Kathleen McLaughlin
@kemc.bsky.social
Author of BLOOD MONEY
Journalist, found all over
https://kemc.substack.com/
https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Kathleen-McLaughlin/179283499
Journalist, found all over
https://kemc.substack.com/
https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Kathleen-McLaughlin/179283499
Pinned
Kathleen McLaughlin
@kemc.bsky.social
· May 30
BBC World Service - The Documentary, America: The human plasma factory
Kathleen McLaughlin investigates the multibillion-dollar global plasma industry
www.bbc.co.uk
Did you know payday loans wither when plasma centers open? Check put my new radio documentary for BBC World Service here www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
It's becoming chillingly clear: an administration that gleefully dismantled USAID and consigned countless people to slow death by starvation and preventable disease will not hesitate to inflict hunger on tens of millions of Americans by cutting off SNAP funds.
October 28, 2025 at 2:10 PM
It's becoming chillingly clear: an administration that gleefully dismantled USAID and consigned countless people to slow death by starvation and preventable disease will not hesitate to inflict hunger on tens of millions of Americans by cutting off SNAP funds.
This is going to be fun! Read my interview with Leah here and get yourselves to her book talks substack.com/home/post/p-...
September 30, 2025 at 11:45 PM
This is going to be fun! Read my interview with Leah here and get yourselves to her book talks substack.com/home/post/p-...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
Hey Montana friends, this is next week!
Bozeman - Mon 10/6 at the Country Bookshelf w/ @betsygainesquammen.bsky.social
Helena - Tues 10/7 at Montana Book Co. w/ @kemc.bsky.social
Missoula - Wed 10/8 at Fact & Fiction w/ Lee & Jule Banville
Hamilton - Thurs 10/9 at Chapter One w/ Russ Lawrence
Bozeman - Mon 10/6 at the Country Bookshelf w/ @betsygainesquammen.bsky.social
Helena - Tues 10/7 at Montana Book Co. w/ @kemc.bsky.social
Missoula - Wed 10/8 at Fact & Fiction w/ Lee & Jule Banville
Hamilton - Thurs 10/9 at Chapter One w/ Russ Lawrence
September 29, 2025 at 10:12 PM
Hey Montana friends, this is next week!
Bozeman - Mon 10/6 at the Country Bookshelf w/ @betsygainesquammen.bsky.social
Helena - Tues 10/7 at Montana Book Co. w/ @kemc.bsky.social
Missoula - Wed 10/8 at Fact & Fiction w/ Lee & Jule Banville
Hamilton - Thurs 10/9 at Chapter One w/ Russ Lawrence
Bozeman - Mon 10/6 at the Country Bookshelf w/ @betsygainesquammen.bsky.social
Helena - Tues 10/7 at Montana Book Co. w/ @kemc.bsky.social
Missoula - Wed 10/8 at Fact & Fiction w/ Lee & Jule Banville
Hamilton - Thurs 10/9 at Chapter One w/ Russ Lawrence
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
We live in a time of even greater wealth inequality than preceding the French Revolution
World’s richest 1% increased wealth by $33.9 trillion since 2015, Oxfam says share.inquirer.com/ajXvYd
“…Chris Evans, a professor of taxation at the University of New South Wales, described “gross inequality in wealth” as “a disaster for social cohesion.” 🎯🎯🎯
“…Chris Evans, a professor of taxation at the University of New South Wales, described “gross inequality in wealth” as “a disaster for social cohesion.” 🎯🎯🎯
World’s richest 1% increased wealth by $33.9 trillion since 2015, Oxfam says
That amount is “more than enough to eliminate annual poverty 22 times over,” according to a new analysis from the anti-poverty group.
share.inquirer.com
June 28, 2025 at 4:55 PM
We live in a time of even greater wealth inequality than preceding the French Revolution
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
Kathleen McLaughlin’s book about the plasma industry is an extremely eye-opening look at poverty in the US, and how people who sell plasma to help make ends meet are exploited without being given proper protection and support.
This is a labor issue conveniently shrowded in stigma.
This is a labor issue conveniently shrowded in stigma.
July 1, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Kathleen McLaughlin’s book about the plasma industry is an extremely eye-opening look at poverty in the US, and how people who sell plasma to help make ends meet are exploited without being given proper protection and support.
This is a labor issue conveniently shrowded in stigma.
This is a labor issue conveniently shrowded in stigma.
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
I strongly recommend this book, I learned so much from it - I hadn't even known the economics of blood was a thing! IMHO it's also a really good example of a former foreign correspondent using that experience/lens to reveal/learn something new about their home country in a very thoughtful way
Given that the vast majority of Americans who sell blood primarily do so first and foremost for money, yes it does reflect the economic hardships of the United States. Really do wish more people would read my book!
this does not reflect dire poverty in the US - I assure there are many more poor people in the importer countries - but the fact that there’s high demand for plasma and it’s legal to pay people for it in the US, unlike most places
July 1, 2025 at 6:53 PM
I strongly recommend this book, I learned so much from it - I hadn't even known the economics of blood was a thing! IMHO it's also a really good example of a former foreign correspondent using that experience/lens to reveal/learn something new about their home country in a very thoughtful way
Given that the vast majority of Americans who sell blood primarily do so first and foremost for money, yes it does reflect the economic hardships of the United States. Really do wish more people would read my book!
this does not reflect dire poverty in the US - I assure there are many more poor people in the importer countries - but the fact that there’s high demand for plasma and it’s legal to pay people for it in the US, unlike most places
July 1, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Given that the vast majority of Americans who sell blood primarily do so first and foremost for money, yes it does reflect the economic hardships of the United States. Really do wish more people would read my book!
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
Did you know payday loans wither when plasma centers open? Check put my new radio documentary for BBC World Service here www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
BBC World Service - The Documentary, America: The human plasma factory
Kathleen McLaughlin investigates the multibillion-dollar global plasma industry
www.bbc.co.uk
May 30, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Did you know payday loans wither when plasma centers open? Check put my new radio documentary for BBC World Service here www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
I wrote a whole book about this, and the experience of reporting it was an education in how deeply unequal American life has become. www.simonandschuster.com/books/Blood-...
MAN WHAT THE FUCK
July 1, 2025 at 4:25 PM
I wrote a whole book about this, and the experience of reporting it was an education in how deeply unequal American life has become. www.simonandschuster.com/books/Blood-...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
"The writers have been talking to each other in their essays, without even knowing it. They are deeply connected, in their words, through this place. It’s thrilling to watch unfold and an unexpected honor to experience," @kemc.bsky.social re: a book I'm psyched for! open.substack.com/pub/kemc/p/m...
Machines Can't Replace You
on finishing a book that could only have been written by real, live humans
open.substack.com
June 6, 2025 at 9:28 PM
"The writers have been talking to each other in their essays, without even knowing it. They are deeply connected, in their words, through this place. It’s thrilling to watch unfold and an unexpected honor to experience," @kemc.bsky.social re: a book I'm psyched for! open.substack.com/pub/kemc/p/m...
Did you know payday loans wither when plasma centers open? Check put my new radio documentary for BBC World Service here www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
BBC World Service - The Documentary, America: The human plasma factory
Kathleen McLaughlin investigates the multibillion-dollar global plasma industry
www.bbc.co.uk
May 30, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Did you know payday loans wither when plasma centers open? Check put my new radio documentary for BBC World Service here www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
The proven methods to reduce the chances of becoming the Main Character of the Day on social media platforms is by 1) posting less and 2) multiple trusted group chats.
May 28, 2025 at 2:57 PM
The proven methods to reduce the chances of becoming the Main Character of the Day on social media platforms is by 1) posting less and 2) multiple trusted group chats.
I have a new radio documentary out this week on the BBC World Service, you can hear it here www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
The Documentary - America: The human plasma factory - BBC Sounds
Kathleen McLaughlin investigates the multibillion-dollar global plasma industry
www.bbc.co.uk
May 25, 2025 at 1:52 PM
I have a new radio documentary out this week on the BBC World Service, you can hear it here www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
men who claimed to be leaders, to be defenders of liberty, to be dynamos of business, cowering at the thought that they might have to stand up for something, while ordinary people with a fraction of their money and power speak out.
April 5, 2025 at 1:57 AM
men who claimed to be leaders, to be defenders of liberty, to be dynamos of business, cowering at the thought that they might have to stand up for something, while ordinary people with a fraction of their money and power speak out.
"Today there isn’t a single state, metropolitan area, or county in the United States where a full-time worker earning the local minimum wage can afford a two-bedroom apartment."
"The myth that hard work will lead to stability has been shattered, revealing a stark disconnect between the story America tells about itself and the reality of deepening precarity.”
An excerpt from my book, There Is No Place for Us, is out today in @literaryhub.bsky.social:
An excerpt from my book, There Is No Place for Us, is out today in @literaryhub.bsky.social:
The Paradox of Prosperity: How Urban Renewal Pushes Workers to the Periphery
By the time I met Cokethia Goodman and her children, they had been homeless for three months. Their ordeal began on an afternoon in August 2018, when Cokethia discovered a terse letter from her lan…
lithub.com
March 31, 2025 at 4:18 PM
"Today there isn’t a single state, metropolitan area, or county in the United States where a full-time worker earning the local minimum wage can afford a two-bedroom apartment."
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
Here’s our old friend, Americans’ complete lack of familiarity with real-world authoritarianism, showing up again. They don’t understand that this is exactly what happens in authoritarian countries, outside of totalitarianism. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/15/o...
March 15, 2025 at 12:41 PM
Here’s our old friend, Americans’ complete lack of familiarity with real-world authoritarianism, showing up again. They don’t understand that this is exactly what happens in authoritarian countries, outside of totalitarianism. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/15/o...
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
In 1971, shortly after the EPA was founded, the agency commissioned dozens of photographers to document environmental issues and scenes across the U.S. The "DOCUMERICA" project captured pollution, urban decay, conservation efforts, and everyday American culture.
March 13, 2025 at 3:34 PM
In 1971, shortly after the EPA was founded, the agency commissioned dozens of photographers to document environmental issues and scenes across the U.S. The "DOCUMERICA" project captured pollution, urban decay, conservation efforts, and everyday American culture.
Self-censorship is the most effective form of censorship in an authoritarian state, the censorship we impose on ourselves out of fear or fealty to power.
March 10, 2025 at 4:12 AM
Self-censorship is the most effective form of censorship in an authoritarian state, the censorship we impose on ourselves out of fear or fealty to power.
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
One thing I learned in many years reporting in China is how eventually, the power apparatus comes for everyone, even those who think they'll remain safe by keeping quiet or sucking up to power. That's just how it works.
February 5, 2025 at 5:59 PM
One thing I learned in many years reporting in China is how eventually, the power apparatus comes for everyone, even those who think they'll remain safe by keeping quiet or sucking up to power. That's just how it works.
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
philadelphia inquirer is right there for you to subscribe to instead, people
February 26, 2025 at 2:55 PM
philadelphia inquirer is right there for you to subscribe to instead, people
Reposted by Kathleen McLaughlin
Your Chinese idiom of the day/century to date is 上樑不正下樑歪 "when the roof beam is out of line, the rafters are crooked," precisely translatable as "a fish rots from the head down."
February 12, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Your Chinese idiom of the day/century to date is 上樑不正下樑歪 "when the roof beam is out of line, the rafters are crooked," precisely translatable as "a fish rots from the head down."
One thing I learned in many years reporting in China is how eventually, the power apparatus comes for everyone, even those who think they'll remain safe by keeping quiet or sucking up to power. That's just how it works.
February 5, 2025 at 5:59 PM
One thing I learned in many years reporting in China is how eventually, the power apparatus comes for everyone, even those who think they'll remain safe by keeping quiet or sucking up to power. That's just how it works.