Lora Kolodny
@lorak.bsky.social
reporter at cnbc.com. email: lora.kolodny@cnbc.com - ex-wsj, techcrunch & all over. i cover: elon musk cos. mostly tesla (some climate tech startups). my posts here are my own. optimistic on the inside. dm me on signal: lorakolodny.55
Pinned
Lora Kolodny
@lorak.bsky.social
· Nov 11
I report on Elon Musk & his companies at CNBC. If you work/ed for him and want to share your POV on his becoming "co-president," or anything else- let's talk on or off the record. Happy to answer q's about working w/ reporters. On signal: lorakolodny.55 (or DM me here and lmk how to get in touch.)
i was reading this because as a tech reporter, i've been getting a lot of pitches suggesting all out surveillance of youth and / or bans on their free expression and freedom of association online. and welp. a lot of these cite haidt's book.
2024 book review in Nature: "Two things need to be said after reading The Anxious Generation. First, this book is going to sell a lot of copies, because Jonathan Haidt is telling a scary story about children’s development that many parents are primed to believe... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness?
The evidence is equivocal on whether screen time is to blame for rising levels of teen depression and anxiety — and rising hysteria could distract us from tackling the real causes.
www.nature.com
February 16, 2026 at 1:59 AM
i was reading this because as a tech reporter, i've been getting a lot of pitches suggesting all out surveillance of youth and / or bans on their free expression and freedom of association online. and welp. a lot of these cite haidt's book.
2024 book review in Nature: "Two things need to be said after reading The Anxious Generation. First, this book is going to sell a lot of copies, because Jonathan Haidt is telling a scary story about children’s development that many parents are primed to believe... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness?
The evidence is equivocal on whether screen time is to blame for rising levels of teen depression and anxiety — and rising hysteria could distract us from tackling the real causes.
www.nature.com
February 16, 2026 at 1:54 AM
2024 book review in Nature: "Two things need to be said after reading The Anxious Generation. First, this book is going to sell a lot of copies, because Jonathan Haidt is telling a scary story about children’s development that many parents are primed to believe... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Reading American history will break your heart a thousand times but it will also fill you with such admiration and awe for all the people who were excluded from the protection of America’s founding principles and fought to promote, protect and expand them anyways
February 16, 2026 at 12:19 AM
Reading American history will break your heart a thousand times but it will also fill you with such admiration and awe for all the people who were excluded from the protection of America’s founding principles and fought to promote, protect and expand them anyways
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
I miss when you could post Brave Norman Rockwell Townsperson and the caption could be, like, “R.E.M was wrong to leave ‘Fretless’ off of Out of Time” instead of “The secret police should stop murdering people.”
February 15, 2026 at 8:56 PM
I miss when you could post Brave Norman Rockwell Townsperson and the caption could be, like, “R.E.M was wrong to leave ‘Fretless’ off of Out of Time” instead of “The secret police should stop murdering people.”
Kevin M. Kruse: “There's a lot here that's laughably dumb… ‘Scotts’ is a nice screwup, but the idea that the Irish were somehow a welcome part of the American origin story is hysterical… I want to dig into the suggestion that a diverse nation is somehow inherently a weak nation…”
Elon's racist little post made me mad enough to write about it at CAMPAIGN TRAILS.
Diversity Is Our Strength
This morning, Elon Musk – the world's richest man and a key ally to the president of the United States – posted the content below to the white nationalist chat room and CSAM emporium he owns
There's ...
campaign-trails.ghost.io
February 15, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Kevin M. Kruse: “There's a lot here that's laughably dumb… ‘Scotts’ is a nice screwup, but the idea that the Irish were somehow a welcome part of the American origin story is hysterical… I want to dig into the suggestion that a diverse nation is somehow inherently a weak nation…”
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Someone has sure already made this observation but the fact they can convert all those empty warehouses into prison camps means they could have converted them into housing, community centers, job training centers or, hell, libraries or schools all along. It’s always a matter of will not resources.
February 15, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Someone has sure already made this observation but the fact they can convert all those empty warehouses into prison camps means they could have converted them into housing, community centers, job training centers or, hell, libraries or schools all along. It’s always a matter of will not resources.
“Two independent analyses of social media content in the lead-up to the German federal election in 2025 have shown that extremist parties, in particular the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD), were disproportionately favored by X, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.”
Social biases help misinformation spread, but the problem deepens when political leaders break democratic norms and social media platforms are designed to amplify extreme content.
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Internet platforms must be held accountable for their actions
Multiple independent research institutions have recently and repeatedly sounded the alarm that democracy is in retreat worldwide. In the United States, a British academic has painstakingly recorded mo...
www.science.org
February 15, 2026 at 7:06 PM
“Two independent analyses of social media content in the lead-up to the German federal election in 2025 have shown that extremist parties, in particular the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD), were disproportionately favored by X, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.”
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
She said dress for the day you want to have and I respect it.
My 4yo been dressed in a full outfit with stockings and shoes since 9am.
Me: where are you going?
Her: just in case someone wants to take me to dinner.
Me: where are you going?
Her: just in case someone wants to take me to dinner.
February 15, 2026 at 6:56 PM
She said dress for the day you want to have and I respect it.
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Elon Musk, a pro-apartheid South African, may have come here believing the US was a bastion of English-Scots-Irish culture. (By the way, were the Irish welcomed by the English?)
My grandparents and so many others came here because of the promise of freedom, tolerance, equal rights, and opportunity.
My grandparents and so many others came here because of the promise of freedom, tolerance, equal rights, and opportunity.
February 15, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Elon Musk, a pro-apartheid South African, may have come here believing the US was a bastion of English-Scots-Irish culture. (By the way, were the Irish welcomed by the English?)
My grandparents and so many others came here because of the promise of freedom, tolerance, equal rights, and opportunity.
My grandparents and so many others came here because of the promise of freedom, tolerance, equal rights, and opportunity.
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Sadly, this isn’t even without precedent. Scarlett Johansson sued OpenAI in 2024, alleging that ChatGPT’s virtual assistant Sky was modeled on her voice.
February 15, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Sadly, this isn’t even without precedent. Scarlett Johansson sued OpenAI in 2024, alleging that ChatGPT’s virtual assistant Sky was modeled on her voice.
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
the scots-irish were scottish colonizers of ireland, who took irish land, instituted the plantations of ulster & came to america to do the same.
they were key in "opening up the frontier" (killing natives), which allowed english settlement in 🇺🇸 to follow.
that's the "culture" musk's referring to.
they were key in "opening up the frontier" (killing natives), which allowed english settlement in 🇺🇸 to follow.
that's the "culture" musk's referring to.
February 15, 2026 at 5:56 PM
the scots-irish were scottish colonizers of ireland, who took irish land, instituted the plantations of ulster & came to america to do the same.
they were key in "opening up the frontier" (killing natives), which allowed english settlement in 🇺🇸 to follow.
that's the "culture" musk's referring to.
they were key in "opening up the frontier" (killing natives), which allowed english settlement in 🇺🇸 to follow.
that's the "culture" musk's referring to.
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
The English Scots and Irish with their long history of getting along as one people
1/3 What Musk is really referring to here is, of course “race” - that construct that served to define the hierarchies of wealth & power structured by modern colonialism. Like other far right racists though, he uses the word “culture” as a seemingly less pernicious synonym.
February 15, 2026 at 4:05 PM
The English Scots and Irish with their long history of getting along as one people
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
You can understand media consolidation into the hands of the very wealthy not just as a product of wealth concentration but also as a means to defend it, with Bezos at the Post being the most obvious example
The pace at which US wealth concentration is rising is simply staggering
The concentration of AI wealth into the hands of a few tech barons + plutocratic capture ==> unchartered territory
The concentration of AI wealth into the hands of a few tech barons + plutocratic capture ==> unchartered territory
February 15, 2026 at 3:34 PM
You can understand media consolidation into the hands of the very wealthy not just as a product of wealth concentration but also as a means to defend it, with Bezos at the Post being the most obvious example
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
traveling back to 2016 to tell people that the Teslas still won't actually drive themselves ten years later, but check out what Elon will be delivering
We must speak plainly about the agenda Elon Musk & other MAGA leaders are pushing. It’s white nationalism.
There’s no room for Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native, Jewish or all other Americans in Musk’s monocultural vision.
Multiculturalism is superior. We can’t allow Musk & others to end it.
There’s no room for Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native, Jewish or all other Americans in Musk’s monocultural vision.
Multiculturalism is superior. We can’t allow Musk & others to end it.
February 15, 2026 at 3:47 PM
traveling back to 2016 to tell people that the Teslas still won't actually drive themselves ten years later, but check out what Elon will be delivering
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
More on these full-position climate fellow positions here.
February 15, 2026 at 3:42 AM
More on these full-position climate fellow positions here.
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Best commentary I've seen on the repeal of the endangerment finding:
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
Trump Administration Announces That We Don’t Know Where the Sun Goes at Night
After deciding carbon dioxide does no harm, it was the logical next move.
www.theatlantic.com
February 15, 2026 at 5:45 AM
Best commentary I've seen on the repeal of the endangerment finding:
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
A feature in Nature examines the research about aphantasia, which is the experience of people with no mental imagery, and how it could offer a window into consciousness. #Neuroskyence 🧪
Many people have no mental imagery. What’s going on in their brains?
People with aphantasia are offering a window into consciousness.
go.nature.com
February 15, 2026 at 2:09 AM
A feature in Nature examines the research about aphantasia, which is the experience of people with no mental imagery, and how it could offer a window into consciousness. #Neuroskyence 🧪
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
When an immigration agent shot Julio C. Sosa-Celis in the leg in Minneapolis, touching off hours of tense protests, the Trump administration rushed to sell a version of events that demonized the wounded man and defended the agent.
by Friday, it had fully unraveled.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/14/u...
by Friday, it had fully unraveled.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/14/u...
ICE Tried to Justify a Minneapolis Shooting. Its Story Unraveled.
www.nytimes.com
February 15, 2026 at 12:35 PM
When an immigration agent shot Julio C. Sosa-Celis in the leg in Minneapolis, touching off hours of tense protests, the Trump administration rushed to sell a version of events that demonized the wounded man and defended the agent.
by Friday, it had fully unraveled.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/14/u...
by Friday, it had fully unraveled.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/14/u...
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
“We didn’t go in thinking we were going to find so many instances of really forcible family separation... Women would come in just sobbing, saying they weren’t even asked if they had kids.”
“We were all crying on the plane...thinking about our children” –mother separated from her 5-year-old child
“We were all crying on the plane...thinking about our children” –mother separated from her 5-year-old child
Leading @huffpost.com this morning.
Parents are getting deported without having any idea where their kids are. www.huffpost.com/entry/parent...
Parents are getting deported without having any idea where their kids are. www.huffpost.com/entry/parent...
February 15, 2026 at 4:52 AM
“We didn’t go in thinking we were going to find so many instances of really forcible family separation... Women would come in just sobbing, saying they weren’t even asked if they had kids.”
“We were all crying on the plane...thinking about our children” –mother separated from her 5-year-old child
“We were all crying on the plane...thinking about our children” –mother separated from her 5-year-old child
rain by tim seibles
February 15, 2026 at 4:21 AM
rain by tim seibles
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
One hundred years ago, in the 1920's, a rising German far-right movement was looking to the US as a model of juridical technologies of racial oppression. Today, in the 2020's...
Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the party supported by JD Vance and Elon Musk, are now looking to ICE in the US for inspiration and saying Germany needs an ICE of its own. www.politico.eu/article/euro...
European far-right parties push for ICE-style police
Fringe figures want to follow the Trump playbook for tackling unauthorized migration.
www.politico.eu
February 15, 2026 at 4:05 AM
One hundred years ago, in the 1920's, a rising German far-right movement was looking to the US as a model of juridical technologies of racial oppression. Today, in the 2020's...
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Our story @chicagotribune.com: Chicago teen Ofelia Torres, whose father was detained by ICE while she fought cancer, dies. www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/14/c...
February 15, 2026 at 2:19 AM
Our story @chicagotribune.com: Chicago teen Ofelia Torres, whose father was detained by ICE while she fought cancer, dies. www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/14/c...
Cuba’s government is facing its biggest test in decades after Trump cut it off from Venezuelan oil, and threatened tariffs against anyone supplying it.
“The Cuban government is not going to submit,” said Helen Yaffe, prof. of LatAm political economy at Univ. of Glasgow. www.cnbc.com/2026/02/14/c...
“The Cuban government is not going to submit,” said Helen Yaffe, prof. of LatAm political economy at Univ. of Glasgow. www.cnbc.com/2026/02/14/c...
What's next for Cuba? Trump turns the screws as the island runs out of jet fuel
Cuba’s government appears to be on the brink of economic collapse amid a worsening energy crisis.
www.cnbc.com
February 15, 2026 at 1:14 AM
Cuba’s government is facing its biggest test in decades after Trump cut it off from Venezuelan oil, and threatened tariffs against anyone supplying it.
“The Cuban government is not going to submit,” said Helen Yaffe, prof. of LatAm political economy at Univ. of Glasgow. www.cnbc.com/2026/02/14/c...
“The Cuban government is not going to submit,” said Helen Yaffe, prof. of LatAm political economy at Univ. of Glasgow. www.cnbc.com/2026/02/14/c...
Reposted by Lora Kolodny
Measles is a bellwether. Because it’s the most contagious vaccine-preventable disease, when vaccination rates drop, it’s the first to start spreading.
Now we’ve got mumps rolling up.
Expect more.
This is just the beginning of RFK Jr.’s successful infectious disease reintroduction plan.
Now we’ve got mumps rolling up.
Expect more.
This is just the beginning of RFK Jr.’s successful infectious disease reintroduction plan.
Maryland health officials warn providers about an upsurge in mumps cases
Maryland health officials are warning about an uptick in cases of mumps.
www.thebanner.com
February 14, 2026 at 11:34 PM
Measles is a bellwether. Because it’s the most contagious vaccine-preventable disease, when vaccination rates drop, it’s the first to start spreading.
Now we’ve got mumps rolling up.
Expect more.
This is just the beginning of RFK Jr.’s successful infectious disease reintroduction plan.
Now we’ve got mumps rolling up.
Expect more.
This is just the beginning of RFK Jr.’s successful infectious disease reintroduction plan.
if you post criticism about my work that is informed & all - happy to hear from you. will take feedback seriously. if you are posting in a manner designed to drum up harassment of me i’ll probably just block. 🤷🏻♀️ just lady reporter on the interwebs stuff not personal.
February 15, 2026 at 12:19 AM
if you post criticism about my work that is informed & all - happy to hear from you. will take feedback seriously. if you are posting in a manner designed to drum up harassment of me i’ll probably just block. 🤷🏻♀️ just lady reporter on the interwebs stuff not personal.