Fred Kaplan
@fredmkaplan.bsky.social
Slate's War Stories columnist; author of The Bomb, Dark Territory, The Insurgents, 1959, Daydream Believers, The Wizards of Armageddon, and--most recently--A Capital Calamity (a novel); also jazz critic for Tracking Angle.
Pete Hegseth declares war on the Military-Industrial Complex. Guess who's likely to win. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Pete Hegseth Takes On the Military-Industrial Complex. (Guess Who’s Likely to Win?)
Trump’s secretary of defense has embraced a great idea—but he seems to be the worst person to implement it.
slate.com
November 8, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Pete Hegseth declares war on the Military-Industrial Complex. Guess who's likely to win. slate.com/news-and-pol...
My obit piece on the rise and fall of Dick Cheney. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Where Things Really Went Wrong for Dick Cheney
He died an irrelevant, all-but-forgotten figure—and mostly had himself to blame.
slate.com
November 4, 2025 at 10:03 PM
My obit piece on the rise and fall of Dick Cheney. slate.com/news-and-pol...
I'm very proud and pleased to have written the liner notes for the Criterion Collection's Blu-ray/4K disc of Howard Hughes' 1930 war film, "Hell's Angels." www.criterion.com/films/28987-...
Hell’s Angels
A high-flying feat of adventure filmmaking and a testament to the audacious, spare-no-expense vision of Howard Hughes, this landmark aviation epic remains exhilarating both for its daredevil aerial se...
www.criterion.com
November 3, 2025 at 2:59 PM
I'm very proud and pleased to have written the liner notes for the Criterion Collection's Blu-ray/4K disc of Howard Hughes' 1930 war film, "Hell's Angels." www.criterion.com/films/28987-...
The bad news for the Gaza ceasefire is it requires Trump's attention to sustain it. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Peace in Gaza May Now, Unfortunately, Come Down to Trump
He still doesn't realize that signing a peace deal is the easiest part of peace.
slate.com
November 3, 2025 at 1:40 PM
The bad news for the Gaza ceasefire is it requires Trump's attention to sustain it. slate.com/news-and-pol...
I’m now with the Lyceum Agency. To book me for a speaking gig, contact nancy@lyceumagency.com .
October 31, 2025 at 2:07 PM
I’m now with the Lyceum Agency. To book me for a speaking gig, contact nancy@lyceumagency.com .
Trump's remarks on nuclear testing--threat, nonsense, or both? slate.com/news-and-pol...
What to Make of Trump’s Wild Nuclear Threat
Let's break this down, sentence by sentence.
slate.com
October 30, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Trump's remarks on nuclear testing--threat, nonsense, or both? slate.com/news-and-pol...
next.frame.io/share/424d4c...
On CNN Today, I counter the Pentagon’s critique of “A House of Dynamite” and comment a little on Hegseth’s DoD.
On CNN Today, I counter the Pentagon’s critique of “A House of Dynamite” and comment a little on Hegseth’s DoD.
Fred Kaplan.mp4 - Fred Kaplan - Frame.io
next.frame.io
October 28, 2025 at 1:56 PM
next.frame.io/share/424d4c...
On CNN Today, I counter the Pentagon’s critique of “A House of Dynamite” and comment a little on Hegseth’s DoD.
On CNN Today, I counter the Pentagon’s critique of “A House of Dynamite” and comment a little on Hegseth’s DoD.
I've been writing about nukes for >40 years. Here's what I think about the movie "A House of Dynamite." (Short version: It's very realistic.) slate.com/culture/2025...
I’ve Been Writing About Nuclear War for 40 Years. No Movie Has Shaken Me Like This One.
A House of Dynamite is terrifying. It’s also shockingly realistic.
slate.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:29 PM
I've been writing about nukes for >40 years. Here's what I think about the movie "A House of Dynamite." (Short version: It's very realistic.) slate.com/culture/2025...
Has Trump finally learned his lesson about Putin's real intentions? slate.com/news-and-pol...
Every Now and Then, Trump Seems to Have a Flash of Insight About Putin
Has he learned his lesson this time?
slate.com
October 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Has Trump finally learned his lesson about Putin's real intentions? slate.com/news-and-pol...
Has Trump finally learned his lesson about Putin's real intentions? slate.com/news-and-pol...
Every Now and Then, Trump Seems to Have a Flash of Insight About Putin
Has he learned his lesson this time?
slate.com
October 23, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Has Trump finally learned his lesson about Putin's real intentions? slate.com/news-and-pol...
What Trump is really doing in the Caribbean. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Why Is the U.S. Sinking Boats Off Venezuela? There Are More Questions Than Answers.
There are way too many unanswered questions.
slate.com
October 21, 2025 at 9:52 PM
What Trump is really doing in the Caribbean. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Are any “conservatives” going to object to Trump tearing down the East Wing of the White House, despite his saying that he wouldn’t. Imagine the outcry if Clinton, Obama or Biden had done this. Hard to imagine the Bushes, Ford, Nixon—ANY OTHER president doing this.
October 21, 2025 at 1:50 AM
Are any “conservatives” going to object to Trump tearing down the East Wing of the White House, despite his saying that he wouldn’t. Imagine the outcry if Clinton, Obama or Biden had done this. Hard to imagine the Bushes, Ford, Nixon—ANY OTHER president doing this.
Why Biden didn't get the Gaza peace deal that Trump got--though, then again, what Trump got wasn't quite a peace deal either. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Why Couldn’t Biden Get the Results Trump Just Did in the Middle East?
The question is a bit premature.
slate.com
October 16, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Why Biden didn't get the Gaza peace deal that Trump got--though, then again, what Trump got wasn't quite a peace deal either. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Reposted by Fred Kaplan
Hear @fredmkaplan.bsky.social's analysis on the ceasefire and what comes next. www.wnyc.org/story/what-c...
What Comes Next for Israel and Gaza? | The Brian Lehrer Show | WNYC
Slate's War Stories columnist Fred Kaplan offers analysis on what comes next for Israel and Gaza.
www.wnyc.org
October 13, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Hear @fredmkaplan.bsky.social's analysis on the ceasefire and what comes next. www.wnyc.org/story/what-c...
I’m on @BrianLehrer show @WNYC at around 11:40am today (Mon, 10/13) to talk about the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.
October 13, 2025 at 12:57 PM
I’m on @BrianLehrer show @WNYC at around 11:40am today (Mon, 10/13) to talk about the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.
How Trump engineered the ceasefire, and why he probably can't drive the peace train much farther. slate.com/news-and-pol...
The Real Reason Trump Forced Netanyahu’s Hand on a Gaza Ceasefire
Trump made Netanyahu phone the Qatari emir to apologize for attacking his country and promising never to do it again.
slate.com
October 10, 2025 at 5:52 PM
How Trump engineered the ceasefire, and why he probably can't drive the peace train much farther. slate.com/news-and-pol...
Reposted by Fred Kaplan
10/7/55: 1st reading of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl (“I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness")
In 1957 Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Bookstore arrested for publishing it
More:
@thehighsign.bsky.social: slate.com/culture/2010...
@fredmkaplan.bsky.social: slate.com/news-and-pol...
In 1957 Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Bookstore arrested for publishing it
More:
@thehighsign.bsky.social: slate.com/culture/2010...
@fredmkaplan.bsky.social: slate.com/news-and-pol...
How "Howl" changed the world.
Howl may be the unlikeliest movie ever to come out of Sundance with national distribution: a translation of a poem—the substance, spirit, and cultural...
slate.com
October 8, 2025 at 12:23 AM
10/7/55: 1st reading of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl (“I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness")
In 1957 Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Bookstore arrested for publishing it
More:
@thehighsign.bsky.social: slate.com/culture/2010...
@fredmkaplan.bsky.social: slate.com/news-and-pol...
In 1957 Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Bookstore arrested for publishing it
More:
@thehighsign.bsky.social: slate.com/culture/2010...
@fredmkaplan.bsky.social: slate.com/news-and-pol...
When Trump says Republicans believe in the rule of law, not mobs, does he think people don’t remember Jan 6 and his blanket pardoning of everyone arrested, including the violent? More alarming: could he be right—have a lot of people forgotten (or chosen to forget)?
October 7, 2025 at 2:49 AM
When Trump says Republicans believe in the rule of law, not mobs, does he think people don’t remember Jan 6 and his blanket pardoning of everyone arrested, including the violent? More alarming: could he be right—have a lot of people forgotten (or chosen to forget)?
The unmistakable signs of Trump's emerging police state. slate.com/news-and-pol...
It’s Hard to Overstate How Disturbing This Trump Directive Is
It’s the clearest statement of the president’s intentions that we’ve seen so far.
slate.com
October 6, 2025 at 7:49 PM
The unmistakable signs of Trump's emerging police state. slate.com/news-and-pol...
It’s time for men and women with stars on their shoulders and rows of ribbons on their chests, active-duty and retired, to start speaking out about the unlawful orders that await them and the lawless chaos that awaits us all.
September 30, 2025 at 6:26 PM
It’s time for men and women with stars on their shoulders and rows of ribbons on their chests, active-duty and retired, to start speaking out about the unlawful orders that await them and the lawless chaos that awaits us all.
Trump's speech to 500 generals & admirals was unhinged, rambling, repellent--but it also laid out a clear, frightening new mission for the US military: to defeat the "enemy from within" in our cities. Will anyone in power resist him? slate.com/news-and-pol...
Trump Just Gave the Military an Extremely Sinister Mission
The U.S. president just told military officers that one of their main goals will be to defeat “the enemy from within.”
slate.com
September 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Trump's speech to 500 generals & admirals was unhinged, rambling, repellent--but it also laid out a clear, frightening new mission for the US military: to defeat the "enemy from within" in our cities. Will anyone in power resist him? slate.com/news-and-pol...
This may be the most repellent speech ever given by a president.
September 30, 2025 at 2:10 PM
This may be the most repellent speech ever given by a president.
Trump is rambling on about tariffs, his polls, Hunter's pardon, Biden's terrible signature...who does he think he's talking to?
September 30, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Trump is rambling on about tariffs, his polls, Hunter's pardon, Biden's terrible signature...who does he think he's talking to?
Such a repellent speech.
September 30, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Such a repellent speech.