iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

The Costs of War Project @costsofwar.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

@christopherleonard.bsky.social reports on the wave of labor unrest that has swept America’s workers in the weapons industry over the past year, citing our research with @quincyinst.bsky.social on Pentagon spending going to military contractors. www.politico.com/news/magazin...

politico.com

America Doesn’t Have Enough Weapons for a Major Conflict. These Workers Know Why.

This summer, employees at several big defense companies went on strike. Their grievances highlight a much larger problem brewing beneath the surface.

043

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

I really enjoyed this conversation with @NPRinskeep on Morning Edition about our nation's defense industry. These issues are urgently important as we face a new world of power blocs and mobilization. Is our defense industry ready? www.npr.org/2025/06/03/n...

npr.org

Author Christopher Leonard discusses the rise of the U.S. defense industry after WWII

As part of our series on the world that America made after World War II, NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with author Christopher Leonard about the rise of the U.S. defense industry post-1945.

030

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

Man, they’re playing Green Day on a “classic rock” station and I feel personally attacked.

040

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

I just spent a day doing job interviews with young journalism students at MU and let me please tell you, the kids are alright. There's a tremendous well of idealism, passion and talent to support this industry. The business models are a mess now, but the future leaders are strong.

010

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Megan Greenwell @greenwell.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

I know, I know, all the cool kids are anti-blurb now, but I have never been cool! What a ridiculous honor to have my book read so thoughtfully and generously by some of my favorite narrative nonfiction writers on the damn planet. (1/2) @christopherleonard.bsky.social

"Greenwell has single-handedly exposed the hidden economic machine that increasingly runs-and ruins-our lives. [A] bombshell of a book."
-CHRISTOPHER LEONARD, author of Kochland and The Lords of Easy Money

"A harrowing, humane inquiry into the state of American business."
-ZACHARY D. CARTER, author of The Price of Peace

"A hard and eloquent look at players who have far too long escaped public scrutiny."
-ELIZA GRISWOLD, author of Amity and Prosperity and Circle of Hope

1382

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 18/01/2025

I'm on a major Barbara Tuchman kick. She's easily one of the best nonfiction writers who ever lived. The depth of reporting and research is matched by the beauty and power of the prose. I hope we produce more modern-day Tuchmans! www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stilwell-a...

barnesandnoble.com

Stilwell and the American Experience in China: 1911-1945|Paperback

Barbara W. Tuchman won her second Pulitzer Prize for this nonfiction masterpiece—an authoritative work of history that recounts the birth of modern China through the eyes of one extraordinary Am...

051

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 15/01/2025

The L.A. wildfires are yet another story ripped directly from the pages of the prophetic novel "The Deluge" by Stephen Markley. I can't recommend this book highly enough. I think about it all the time. www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-deluge...

barnesandnoble.com

The Deluge|Paperback

A New York Times Notable Book “This book is, simply put, a modern classic. If you read it, you'll never forget it. Prophetic, terrifying, uplifting.” —Stephen King From the bestselli...

050

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 10/01/2025

I would love to razz Patrick Radden Keefe for taking a modeling gig. But I can't do it because: A) He's one of the most genuinely kind and down-to-earth people in this business and B) I legit want that coat. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/09/s...

nytimes.com

Celebrated New Yorker Writer Enlisted as Model

How do you follow up a couple best-selling books? If you’re Patrick Radden Keefe, you star in a J. Crew ad.

020

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

SCOOP: Tyson Foods has subpoenaed two news organizations, demanding they turn over notes and contacts with local farmers whom Tyson Foods put out of business. I've never seen such aggressive subpoenas issued by a major corporation to news media. investigatemidwest.org/2024/12/17/t...

investigatemidwest.org

Tyson Foods cut contracts with poultry farmers. Now the company is working to silence their legal fight. - Investigate Midwest

This story was produced by the Watchdog Writers Group in collaboration with Investigate Midwest. DEXTER, Missouri – On an early August morning in 2023, Shawn Hinkle received a call from one of his te...

176

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

Younger reporters—Best question you can ask, about two-thirds of the way through an interview, is: "Is there something I'm missing? Is there something important that I should be asking about that I'm not?" Remember—what we don't know far exceeds what we do know!

160

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

I used to talk policy with Lina Khan for hours at a time. And I'd go home from work and tell my wife: "My God, people in D.C. are so smart." After a while I realized, no, it was not DC—it was just Lina who is so smart. There are lots of great people in DC, but Khan is unique.

160

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

The funny thing about Bitcoin to me is that most of its success is its rising price. I don’t ever hear any stories about its successful utility, or expanding actual use as a means of transaction.

150

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

Tyson Foods just announced another major plant closing, further consolidating the nation’s beef production. Such consolidation was shown to be a major vulnerability during Covid, when plant closures instantly wiped out big chunks of national supply. www.5newsonline.com/article/news...

5newsonline.com

Tyson Foods to close plant in Kansas, impacting 809 workers

Tyson has closed multiple plants across the U.S. this year, citing efforts to increase efficiency.

131

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

Hey D.C. folks—if you are in town tomorrow, don't miss this incredible event for @sandeepvaheesan's new book. He is a brilliant analyst and writer. The dynamics of electric power companies cut to the heart of America's political economy. Super-important. www.eventbrite.com/e/democracy-...

eventbrite.com

'Democracy in Power' Book Launch

Join us on December 4th to celebrate Open Markets Legal Director Sandeep Vaheesan and his new book, 'Democracy in Power'

041

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

Let's go! @jonathanblitzer.bsky.social fantastic book "Everyone Who is Gone is Here," on the immigration crisis, is named Top 10 by the NYT. I strongly recommend it to everyone. It's the best kind of journalism. www.nytimes.com/2024/12/03/b...

nytimes.com

The 10 Best Books of 2024

The staff of The New York Times Book Review choose the year’s top fiction and nonfiction.

010

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 02/12/2024

This is just true. All the big-picture stuff aside, Twitter was less and less useful. My timeline was overwhelmed with randos I didn't follow, posting weird spam and videos. Bluesky is a lot more straight forward. More articles, more links, less of an interventionist, borderline insane algorithm.

010

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 30/11/2024

Gosh—I loved this debate about Ukraine between @aaronjmate and @shustry. Very well-informed on both sides, thought provoking, and civil throughout. More of this, please. www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uTd...

youtube.com

Ukraine vs. Russia: Nuclear War, Frozen Conflict, or Peace? Debate w/ Simon Shuster

YouTube video by Useful Idiots

020

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 30/11/2024

Intellectual humility is one of a reporter's greatest assets. The world is always more complicated than we know, and its rate of change outpaces our operating assumptions.

040

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

AI Writing tools will have the same deskilling effect on our minds that McDonald's automated kitchens had on the culinary skills of kitchen workers. This will be something.

031

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

It's going to be amazing to watch the fallout as AI writing tools infantilize our thinking and make us dependent upon opaque LLMS to communicate.

110

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

I was excited for Apple Intelligence proofreading, but I'm afraid it's not at all impressive. About 4 out of 5 suggestions are unnecessary or flat out wrong. In apps like Word or Pages, you just get text in a bubble, with the option to accept it all, without seeing changes. Bummer Apple!

000

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

Hardest part of Thanksgiving is all the anti-uncle discourse! Annual reminder: We are not all crazy.

000

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

king's co-op bookstore @kingsbookstore.bsky.social · 23/11/2024

imagine your name is Simon Shuster and you’re published by Harper Collins

Simon Shuster is the others name, showing published by HarperCollins

1171

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 23/11/2024

I'm working on the third version of a narrative scene that probably won't even make it into the book and I'm having a blast.

010

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 23/11/2024

Hello @hunterw.bsky.social! I would love to get verified if you could let me know how to get the wheels rolling. Thanks so much.

100

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Rania Abouzeid @raniaab.bsky.social · 23/11/2024

It’s 4am in Beirut. Multiple huge Israeli airstrikes on something #lebanon

21911

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

I'm just sittin' around reading State Department cables.

000

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Brooke Jarvis @brookejarvis.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

Today's bug of the day is this walking parade float, the gorgeous-beyond-all-reason Saturniidae caterpillar (pic from the Sugi project www.sugiproject.com/blog/caterpi...)

A caterpillar that looks like a carnaval float, with orange and purple spikes and puffy red feet and blue racing stripes, walking on a stem.

2253

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Connor Gibson @grassrootbeer.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

If you missed this 🧵 on the "Koch & Climate Obstruction" report I wrote with Robert Brulle @climatessn.bsky.social, please read and share! It unpacks what what Koch knew, and what Koch said. Now, here's are new 🧵 on what Koch DID, starting with historic material from the 1990's.

cssn.org

Koch and Climate Obstruction

This interim report, by Connor Gibson and Robert J. Brulle, is a result of ongoing historical research into the efforts by Koch, Inc. and its orbit organizations to obstruct climate […]

810148

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Connor Gibson @grassrootbeer.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

After the election, as @christopherleonard.bsky.social's Kochland detailed, Charles Koch gave this "urgent" speech to an “elite group of [about 200] Koch Industries employees who donated the maximum legal amount of money to Koch Industries’ political action committee.” (Obama = Climate Law = FUBAR)

111

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Pamela Colloff @pamelacolloff.bsky.social · 19/11/2024

Breaking news from my latest reporting trip, as I crouch on the gritty floor of my standing-room-only gate at the airport, after choking down an overpriced (but borderline inedible) lunch, while hoping I’m not seated next to a very phlegmy throat clearer: flying is hell.

11884

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 19/11/2024

I can attest that this is a wonderful book. It really captures the insane information landscape in which we live. It's an urgent book, but also just a super-fun read.

000

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

king's co-op bookstore @kingsbookstore.bsky.social · 19/11/2024

happy new murakami day to all who celebrate

Haruki Murakami - The City and Its Uncertain Walls

1274

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Mike Baker @mikebaker.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

The United States now has: • 45,020 reporters • 275,550 public relations specialists For every reporter, there are now six PR people. (data via U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

42718277

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

An unsolicited thread on that time Joan Didion eviscerated Bob Woodward in the pages of the NY Review of Books. Both writers are heroes of mine, so this essay is kind of like hearing your parents fight through a cracked door.

120

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Chenjerai Kumanyika @chenjerai.bsky.social · 16/11/2024

Um yes please to this starter pack go.bsky.app/2JYffeG

1222181

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 16/11/2024

Amazing! Can’t wait to read the next book from @jeisinger.bsky.social. This will be amazing, and so urgent.

020

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 15/11/2024

This is shocking. Microsoft Word scans everything you write and uses it to train AI bots!! Directions on how to turn it off in thread below. I have resisted Scrivener but this might push me over.

010

Christopher Leonard @christopherleonard.bsky.social · 14/11/2024

Hadas Gold at CNN just reported that The Onion has purchased Infowars, with backing from Sandy Hook Families and Everytown for Gun Safety. Amazing.

010

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

lukelukeluke @lukelukeluke.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

Here are some nice mushrooms

A moss speckled tree branch lies above a forest floor of fallen oak leaves, several large colonies of white Splitgill mushroom grow toward the camera, their swirling gills creating flowing patterns on varied scales. Photo taken by me December 2023

551321301400

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Pamela Colloff @pamelacolloff.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

Hello new followers! Thanks for following. I write about the criminal justice system, esp. the ways in which it falls short of delivering justice. I'm also a narrative nonfiction junkie, so I post about the best storytelling I see out there. Here's a starter pack I recommend: go.bsky.app/5LkaeFe

1422437

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Pronoy @pronoysarkar.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

In these times, good writing and thinking about the world, and engaging with it, is as important as ever. Whatever I may be feeling, personally, working with writers who challenge how we think, and make me think, is a small victory, and I don’t take it for granted.

021

Reposted by Christopher Leonard

Brandon Tensley @brandontensley.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

Echoing this. The past week has clarified the role that Capital B — the Black press — plays in centering communities that may be at an elevated risk of harm under the forthcoming administration. Hope you'll support us: capitalbnews.fundjournalism.org/donate/?camp...

capitalbnews.fundjournalism.org

Join | Capital B

Capital B is supported by people like you. Support Capital B today.

072