Sign in

Luke Johnson

@ljohnson.bsky.social
657 followers 341 following 1.1K posts

Journalist in Berlin Lukegjohnson.com Publicsphere.news

PostsRepliesMedia
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 9h
ai for kids seems like cigarettes for kids or beer for kids. it's just bad.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 10h
who among us hasn’t asked someone to wire 100k to their AmEx account in a way that wouldn’t leave a paper trail? www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
wsj.com
Exclusive | ‘Honey Please’: Kimberly Guilfoyle Pushed Donor to Wire $100,000 to Her Amex Account
Text messages with a MAGA ally show Guilfoyle seeking funds and offering access to top administration officials before becoming ambassador to Greece.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I wish I were surprised. It was a turning point in Russia's turn towards autocracy, in that an investigative journalist was murdered with very few consequences.
010
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Ukrainians hit the largest oil depot in Moscow this morning in a massive drone attack meduza.io/en/news/2026...
meduza.io
Massive Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow and surrounding region kills two, sets region’s largest oil depot ablaze — Meduza
A massive Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and injured six others in the Moscow region, Governor Andrei Vorobyov said.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
New newsletter: is the multibillion-dollar oil deal brought up by Putin in the Kremlin a 'win-win' for Kushner and Witkoff? publicsphere.news/p/was-this-t...
publicsphere.news
Was This the ‘Win-Win’ With Putin?
Putin reportedly dangled a multibillion-dollar oil deal in a September meeting with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff
100
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Eric Lipton NYT @ericlipton.nytimes.com · 03/10/2026
JUST POSTED: Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have pushed a multibillion oil deal with Russia as part of peace talks that will bring profits to their family business partners. A new front for Trump-era conflicts of interest. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/u...
nytimes.com
U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies (Gift Article)
President Vladimir V. Putin brought up a sale of Russian energy assets with President Trump’s envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, pushing a deal that raises new questions about conflicts of inter...
24730621798
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Timothy Snyder @timothysnyder.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
It appears that the National Guard shot and killed an unarmed man (in the back). www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Autopsy shows National Guard fatally shot Memphis man in the back
The report conflicts with the authorities’ initial account, which said Tyrin Johnson had been shot in the chest.
7723621271
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Trump invited Putin to the G-20 in balmy Miami this December. Meanwhile, Putin plans to freeze Ukrainians by cutting off 90% of the power supply in big cities and targeting water and sewage plants. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/02/w...
nytimes.com
Russia Is Planning Its Most Powerful Blow Yet to Try to Freeze Ukraine
Ukraine showed European partners what it said were intercepted Russian plans to cut off major cities from power, heat and water this winter.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is state barbarism.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Too funny. Also Jack Smith looks kinda like Dr. Robby from The Pitt
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Important conversation with @emmanuellechaze.com on the humanitarian catastrophe in #Oleshky publicsphere.news/p/q-and-a-59...
publicsphere.news
Q&A #59: Journalist Emmanuelle Chaze on the Humanitarian Catastrophe in Russian-Occupied Oleshky
Russia is engineering a humanitarian crisis in occupied Ukraine
056
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Please do join in about 90 minutes at open.substack.com/live-stream/...?
open.substack.com
LIVE SOON: How Russia is engineering a humanitarian catastrophe in occupied Oleshky
Starting Sep 29 at 10:00 AM EDT
021
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Barbaric. an attack on a civilian target in the very center of Kyiv with people climbing out of windows to avoid being burned alive.
020
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Stanislav Aseyev @stanislavaseyev.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
So, in Russian-occupied Oleshky, people are boiling soup from grass and eating dogs; there are reports of people starving to death. Russia is completely blocking people from leaving the city and preventing humanitarian aid from getting in. Today it became known that Ukrainian drones...
35032
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Trump's leverage in the world has greatly diminished. My weekly NL: publicsphere.news/p/the-incred...
publicsphere.news
The Incredible Shrinking U.S. Role in the World
Trump’s shock schtick shows diminished U.S. power
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Call me naive but what is the U.S. government doing funding political ads?
010
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
the pattern in these cases is when openAI doesn't get what it wants from open sources, it hacks into the system to get the information. dystopian. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/t...
nytimes.com
OpenAI’s A.I. Tried Breaching Four Other Targets, With No Prompting
In each incident, the technology appeared to be conducting mundane data collection and resorted to hacking techniques to get it, researchers said.
000
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Kevin Rothrock @kevinrothrock.me · 24/09/2026
Zelensky says Kyiv receives interceptors from partners *one or two at a time,* reliant on direct, personal negotiations with national leaders. He argues that only the US could help on a large scale and has asked Trump for more, despite shortages that are only getting worse. t.me/RBC_ua_news/...
t.me
РБК-Україна
🇺🇦 Зеленський розповів, як Україна "збирає по краплі" ракети від партнерів Про це президент заявив на брифінгу в Нью-Йорку. За його словами, ракети надходять не сотнями чи тисячами, а по одній-дві - ...
1167
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Friedrich Merz went before the cameras 15 minutes after the first results were announced in an effort to quell calls that he should resign, but CDU chiefs met together for 2 hours last night without him.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The CDU failing to cross the 5 percent threshold in last night's Mecklenburg-West Pomerania is a first ever for one of the major German parties. It's more proof that Germany is increasingly difficult to govern as the center collapses and the far-right and far-left surge.
100
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
It's an underrated development how cheap drones have eroded the U.S.' military edge. It's now easy to shoot a 30k drone at a $5 million fighter jet, neutralizing the U.S.' massive defense budget. publicsphere.news/p/trump-is-a...
publicsphere.news
Trump is Accelerating the Post-American World
It’s not only middle powers moving away from the U.S., but erstwhile allies like Canada
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
This week saw a major acceleration in what Fareed Zakaria once called the "post-American world," not only with the EU-Canada "associate" membership but the declining influence of U.S. military power. publicsphere.news/p/trump-is-a...
publicsphere.news
Trump is Accelerating the Post-American World
It’s not only middle powers moving away from the U.S., but erstwhile allies like Canada
101
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
I was on this trip to Georgia in 2024 and we met with the very brave organizers of Tbilisi Pride. Tugba should be freed immediately. She was arrested for simply interviewing them for a news story.
010
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
In his mind, Trump’s comparison of calls for greater AI regulation to global warming is clear: he thinks both are conspiracies designed to hinder U.S. economic growth. www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Trump says AI safety fears a 'hoax' as he rejects calls for greater safeguards
The US president's comments come after Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark told the BBC an AI "kill switch" may need to be mandatory.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
this happened in march 2025...Trump claimed an "energy and infrastructure" ceasefire but the Kremlin said it was "energy infrastructure" and violated it right away. publicsphere.news/p/putin-is-b...
publicsphere.news
Putin is 'Breadcrumbing' Trump
There's always a 'but' with the Kremlin
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Trump, again, gets out in front of his skis on a limited cease-fire for Ukraine. kyivindependent.com/breaking-tru...
kyivindependent.com
Trump claims Ukraine, Russia agree to halt strikes on energy targets, Kyiv unaware of deal
"Ukraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy Targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!" Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sept. 14.
100
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
just another Watergate, every day.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I wasn't going to write a 9/11 anniversary piece, but late yesterday, I realized that the military adventurism abroad and security state at home that was created after has reached its apex in Trump's 2nd term. publicsphere.news/p/how-the-us...
publicsphere.news
How the U.S. Response to 9/11 Led to the Second Trump Term
We’re still living in the world created in the days and weeks after the attacks.
000
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Emmanuelle Chaze @emmanuellechaze.com · 10/09/2026
Today is the 4th anniversary of the liberation of Izium. Back then, authorities uncovered mass graves where Russia had buried 447 bodies: mostly civilians, 215 women, 194 men & 5 children, as well as 22 Ukrainian soldiers. A sight I will never forget. That was my report👇 www.dw.com/en/ukraine-w...
dw.com
Ukraine: Izium bodies show signs of torture and execution
Over 400 people are being recovered from shallow graves outside the town of Izium, Ukraine. DW's Emmanuelle Chaze visited the horrific scene and spoke to investigators, who believe war crimes took pla...
07046
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
does this actually make stronger coffee?
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Ukrainians “understand that giving a ‘win-win’ to Putin would mean losing their country.” publicsphere.news/p/for-putin-...
publicsphere.news
For Putin, Jared Kushner’s ‘Win-Win’ Solution is Out of the Question
Putin views the world in zero-sum terms.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I was wrong. I predicted that Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff would not come to Kyiv, but they did, after the Kremlin announced a short cease-fire. However, Kushner’s floating of a “win-win” solution was fanciful. publicsphere.news/p/for-putin-...
publicsphere.news
For Putin, Jared Kushner’s ‘Win-Win’ Solution is Out of the Question
Putin views the world in zero-sum terms.
100
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
I predict that the Witkoff-Kushner trip to Kyiv will never happen. It is like Lucy and the football. kyivindependent.com/trump-envoys...
kyivindependent.com
Exclusive: Trump envoys' first Kyiv trip thrown into doubt after Witkoff 'gets scared'
"The Russians don't want them to come here to Kyiv, and Witkoff is always sensitive to Russian sentiment," a person familiar with the matter said. "They're being told there that it's dangerous."
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
My latest on the Leipzig attacks and Berlin's response: "For Germany and Europe, time is running out to respond to these Russian attacks before the frog is boiled and they become the new normal." publicsphere.news/p/boiling-th...
publicsphere.news
Boiling the Frog
Russian attacks on Europe risk becoming the new normal
000
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Christiaan Triebert @trbrtc.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
This is reporting of the Visual Investigations team (@malachy.bsky.social + editors) and NYT international and DC colleagues: Farnaz Fassihi, Erika Solomon, @johnismay.bsky.social, Sanam Mahoozi, Adam Rasgon, Leily Nikounazar and Josh Holder. Gift link to article: www.nytimes.com/2026/09/02/v...
nytimes.com
In Small Iranian Town, a U.S. Attack Turns a Wedding Into a Tragedy (Gift Article)
The bomb that hit the residential area was American, according to a weapons expert and a visual analysis by The Times. It killed five people and wounded 67 others, the Iranian authorities said.
213241
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Notable that Germany eventually pointed the finger at Russia. However, most of these responses -- closing Bonn consulate / Berlin cultural center -- are too minor or too vague, like harsher action against Russia's shadow fleet. www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Germany says Russia behind Leipzig airport drone attack
A drone carrying an explosive device was discovered at the airport close to Ukrainian cargo planes on 4 August.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
It's not Putin "plans to" escalate. He's already escalating with daytime jet-powered Shahed attacks on Kyiv, attempts at sabotaging Ukrainian cargo in NATO territory, sending drones into Romania www.economist.com/europe/2026/...
economist.com
Cornered, Vladimir Putin plans to escalate his war
His refusal to back down is rooted in Russia’s gangster politics
043
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Reupping my interview published at the end of the week with historian Timothy Ryback about how Hitler dismantled a democracy in 53 days. His message is that in 1933 and now, elections have consequences. publicsphere.news/p/q-and-a-ho...
publicsphere.news
Q&A #58: How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days
A conversation with historian Timothy Ryback about his new book, “53 Days: How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy”
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Here's my interview with historian Timothy Ryback about his new book, "53 Days: How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy.” We discussed how the 1933 election has a comparison with the upcoming midterm elections and this past spring's elections that unseated Viktor Orban. publicsphere.news/p/q-and-a-ho...
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
attention: free speech absolutists www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/u...
nytimes.com
West Point Climate Professor Says He Was Fired for Refusing to ‘Defy Science’
Dr. Adam Kalkstein is suing the U. S. Military Academy, where he was a professor of geography and the only climate scientist, after being fired.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Color me skeptical that John Ratcliffe's reported warning to Moscow not to attack NATO countries is very effective, when his boss, Donald Trump, has consistently cast doubt on whether the US would actually come to the defense of its NATO allies.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
It isn't publicly known why CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a surprise visit to Moscow. However, it is worrying because former CIA Director Bill Burns made a similar visit in late 2021 warning Putin against launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. www.wsj.com/world/cia-di...
wsj.com
CIA Director John Ratcliffe Makes Surprise Trip to Moscow
The agency declined to comment on Ratcliffe’s first publicly known trip to the Russian capital, where he spent about four hours before leaving.
021
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Trump believes that weaker nations will capitulate to him because the U.S. is stronger. International affairs doesn't work like that, and Canada and Iran are showing the limits of this approach. publicsphere.news/p/in-canada-...
publicsphere.news
In Canada and Iran, Trump’s Coercive Foreign Policy Shows Its Limits
Trump thinks that the weak will surrender to him. He is wrong.
000
Reposted by Luke Johnson
Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Washington Post Ordered to Rehire Fired Columnist www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...
nytimes.com
Washington Post Ordered to Rehire Fired Columnist Karen Attiah
An arbitrator ordered the newspaper to reinstate Karen Attiah, who was fired after posting about “white men who espouse hatred and violence” following Charlie Kirk’s killing.
837148
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Top Trump officials like JD Vance repeatedly said the U.S. should 'pivot' to Asia. However, the U.S. is disengaging. My latest. substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com
So Much for the Trump Administration’s ‘Pivot’ to Asia
Trump Administration officials complained that the U.S. needed to focus on East Asia to deter China. The Iran war changed that.
001
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
and Ukraine has a new permanent defense minister kyivindependent.com/parliament-v...
kyivindependent.com
Parliament votes through Yevhen Khmara to succeed Fedorov as defense minister
In the final parliament vote, Khmara's nomination was confirmed by 312 lawmakers.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
quite the contrast from her late brother, who could give a cogent quote on say, the new prime minister of Pakistan, without much effort.
000
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
I've spoken to election experts in Ukraine and none of them thinks even a scaled-back election is feasible. Also, if he thought this before, why join the gov't? It seems like Fedorov is losing here. kyivindependent.com/fedorov-call...
kyivindependent.com
Fedorov calls for wartime elections, says Putin shouldn't decide when Ukrainians vote
Democracy is "part of what we are fighting for today," Former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said.
100
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
It's the natural end point for the musical artist who has proven unable to be cancelled to perform in a country that wants to be uncancellable. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/17/a...
nytimes.com
Kanye West Announces Russia Concerts, Months After Western Europe Cancellations
Two St. Petersburg concerts by the rapper formerly known as Kanye West could become the first performances by a major Western act in Russia since the country invaded Ukraine.
001
Luke Johnson @ljohnson.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
publicsphere.news/p/trump-appe...
001