Nathan McDermott
@nathanmcdermott.bsky.social
Roaming Reporter formerly of KFile at CNN & BuzzFeed.
Board member @unclosetedmedia.bsky.social
Host of Beautiful Losers of History podcast:
https://rss.com/podcasts/beautiful-losers-of-history/
Mostly journalism, history, gay absurdism and the Simpsons
Board member @unclosetedmedia.bsky.social
Host of Beautiful Losers of History podcast:
https://rss.com/podcasts/beautiful-losers-of-history/
Mostly journalism, history, gay absurdism and the Simpsons
Pinned
Been working on this for a while & happy to introduce:
'Beautiful Losers of History,' a narrative history podcast that examines people and movements that fought for a righteous cause but ultimately lost. But just because they lost doesn't mean they're not worth celebrating.
rss.com/podcasts/bea...
'Beautiful Losers of History,' a narrative history podcast that examines people and movements that fought for a righteous cause but ultimately lost. But just because they lost doesn't mean they're not worth celebrating.
rss.com/podcasts/bea...
Meanwhile, at the Post
November 12, 2025 at 11:42 PM
Meanwhile, at the Post
“Jeffrey Epstein wrote that Trump had “spent hours at my house” with one of Mr. Epstein’s victims…”
“In one of the messages, Mr. Epstein flatly asserted that Mr. Trump “knew about the girls,” many of whom were later found by investigators to have been underage.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
“In one of the messages, Mr. Epstein flatly asserted that Mr. Trump “knew about the girls,” many of whom were later found by investigators to have been underage.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
Epstein Alleged in Emails That Trump Knew of His Conduct
www.nytimes.com
November 12, 2025 at 3:59 PM
“Jeffrey Epstein wrote that Trump had “spent hours at my house” with one of Mr. Epstein’s victims…”
“In one of the messages, Mr. Epstein flatly asserted that Mr. Trump “knew about the girls,” many of whom were later found by investigators to have been underage.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
“In one of the messages, Mr. Epstein flatly asserted that Mr. Trump “knew about the girls,” many of whom were later found by investigators to have been underage.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
What’s crazy is that this was all for a $4,000 bet! Clase’s contract next year is for over $6 million!
November 9, 2025 at 8:09 PM
What’s crazy is that this was all for a $4,000 bet! Clase’s contract next year is for over $6 million!
Found this historical curiosity on a walk today
November 9, 2025 at 8:02 PM
Found this historical curiosity on a walk today
Threatening to replicate the French military strategy from World War II just makes Curtis Sliwa all the more endearing
nymag.com/intelligence...
nymag.com/intelligence...
November 6, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Threatening to replicate the French military strategy from World War II just makes Curtis Sliwa all the more endearing
nymag.com/intelligence...
nymag.com/intelligence...
The Texas Supreme Court changed its policy to allow judges to refuse same-sex marriages.
The change happened last week but it’s only being reported now because nobody noticed, in case you want to see an example of the real world impact of the collapse of local news industry
The change happened last week but it’s only being reported now because nobody noticed, in case you want to see an example of the real world impact of the collapse of local news industry
October 29, 2025 at 3:42 PM
The Texas Supreme Court changed its policy to allow judges to refuse same-sex marriages.
The change happened last week but it’s only being reported now because nobody noticed, in case you want to see an example of the real world impact of the collapse of local news industry
The change happened last week but it’s only being reported now because nobody noticed, in case you want to see an example of the real world impact of the collapse of local news industry
To paraphrase George HW Bush, America should be a lot more like the Drudge Report and a lot less like the New York Post
October 18, 2025 at 2:02 AM
To paraphrase George HW Bush, America should be a lot more like the Drudge Report and a lot less like the New York Post
Per @seanmcnulty.bsky.social, A24's been dropping ad money during sports and UFC ad breaks to promote their movie starring The Rock, and honestly, good for the sports bros. If this gets them into independent cinema, they're just that much closer to discovering Tár.
theankler.com/p/cable-tv-n...
theankler.com/p/cable-tv-n...
October 2, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Per @seanmcnulty.bsky.social, A24's been dropping ad money during sports and UFC ad breaks to promote their movie starring The Rock, and honestly, good for the sports bros. If this gets them into independent cinema, they're just that much closer to discovering Tár.
theankler.com/p/cable-tv-n...
theankler.com/p/cable-tv-n...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
Tonight! Join me & @mikeduncan.bsky.social at 8pm. alexiscoe.substack.com/p/tonight-sm...
September 30, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Tonight! Join me & @mikeduncan.bsky.social at 8pm. alexiscoe.substack.com/p/tonight-sm...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
SCOOP / UPDATE — Disney saw more than 1.7 million total paid streaming cancelations during the period 9/17-9/23, a Disney source confirms to me. The total includes Disney+, Hulu and ESPN.
NEW — I wrote about my confirmed scoop from last night that Disney hastened Kimmel's return because of a planned Disney+ streaming price increase announcement coming on Tuesday:
Kimmel reinstatement preempted Disney+ price increase
The Handbasket reported first Monday evening on Bluesky
www.thehandbasket.co
September 29, 2025 at 5:19 PM
SCOOP / UPDATE — Disney saw more than 1.7 million total paid streaming cancelations during the period 9/17-9/23, a Disney source confirms to me. The total includes Disney+, Hulu and ESPN.
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
it may feel a little like homework, but i genuinely think people should read the lincoln-douglas debates to see what the practical politics of anti-slavery looked like in an environment where the public was neutral to hostile to the question of emancipation
September 28, 2025 at 4:11 PM
it may feel a little like homework, but i genuinely think people should read the lincoln-douglas debates to see what the practical politics of anti-slavery looked like in an environment where the public was neutral to hostile to the question of emancipation
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
If they had a right-wing, “tough-on-crime” coded mayor there would be endless national profiles about him and how he finally brought sanity back to Chicago.
Now that summer is over, Chicago is still on track to have fewer homicides in 2025 than almost any other year since 2001. This is especially impressive considering that the five most violent years of the 21st century have all been in the past decade.
September 25, 2025 at 8:12 PM
If they had a right-wing, “tough-on-crime” coded mayor there would be endless national profiles about him and how he finally brought sanity back to Chicago.
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
San Francisco local politics: a knife fight in a phone booth.
JUST IN: Voters in San Francisco's Sunset District have recalled their supervisor, Joel Engardio.
Recall leads huge in early returns, nearly 2 to 1.
Engardio, who rode to office after himself working to recall SF progressives, then angered constituents by championing replacing the "Great Highway".
Recall leads huge in early returns, nearly 2 to 1.
Engardio, who rode to office after himself working to recall SF progressives, then angered constituents by championing replacing the "Great Highway".
September 17, 2025 at 5:31 AM
San Francisco local politics: a knife fight in a phone booth.
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
September 12, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
(BBC) - Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro found guilty of plotting military coup after losing 2022 election.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
September 11, 2025 at 7:09 PM
(BBC) - Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro found guilty of plotting military coup after losing 2022 election.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
I think America is less on the brink of another Civil War, than it is entering Years of Lead territory, ala Italy in the 70s and 80s, when political instability and extreme polarization led to routine violence from nonstate actors.
Not quite an insurgency, but regular violence nonetheless.
Not quite an insurgency, but regular violence nonetheless.
September 10, 2025 at 10:28 PM
I think America is less on the brink of another Civil War, than it is entering Years of Lead territory, ala Italy in the 70s and 80s, when political instability and extreme polarization led to routine violence from nonstate actors.
Not quite an insurgency, but regular violence nonetheless.
Not quite an insurgency, but regular violence nonetheless.
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
Cant wait to check this out!
Patrick’s podcast episodes about Stone Age and Bronze Aged societies made me see these people as human beings for the first time in my life, rather than broken pieces of pottery and beads of jewelry found in an archeological digs
Give them a listen on Tides of History!
Patrick’s podcast episodes about Stone Age and Bronze Aged societies made me see these people as human beings for the first time in my life, rather than broken pieces of pottery and beads of jewelry found in an archeological digs
Give them a listen on Tides of History!
May 5th, 2026: HarperCollins will release my new book, "Lost Worlds: The Rise and Fall of Human Societies from the Ice Age to the Bronze Age." I'm so, so excited - it's taken more than five years to get this book researched and written, and I can't wait for it to be out in the world!
August 31, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Cant wait to check this out!
Patrick’s podcast episodes about Stone Age and Bronze Aged societies made me see these people as human beings for the first time in my life, rather than broken pieces of pottery and beads of jewelry found in an archeological digs
Give them a listen on Tides of History!
Patrick’s podcast episodes about Stone Age and Bronze Aged societies made me see these people as human beings for the first time in my life, rather than broken pieces of pottery and beads of jewelry found in an archeological digs
Give them a listen on Tides of History!
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
a pretty good summary of the 21st century is that the humiliation of america's defeats in the middle east post-9/11 curdled into a reactionary politics that seeks affirmation in the humiliation of anyone who is an other: liberals, minorities, the global south, china, europe, whoever.
August 31, 2025 at 5:00 PM
a pretty good summary of the 21st century is that the humiliation of america's defeats in the middle east post-9/11 curdled into a reactionary politics that seeks affirmation in the humiliation of anyone who is an other: liberals, minorities, the global south, china, europe, whoever.
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
“SEATTLE (AP) — Lawyers are demanding the release of a longtime Oregon resident arrested by Border Patrol while fighting a Washington state wildfire, saying Friday that the firefighter was already on track for legal status” — apnews.com/article/immi...
Lawyer: Oregon firefighter arrested by Border Patrol during wildfire was on track for legal status
Lawyers are demanding the release of a longtime Oregon resident arrested by Border Patrol while fighting a Washington state wildfire.
apnews.com
August 30, 2025 at 7:23 PM
“SEATTLE (AP) — Lawyers are demanding the release of a longtime Oregon resident arrested by Border Patrol while fighting a Washington state wildfire, saying Friday that the firefighter was already on track for legal status” — apnews.com/article/immi...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
Over a third of people say they’re going days without eating in Gaza. For now, the confirmed famine is centered in the governorate of Gaza, one of five in the strip. Our maps show where it’s expected to spread by the end of September
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
The evolution of famine in Gaza, in maps and charts
For the first time, catastrophic levels of hunger have been confirmed in the strip
www.economist.com
August 25, 2025 at 11:32 AM
Over a third of people say they’re going days without eating in Gaza. For now, the confirmed famine is centered in the governorate of Gaza, one of five in the strip. Our maps show where it’s expected to spread by the end of September
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
"We’re witnessing, in real-time, a profound consolidation of power & collusion among political & tech elites... wherein the tools and technologies that this industry has built... can now be deployed in service of an authoritarian regime" — @katie-drummond.bsky.social www.status.news/p/wired-kati...
WIRED for the Moment
In a conversation with Status, WIRED’s Katie Drummond argues that Silicon Valley is no longer just innovating new technology—it’s actively shaping American democracy.
www.status.news
August 24, 2025 at 11:29 PM
"We’re witnessing, in real-time, a profound consolidation of power & collusion among political & tech elites... wherein the tools and technologies that this industry has built... can now be deployed in service of an authoritarian regime" — @katie-drummond.bsky.social www.status.news/p/wired-kati...
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
Niche Japanese alt history is my favorite
(context: There's a tomb in Japan that some locals claim to be Jesus's en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirisut... )
(context: There's a tomb in Japan that some locals claim to be Jesus's en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirisut... )
August 24, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Niche Japanese alt history is my favorite
(context: There's a tomb in Japan that some locals claim to be Jesus's en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirisut... )
(context: There's a tomb in Japan that some locals claim to be Jesus's en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirisut... )
Reposted by Nathan McDermott
Since the late 2000s, prison populations across the country have fallen. And in New York, the decline is especially rapid. nysfocus.com/2024/12/19/n...
Why Has New York’s Prison Population Declined?
New York's prison population has been declining for decades, and at a faster pace than the national prison population. Here's why.
nysfocus.com
August 24, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Since the late 2000s, prison populations across the country have fallen. And in New York, the decline is especially rapid. nysfocus.com/2024/12/19/n...