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Gareth Harding

@garethbxl.bsky.social
1.3K followers 17 following 82 posts

Brussels-based writer, journalism lecturer and media trainer.

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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Oh, just found out I’m on the list. Strange since I hardly post year. But thanks ZN. And if you can’t get enough of my takes, follow me on LinkedIn, where I’m a real Kardashian-style influencer 😉
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John Oxley @joxley.jmoxley.co.uk · 28/09/2026
I think the story of our era will be of a political class that were not only not up to the times they faced, but often wilfully blind to them.
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Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 14/09/2026
Your regular reminder: If the Russians stop fighting, the war ends. If the Ukrainians stop fighting, their land will be occupied, their leaders will be killed, their history and language will be erased, their children will be kidnapped to serve Russia.
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Adam Schwarz @adamjschwarz.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
When the story of why humanity didn't stop climate change is written, it will feature front pages like this. Even as the skies blacken with climate change-induced wildfires, right wing media continue their relentless crusade against measures to tackle it.
The Times: Net zero risks blackouts. Below a photo of French wildfires.
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Excellent advice for wannabe journalists
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
What a time to be alive
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
“Every day, the US is alienating potential visitors, investors, and researchers. Every day, Russia is murdering innocent people in a bloody and pointless colonial war. And every day, Europe offers proof that ancient rivals can live alongside one another in peace, while they pursue prosperity.”
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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Germany's electricity mix, 2000 vs 2025: Renewables: 6% → 62% Fossil fuels: 62% → 36% Nuclear: 30% → 0% Nuclear's exit was filled by renewables, not coal or gas. Want more of this content and more detail and links to sources? Subscribe to my new Substack: substack.com/@janrosenow
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The Brussels Times @brusselstimes.com · 04/05/2026
Journalists face intimidation and violence worldwide, warns European Parliament. The €20,000 Daphne Caruana Galizia prize aims to reward reporting defending EU values and democracy's fragile foundations.
brusselstimes.com
EU Parliament’s journalism prize seeks entries defending democracy in perilous times
EU Parliament's journalism prize seeks entries defending democracy in perilous times
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
80 years to the month after Orwell published ‘Politics and the English Language,’ his 6 rules for writing clearly and concisely are as relevant as ever, I argue: cleareurope.eu/improve-writ...
cleareurope.eu
How to improve your writing skills: 6 timeless tips from George Orwell - Clear Europe
George Orwell is best known for his dystopian novel ‘1984’ and his political fable ‘Animal Farm.’ But among journalists and writers, he is equally famed for a short essay – ‘Politics and the English L...
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
“Mayors should not think they are just there to manage the little things of everyday life, but have big ideas…To succeed, you have to have a strategy, be determined and, yes, accept being unpopular.” Wish we had more politicians who thought like Anne Hidalgo. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...
theguardian.com
‘Changing a city is complicated’: Anne Hidalgo looks back on 12 years as Paris mayor
Political veteran says she faced ‘French misogyny and machismo’ while making Paris greener and more peaceful
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
As with wind turbines and solar panels, so with EV cars, Europe had first-mover advantage on the technologies of the future. Then it sabotaged its own efforts www.theguardian.com/business/202...
theguardian.com
‘It’s stupid’: why western carmakers’ retreat from electric risks dooming them to irrelevance
Iran war should be wake-up call about costs of not going full throttle towards EVs as Chinese have done, experts say
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
“The British public continues to support climate action, and politicians risk fighting the wrong battle if they assume otherwise. The real danger is not public opinion – it is elite division and media narratives creating a false sense of risk.”
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Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 02/03/2026
All Europeans will pay the price for their leaders' reaction to the 🇺🇸🇮🇱 attack on Iran this weekend. European leaders (all except Pedro Sanchez) have now accepted the end of international law. The consequences of this will be felt not for weeks, not for years, but for decades
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Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 21/02/2026
So to recap: if you're a MAGA American official you have the free speech right to say whatever you want and meddle into other countries politics. But if you're not a MAGA American, then you have no free speech right to criticise the United States or Trump. The hypocrisy is farcical.
brusselstimes.com
American ambassador says Conner Rousseau is now barred from entering US
Following up on his earlier threats, American ambassador has forced prohibition of entering the US on Vooruit party leader Rousseau.
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Johnny Ryan @johnnyryan.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
My piece in The Guardian this morning: Europe’s path to technological independence from the U.S. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Europeans are dangerously reliant on US tech. Now is a good time to build our own | Johnny Ryan
By trusting the US, we handed Trump a kill switch. Yet Europe’s digital sovereignty is an achievable goal, says civil liberties campaigner, Johnny Ryan
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
A sad trend with profound social and political effects: the mass closure of pubs in UK and cafes in France. Both cornerstones of communities, especially in small towns and villages.
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Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 28/01/2026
A continent divided into many states with different languages, histories & religions - overcoming their differences and uniting into one federation. A pipe dream for Europe? No. It's the modern reality of India. And it shows it can be done. My piece on 🇪🇺🇮🇳:
davekeating.substack.com
Europe should draw inspiration from the Indian union
The subcontinent was also once split into small states speaking different languages, but the Indian union has brought great success. As the EU and India strike a trade deal, there are wider lessons.
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Almost my entire Bluesky timeline is people commenting on Trump’s every dumb word or act. Every day. All the time. Which is entirely understandable but also completely pointless. And one of the many reasons I don’t waste my precious time on earth here like I used to on X.
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
It’s surely relevant that the US has never been invaded in its homeland, while west Europeans have seen their towns reduced to rubble by invaders within current lifetimes. Americans don’t seem to see that for Europeans, border disputes aren’t a funny distraction; they’re a matter of life and death
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
“Appeasement does not restrain Trump. Nor does acquiescence preserve stability. It simply confirms that coercion works.” Time for Europe to grow up and grow some. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Greenland is Europe’s credibility litmus test – it must show Trump that aggression carries a price | Fabian Zuleeg
In the new dog-eat-dog world order, appeasement doesn’t work. Time for the EU to grow up, says Fabian Zuleeg, chief executive of the European Policy Centre
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
A quick reminder that a lot of people find this time of year very difficult - and even people who seem fine can be really struggling to stay afloat. If you think you know someone like this, call! send them a message! send a stupid gif or meme! It’ll take you 20 seconds & could literally save a life
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Kate from Kharkiv @kateinkharkiv.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
Kaja Kallas: we have to be really clear-eyed. We have one aggressor and one victim. And the one that needs security guarantees is Ukraine, not Russia. In last 100 years, Russia has attacked at least 19 countries, some as many as three or four times. None of those countries has ever attacked Russia
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Gabriel Zucman @gabrielzucman.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
It has become received wisdom in Brussels and Washington that there is a new “euro-sclerosis”: that the EU economy is lagging the US This view is wrong A little primer on the measurement of productivity – and why reports of the economic death of Europe are greatly exaggerated🧵
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
“A world where China and the US both wish to eat the EU’s economic lunch, and Russia harbours darker designs to the east, is no place for a romantic view of multilateralism..Europeans deserve far better than a continent made fit for Elon Musk.Time to fight back.” www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
The Guardian view on Trump and Europe: more an abusive relationship than an alliance | Editorial
Editorial: The White House is aggressively seeking to weaken and dominate the United States’ traditional allies. European leaders must learn to fight back.
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Jon Worth @jonworth.eu · 07/12/2025
If European Digital Sovereignty is to mean anything, it ought to mean NOT posting on a platform owned and run by a fascist intent on undermining the EU! And don't give me the bullshit you have to be there for "balance" or "reach" - the rules are stacked against you from the outset
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
This book could not be more timely on the day Trump has been named the most influential person in Europe by Politico. And there is nobody who writes with more vim and verve about America’s domination of Europe than @davekeating.substack.com. I’m ordering my copy now.
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 07/12/2025
Article 5 is now not just dead, but three times cremated and then buried at sea
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Jeremy Goldkorn @goldkorn.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
From R. Crumb's satirical "City of the Future" in Zap Comix (1968)
Panel of R. Crumb comic showing a seated man with headphones and a wired to a helmet plugged into various computers that produce food for him and feed his brain with news and information.
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
“Europe is losing confidence, sinking into fatalism and justifying its passivity with the soothing thought that it has no real choice, as its cards are weak.” Excellebt op-ed by @sbeverts.bsky.social www.politico.eu/article/euro...
politico.eu
Europe’s psychology of weakness
It’s time the EU ditched its failing strategy of “react, hope, repeat.”
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John Burn-Murdoch @jburnmurdoch.ft.com · 23/11/2025
This chart (which applies even more to social media than it did to TV) lives in my head rent free. Social media enveloping traditional media means everything and everyone is now competing in the entertainment market. Boring stuff like policy that affects millions of lives doesn’t stand a chance.
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Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 07/11/2025
Hundreds of thousands of people, dead because of a decision made by the world's richest man
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
“The project is described as a prime example of 'belgo-belge' politics, where regional-federal tensions, party rivalries and symbolic posturing have overtaken practical problem-solving.” www.brusselstimes.com/1829144/schu...
brusselstimes.com
Schuman's roundabout facelift project might end up in court
The canopy project has then been shelved after EU funding plea failed, resulting in tension between regional and federal bodies and laying bare Brussels party politics.
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Petter Törnberg @pettertornberg.com · 30/10/2025
In short, the ANES data shows: 📉 Social media use is shrinking 💥 Twitter/X posting has moved ~50 points to the right 🧩 Platforms are splintering 🔊 Fewer people are talking — but those still talking are more politically extreme
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 28/10/2025
Great reporting from my parents’ hometown of Caerphilly - where the leftist nationalist party Plaid Cymru saw off a threat from Farage’s far-right Reform party in a bitter by-election.
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
The Netherlands has issues but is an extraordinarily successful society - rich, safe, healthy and beautiful, with outstanding public services. Unfortunately a lot of people take this for granted, and believe politicians who claim to be patriots while claiming everything is terrible
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Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 16/10/2025
It is wild that the 🇺🇸 Vice President is calling senior Republican staffers, men in their 30s, "young boys" in order to excuse their leaked racist, sexist and Hitler-praising text messages. open.substack.com/pub/jill/p/t...
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
POLITICO prediction vs reality.
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Madeline Horwath on St George returning to England – cartoon
The St George’s flag is more popular than ever. It’s more complicated for England’s patron saint
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Christ this is grim, seeing it laid out this way. The far right is now the most popular party in the UK, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Poland… Unprecedented
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Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 08/10/2025
"We took the freedom of speech away," says the president
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
The EU: big on the small things, small on the big.
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
‘The Brussels bubble has found its voice. Unfortunately, it’s ChatGPT’s’. Brilliant, amusing, rant against AI slop in EU circles where dull, samey writing was already a problem.
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 04/10/2025
Incredible insider account of Trump’s ignorance and petulance. But also of how effective his temper tantrums and bullying taxtics are. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
theguardian.com
‘I’m leaving,’ Trump said. ‘There’s no reason to be here any more’: inside the meeting that brought Nato to the brink
Former secretary general Jens Stoltenberg recalls the rollercoaster ride of dealing with Donald Trump – and how close the US president brought the alliance to the point of collapse
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Ben Coates @bencoates1.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
It’s refreshing to hear someone - Zach Polanski, new leader of the UK Green Party - actually making the case for migration as a good thing. Not a view you hear very often at the moment, even from those ostensibly on the centre left www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 29/09/2025
exactly like the Chinese surveillance state
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Gareth Harding @garethbxl.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Further proof that Britain’s far-right Reform Party is full of Putin puppets.
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