Jennifer Brooks
LightNews LightNews
banner
stribrooks.bsky.social
Jennifer Brooks
@stribrooks.bsky.social
3.7K followers 670 following 11K posts
Minnesota Star Tribune columnist. Your source for dumpster fires. I think you're pretty great.
Posts Replies Media Videos
stribrooks.bsky.social
Let's see where this journey takes us.
From: Brooks, Jennifer To: Nutsi Kachakhidize You're offering to write the story for me? How kind. Go ahead and send me that outline. I am VERY curious.
November 15, 2025 at 3:54 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
This is the funniest and most insulting story pitch I have ever received. (Of COURSE it's about AI.)
Ahahahahahahahahhahahahaaaa *cough* aaaaahahahahahahahaha The text of this story pitch reads as follows: Hi Jennifer, I wanted to follow up again in case this story about AI tutors replacing traditional teachers is still of interest. If it helps, we can even share a suggested article structure — key angles, data points, and human stories — to make it easier to frame the piece if you decide to cover it. No pressure at all, but happy to send a short outline or example anytime.
November 15, 2025 at 3:50 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
The aurora borealis? At this time of year? In this part of the country? Localized entirely over my kitchen?
Northern lights over my pretty city! All pinky-green! Ha ha Simpson’s reference! Stripey green northern lights in the sky!
November 12, 2025 at 1:35 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
ART!
"The Death of Socrates" by Jacques Louis David https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/436105
November 10, 2025 at 4:44 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
In which The Onion announces the start of WWII with the largest possible font. The resulting headline? “WA—“ Full story here: https://theonion.com/september-3-1939-1819587663/
November 9, 2025 at 5:32 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Misplaced my “I Voted” sticker before I could take a picture with it noooooo
THE EMPTY HAND OF SHAME
November 4, 2025 at 4:48 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
I may have overestimated demand…
Stella the black and tan guardian of the candy bowl monitors the huge pile of unclaimed Halloween candy. Anybody need candy? I got candy.
November 1, 2025 at 12:11 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
“I wonder if there was a No Kings rally in Zanesville?” I said to myself. Quick check of the Appalachian foothills and folks: Even Zanesville. m.facebook.com/story.php?st...
Look, I cannot do crowd estimates, so I’m going with “some Zanesvillians” (few hundred?) massing on the steps of the gorgeous Muskingum County Courthouse, which looks like it belongs in Paris, not my hometown. From the ZanesViral Facebook page, photo credit: Brian Kuhn. Fun fact: Zanesville was the capitol of Ohio for a hot minute, once upon a time. Additional fun fact: Zanesville bet big that canals, not choo-choo trains, were the future of transportation in America.
October 20, 2025 at 3:11 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
This crowd won’t even JAYWALK.
Minnesota Nice marchers cram onto the sidewalks, politely waiting for the walk sign before crossing the street.
October 18, 2025 at 7:13 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
If I have to look at this nightmare fuel protest sign, so do you.
October 18, 2025 at 7:07 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
I have covered many protests. This is the puffiest.
Inflatable rat with a protest sign: “A rat would make a better president.” What’s up? Inflatable chicken butt. What’s the collective noun for a bunch of inflatable t-rexes? A bounce? A huff? Anyhoo, when three or more inflatable T-Rexes are gathered, there am I in their midst. Captured both an inflatable unicorn and an inflatable alien induction in one shot. Proud of me.
October 18, 2025 at 7:04 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
If you’re going to exercise your First Amendment rights, what better place to gather than 425 Portland, former home of the Star Tribune?
The Commons is crowded. Since I am incapable of accurate crowd counts, I’m just going to describe attendance as “chockablock.” Pictured: A large crowd on a sunny day that stretches from US Bank, across the Commons, and overflows for several blocks in every direction. However many people in inflatable costumes you’re picturing, you’re not picturing enough.
October 18, 2025 at 6:58 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Hardy Minnesotans endured harrowing commutes to reach this rally.
October 18, 2025 at 6:52 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
No Kings has the highest axolotl-to-journalist ratio of any march I’ve ever covered.
October 18, 2025 at 6:49 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
A friend just sent me this picture of his mastiff, Peanut.

Let it wash over you.
OK, I’m usually pretty good with alt text, but this one may defeat me. Imagine the biggest, wrinkliest black dog. Now imagine a large, violently green ball. Now imagine that Peanut the mastiff has put a ball exactly the size of his enormous maw into his enormous maw, completely filling it like a cork, or a big green baby binky. That is this.
October 1, 2025 at 12:00 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
OK, it is almost Oct. 3, which means it is time to remember how in 1575, the mayor of Leiden set the bar for all future mayors.
www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collectio...
Text about the sword of Burgomaster Van der Werff of Leiden, currently on display at the Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands. "In 1574 Spanish forces besieged Leiden. The city’s inhabitants were so hungry that they considered surrender. Legend has it that their mayor, Burgomaster Pieter van der Werff, gave them with his sword and demanded that they kill and eat him. This sword is believed to have belonged to the self-sacrificing mayor."
September 29, 2025 at 5:57 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Ugh, they made me tap the sign again
Headline from a previous column, by yours truly, on this very topic: “Brooks: Nothing makes a downtown more vibrant than forcing people to be there”
September 10, 2025 at 1:35 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Dig if you will, this felt ornament.
When in doubt, make a felt Prince.
September 7, 2025 at 2:39 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
My god, it’s like poetry in motion
September 7, 2025 at 4:21 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Crouching Coldplay, hidden felt ornament!
Coldplay Couple canoodling, there’s a tab under them that looks vaguely like a camera that will send the guy sliding down, down down Heh! I just spent 10 minutes yo-yo-ing this guy up and down and up and down
September 7, 2025 at 4:10 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
There’s got to be some way to rig up a slider to make the guy drop out of frame…
THIS IS HOW THE FELT SAUSAGE GETS MADE. Felt Coldplay guy and lady are just felt heads with body templates cut from index cards.
September 6, 2025 at 5:13 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
OK, I am not proud of this, but if I can’t start a felt ornament bidding war, we can’t replenish the Cheer Committee coffers. And we need those coffers to buy beer. So.
Oh fine, I will attempt to render the Coldplay Concert Couple in felt, but I feel real weird about it.
September 6, 2025 at 5:08 AM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Ooh, found it
Picture a blue ox, if you pressed it like a dried flower. In response to the prompt "babe the blue ox is right behind you"
September 4, 2025 at 5:07 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
Now I need to find two other things that happened in 2025 that hit the felt ornament sweet spot of “dumb but not heartbreaking.”

(The latter is proving a real stumbling block this year)
Ahhh, even sillier in daylight!
September 4, 2025 at 12:52 PM
stribrooks.bsky.social
He looked cold, so I gave him some hair.
Did I sew his hair on backward?
September 4, 2025 at 5:27 AM