goes against decades of precedent, and puts noncitizens at further risk of immigration enforcement actions.
wired.com
February 13, 2026 at 8:19 PM
SCOOP: ICE is asking Social Security for peoples' in-person appointment dates and times, and SSA staff are being told to give it to them. From me + @leahfeiger.bsky.social + @zoeschiffer.bsky.social @wired.com
wired.com/story/social...
wired.com/story/social...
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social wrote The Washington Post's WorldView column for its flagship newsletter on international affairs. It had around half a million subscribers when management eliminated it — and Ishaan's position — last week. You can continue to follow his work by signing up here ⬇️
Dear friends on Bluesky, it's been an overwhelming week since the mass layoff at the Post. I'll be continuing the work and would be so grateful if you sign up here to keep up with my future journalism. docs.google.com/forms/d/1dlh...
Ishaan Tharoor — Follow my work
Please share your email address so I can keep you posted.
docs.google.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:52 PM
@ishaantharoor.bsky.social wrote The Washington Post's WorldView column for its flagship newsletter on international affairs. It had around half a million subscribers when management eliminated it — and Ishaan's position — last week. You can continue to follow his work by signing up here ⬇️
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
Was going through some materials accumulated over my many years at The Washington Post, and I was struck by these words of wisdom from the legendary Eugene Meyer, particularly (in light of recent events) the fifth graf.
February 13, 2026 at 4:20 PM
Was going through some materials accumulated over my many years at The Washington Post, and I was struck by these words of wisdom from the legendary Eugene Meyer, particularly (in light of recent events) the fifth graf.
"We were the scrappy overnight newsroom of a major global media organization trying like hell to honor its reputation and give our readers a full picture of the world." @bartschaneman.bsky.social on The Washington Post eliminating its hub in Seoul. therepublicofletters.substack.com/p/we-were-a-...
We Were a Breaking News Team
On Losing My Job at the Washington Post
therepublicofletters.substack.com
February 13, 2026 at 3:16 PM
"We were the scrappy overnight newsroom of a major global media organization trying like hell to honor its reputation and give our readers a full picture of the world." @bartschaneman.bsky.social on The Washington Post eliminating its hub in Seoul. therepublicofletters.substack.com/p/we-were-a-...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
News: The top-secret whistleblower complaint against Tulsi Gabbard is related to a conversation intercepted last spring in which two foreign nationals discussed Jared Kushner, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
Gabbard Whistleblower Complaint Based on Intercepted Conversation About Jared Kushner
The substance of the conversation, which covered in part issues related to Iran, isn’t known.
www.wsj.com
February 12, 2026 at 9:00 PM
News: The top-secret whistleblower complaint against Tulsi Gabbard is related to a conversation intercepted last spring in which two foreign nationals discussed Jared Kushner, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
If only you still had a foreign desk to, well, know these things...
Correction: A previous version of this post misidentified the South Caucasus as belonging to Russia. The region, made up of territory in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan, is not part of Russia. We deleted the previous post.
February 12, 2026 at 11:01 AM
If only you still had a foreign desk to, well, know these things...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
In so much of the analysis on Lebanon--be it on reconstruction or disarmament, we rarely get to hear the voices of those from South Lebanon. Deeply grateful to @timep.bsky.social Bassem Sabry Fellow Jad El Dilati for centering these perspectives in his latest analysis.
Don't miss it.
Don't miss it.
NEW: Fourteen months since the ceasefire, large parts of South Lebanon remain in ruins. In his first piece for @timep.bsky.social, Bassem Sabry Fellow Jad El Dilati speaks with residents and brings their stories into the policy discussion on reconstruction: timep.org/2026/02/12/s...
February 12, 2026 at 5:23 PM
In so much of the analysis on Lebanon--be it on reconstruction or disarmament, we rarely get to hear the voices of those from South Lebanon. Deeply grateful to @timep.bsky.social Bassem Sabry Fellow Jad El Dilati for centering these perspectives in his latest analysis.
Don't miss it.
Don't miss it.
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
BREAKING
Judge Boasberg ORDERS the Trump admin to facilitate the return of the more than 100 men spirited out of the country last year without notice or a hearing.
Plaintiffs may also submit habeas petitions from abroad, he says.
Doc buff.ly/rccakD7
Judge Boasberg ORDERS the Trump admin to facilitate the return of the more than 100 men spirited out of the country last year without notice or a hearing.
Plaintiffs may also submit habeas petitions from abroad, he says.
Doc buff.ly/rccakD7
February 12, 2026 at 4:04 PM
BREAKING
Judge Boasberg ORDERS the Trump admin to facilitate the return of the more than 100 men spirited out of the country last year without notice or a hearing.
Plaintiffs may also submit habeas petitions from abroad, he says.
Doc buff.ly/rccakD7
Judge Boasberg ORDERS the Trump admin to facilitate the return of the more than 100 men spirited out of the country last year without notice or a hearing.
Plaintiffs may also submit habeas petitions from abroad, he says.
Doc buff.ly/rccakD7
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
A former Washpost reporter learns that former CEO Will Lewis was paid $3 million.
By today’s corporate standards, that’s not an outlier salary for a company that size.
It is a lot to pay, though, for someone so flawed — ethically and strategically.
geneweingarten.substack.com/p/three-mill...
By today’s corporate standards, that’s not an outlier salary for a company that size.
It is a lot to pay, though, for someone so flawed — ethically and strategically.
geneweingarten.substack.com/p/three-mill...
February 12, 2026 at 2:44 PM
A former Washpost reporter learns that former CEO Will Lewis was paid $3 million.
By today’s corporate standards, that’s not an outlier salary for a company that size.
It is a lot to pay, though, for someone so flawed — ethically and strategically.
geneweingarten.substack.com/p/three-mill...
By today’s corporate standards, that’s not an outlier salary for a company that size.
It is a lot to pay, though, for someone so flawed — ethically and strategically.
geneweingarten.substack.com/p/three-mill...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
He literally says in this clip that ICE will keep in Minnesota “quick reaction forces” — a military term — to go after “agitators.” Remember that those on the ground in MPLS have spent more than a week trying to tell everyone that Trump’s prior “deescalation” was a ruse and ICE is still operational
Homan: "Operation Metro Surge is ending. In the next week, we're going to deploy the officers here on detail back to their home stations or to other areas of the country where they're needed."
February 12, 2026 at 2:44 PM
He literally says in this clip that ICE will keep in Minnesota “quick reaction forces” — a military term — to go after “agitators.” Remember that those on the ground in MPLS have spent more than a week trying to tell everyone that Trump’s prior “deescalation” was a ruse and ICE is still operational
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
Breaking: House passes new version of SAVE Act, worst voter suppression bill considered by Congress. Could disenfranchise:
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
The GOP’s “show us your papers” bill Is the latest effort to help Trump take over elections
“If the SAVE Act were to pass, it would be the worst voter suppression law that Congress has ever enacted"
www.motherjones.com
February 11, 2026 at 11:44 PM
Breaking: House passes new version of SAVE Act, worst voter suppression bill considered by Congress. Could disenfranchise:
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
-21 million Americans w/out access to citizenship papers
-69 mil married women who took partner’s name
-21 mil w/out valid drivers license
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
Mahmoud Hammad sifts through the rubble of his Gaza home, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike over two years ago.
A father in Gaza searches for his family's bones in the rubble of their home
Mahmoud Hammad sifts through the rubble of his Gaza home, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike over two years ago.
bit.ly
February 11, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Mahmoud Hammad sifts through the rubble of his Gaza home, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike over two years ago.
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
For years, the first newsletter I read after waking up & getting the kids to school was @ishaantharoor.bsky.social’s WorldView for the Washington Post. Nothing else in mainstream US media gave readers foreign perspectives on US news. Jeff Bezos and Will Lewis killed it. Today was its last edition.
February 11, 2026 at 1:23 PM
For years, the first newsletter I read after waking up & getting the kids to school was @ishaantharoor.bsky.social’s WorldView for the Washington Post. Nothing else in mainstream US media gave readers foreign perspectives on US news. Jeff Bezos and Will Lewis killed it. Today was its last edition.
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
One of every thousand American residents has been taken into custody by ICE in the last year.
A stunning detail the ICE chief shared in this hearing that was supposed to be a brag, except it isn't: ICE has arrested 379,000 people between Jan. 2025-Jan. 2026 -- but only 8,700 were suspected gang members or known suspected terrorists.
That's 2%! www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...
That's 2%! www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...
Congresswoman Uses Simple Math To Show How Broken ICE Is
www.huffpost.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:11 PM
One of every thousand American residents has been taken into custody by ICE in the last year.
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
the most important thing to understand about the Ring Cam ad that says they help find dogs is: we are all dogs
! @weratedogs.com com goes beyond what you've already heard about the Ring Cam ads and includes excellent reporting about ICE and, less surprisingly, about finding lost dogs
we need to talk about that Ring Super Bowl ad
February 10, 2026 at 8:30 PM
the most important thing to understand about the Ring Cam ad that says they help find dogs is: we are all dogs
Mackenzie Scott gave more in 2025 than Elon Musk, Larry Page, Larry Ellison and her ex-husband Jeff Bezos have in their lifetimes combined. www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...
America’s Top 25 Philanthropists — And The Richest Not On the List
MacKenzie Scott was the nation’s top philanthropist in 2025 and ranks third behind Warren Buffett and Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates in terms of lifetime giving.
www.forbes.com
February 10, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Mackenzie Scott gave more in 2025 than Elon Musk, Larry Page, Larry Ellison and her ex-husband Jeff Bezos have in their lifetimes combined. www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
This is why domestic "shuffle" flights between ICE detention centers have skyrocketed, much moreso than ICE deportation flights.
When you are moved to a different jurisdiction, you have to refile your habeas petition all over again. They want to wear people down so they'll give up on their cases.
When you are moved to a different jurisdiction, you have to refile your habeas petition all over again. They want to wear people down so they'll give up on their cases.
February 10, 2026 at 3:26 PM
This is why domestic "shuffle" flights between ICE detention centers have skyrocketed, much moreso than ICE deportation flights.
When you are moved to a different jurisdiction, you have to refile your habeas petition all over again. They want to wear people down so they'll give up on their cases.
When you are moved to a different jurisdiction, you have to refile your habeas petition all over again. They want to wear people down so they'll give up on their cases.
“A newspaper is—or ought to be—the opposite of an algorithm, a bastion of enlightened generalism in an era of hyperspecialization and personalized marketing … From now on, the Post will no longer accommodate the admirably omnivorous avidity of its best readers.” www.newyorker.com/books/page-t...
The End of Books Coverage at the Washington Post
Becca Rothfeld, a former critic at the Washington Post, on the death of the paper’s books section.
www.newyorker.com
February 10, 2026 at 3:03 PM
“A newspaper is—or ought to be—the opposite of an algorithm, a bastion of enlightened generalism in an era of hyperspecialization and personalized marketing … From now on, the Post will no longer accommodate the admirably omnivorous avidity of its best readers.” www.newyorker.com/books/page-t...
Couldn’t we just … not do this?
February 10, 2026 at 12:55 AM
Couldn’t we just … not do this?
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
“There was zero plan, except causing pain,” said one U.N. official about the Trump administration’s decision to stop funding the group with no notice or communication. “And that is not forgivable.”
(Published Dec. 2025)
(Published Dec. 2025)
After Trump Officials Cut Food Aid to Kenya, Children Starved to Death
“Brutal and traumatizing”: Interviews and a trove of internal documents show government officials and aid workers desperately tried to warn Trump advisers about impending disaster and death.
www.propublica.org
February 9, 2026 at 9:25 PM
“There was zero plan, except causing pain,” said one U.N. official about the Trump administration’s decision to stop funding the group with no notice or communication. “And that is not forgivable.”
(Published Dec. 2025)
(Published Dec. 2025)
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
In October, the biggest percentage increase in traffic any nonprofit site saw was at NepYork, a site that covers the Nepali community in New York City, where visits skyrocketed from around 20,000 to 289,000. www.niemanlab.org/2026/02/ice-...
ICE activity is pushing readers to nonprofit news sites that cover immigrant communities
From Somalis in Minneapolis to Nepalis in New York City, immigrant communities turn to trusted local news sources. Here's our regular ranking of the top 25 nonprofit news sites in the United States.
www.niemanlab.org
February 9, 2026 at 10:45 PM
In October, the biggest percentage increase in traffic any nonprofit site saw was at NepYork, a site that covers the Nepali community in New York City, where visits skyrocketed from around 20,000 to 289,000. www.niemanlab.org/2026/02/ice-...
As @postguild.bsky.social assesses the damage from last week’s layoffs, it turns out between 44% and 47.5% of the newsroom has been axed. It “may have been the biggest one-day wipeout of journalists in a generation.” washingtonian.com/2026/02/09/a...
Actually, the Washington Post Layoffs Were a Bigger Bloodbath Than You Thought - Washingtonian
The layoffs announced last week at the Washington Post were disfiguring to the esteemed news organization, with whole sections and departments—sports, books, staff photography—wiped away, and devastat...
washingtonian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:57 PM
As @postguild.bsky.social assesses the damage from last week’s layoffs, it turns out between 44% and 47.5% of the newsroom has been axed. It “may have been the biggest one-day wipeout of journalists in a generation.” washingtonian.com/2026/02/09/a...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
You can help cover rent, legal guidance, relocation to a new or safer country, and other urgent transition needs for former Washington Post international employees not covered by Guild protections, in places from Cairo to Mexico City. 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 9, 2026 at 5:27 PM
You can help cover rent, legal guidance, relocation to a new or safer country, and other urgent transition needs for former Washington Post international employees not covered by Guild protections, in places from Cairo to Mexico City. www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Reposted by Erin Cunningham
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 Erin Cunningham
1. Would like to ask for a big favor.
Would love for you to please follow two Iranian women reporters who were just laid off from the Washington Post.
I will link to their latest investigation in the post below, but please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social!!
Would love for you to please follow two Iranian women reporters who were just laid off from the Washington Post.
I will link to their latest investigation in the post below, but please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social!!
February 8, 2026 at 10:22 PM
1. Would like to ask for a big favor.
Would love for you to please follow two Iranian women reporters who were just laid off from the Washington Post.
I will link to their latest investigation in the post below, but please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social!!
Would love for you to please follow two Iranian women reporters who were just laid off from the Washington Post.
I will link to their latest investigation in the post below, but please follow @ntabrizy.bsky.social and @yjtorbati.bsky.social!!