iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ron Lieber

@ronlieber.bsky.social

7K followers 568 following 670 posts

I work for readers as the New York Times money scribe. Author of "The Price You Pay for College," teacher of a course about merit scholarships (meritaidcourse.com), Brooklyn now but forever Chicago. He/We/Abba. Gratitude and rage.

Posts Replies Media

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

BREAKING: Uber has completely changed their driver background checks (in the wake of a lot of horrifying driver violence) thanks to the dogged, months-long reporting and perseverance of my colleague Emily Steel, one of the best there is. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/26/b...

Uber Enacts Stricter Background Checks for Drivers

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

Many thanks for posting this outside the newsroom window, who/whatever you are.

A billboard that says "Stop Hiring Humans"

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

UPDATE: Bank of America/Merrill Lynch and Daffy have NOT cut off the Southern Poverty Law Center the way Schwab/Fidelity/Vanguard did. BOA/ML stance: The IRS hasn't taken away SPLC's tax exempt status. S/F/V stance: Well, they've been indicted and that's our standard. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/01/b...

Schwab Affiliate Halts Customer Donations to Southern Poverty Law Center

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

NEW: Schwab's donor-advised fund operation has cut off donations to the Southern Poverty Law Center, just like Fidelity and Vanguard did. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/01/b...

Schwab Affiliate Halts Customer Donations to Southern Poverty Law Center

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

UPDATE5 (?): Daffy, a donor advised fund startup, will continue to allow its account holders to donate to the Southern Poverty Law Center. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/b...

Fidelity and Vanguard Won’t Allow Donations to Southern Poverty Law Center

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

UPDATE: Vanguard has also stopped allowing its donor advised fund customers to give to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Schwab still seems to allow it but is dragging its feet on official comment. We'll see what the afternoon brings. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/b...

Fidelity, Vanguard Won’t Allow Donations to Southern Poverty Law Center

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Hi all, if anyone out there has a Vanguard donor advised fund, could you please drop me a note at lieber @ nytimes dot com with your mobile number. I'm having some trouble getting a straight answer out of them.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

BREAKING: Fidelity won't let customers donate to the SPLC anymore via their charitable gift/donor-advised funds, citing Trump admin indictment of SPLC. No response yet from Schwab, Vanguard... but soon. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/b...

Fidelity Won’t Let Fund Holders Donate to Southern Poverty Law Center

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Stalking? "In preparing the article about Mr. Patel and Ms. Wilkins, Ms. Williamson followed normal procedures for a journalist working on a story." www.nytimes.com/2026/04/22/u...

F.B.I. Said to Have Investigated Times Reporter After Article on Patel’s Girlfriend

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Robert Kelchen @robertkelchen.com · 17/04/2026

American higher education is a wonderful thing.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

BREAKING GOOD NEWS: There is a house at @carleton.edu where you can bake cookies at basically any time. I spent 12 straight hours in the kitchen and came back for breakfast the next morning: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/17/d...

Other Colleges Have Frat Houses. This One Has a Cookie House.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

If you're finishing Passover tonight, it is time to gorge yourself on the forbidden things. My NYT Dining story from 2018. www.nytimes.com/2018/04/02/d...

Celebrating Mimouna and Its Dose of Post-Passover Carbs (Published 2018)

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

Happy pub date @noamscheiber.bsky.social! His book "Mutiny: The Rise and Revolt of the College-Educated Working Class," is all about what you've probably been noticing (rise) and perhaps hoping for (revolt). And check out this incredible cover. Excerpt below. Go buy this thing.

Noam Scheiber's book cover

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

BREAKING/EXCLUSIVE: Senator Warren has some questions for Mr. Beast about his newly acquired money app -- and his intentions around kids trading crypto -- after reading our story earlier this month. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/23/b...

Warren Requests Information From MrBeast About Crypto and Children

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Sixteen years pre-Noma revelations, I got kicked out of a restaurant for standing up to the chef (and up for the staff). Here's what happened: archive.nytimes.com/dinersjourna...

archive.nytimes.com

Why I Got Kicked Out of a Restaurant on Saturday Night

A dinner at Restaurant Marc Forgione raises the question, when a chef screams at his staff, is it O.K. to ask him to stop?

Reposted by Ron Lieber

An Arm and a Leg @armandalegshow.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

Thirty-six hours before his wife was scheduled for a major surgery, @nytimes.com personal finance columnist @ronlieber.bsky.social got a letter that sent him reeling — insurance was denying prior authorization for the procedure. What happened next here:

armandalegshow.com

NYT’s Ron Lieber: ‘These people are not going to win' • An Arm And a Leg

When NYT columnist Ron Lieber's wife got an unexpected insurance denial 36 hours before surgery, he started asking: why does this happen? And — given that we're stuck with this system for now — how can we better prepare ourselves?

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

My dad won his battle with ALS five years ago today. As we navigated a very tough journey, we got a lot of things right and a few things wrong. I wrote it all down not long after, and it's still one of the best columns I think I've ever written. Fred Lieber z'l. www.nytimes.com/2021/02/26/y...

Dad, a Death Sentence and the Planner Who Set Us Straight (Published 2021)

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Leah Litman @leahlitman.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Jodi Kantor in the NY Times reports that the Chief Justice requested Court employees sign nondisclosure agreements in November 2024 - moving to formal contracts requiring silence/confidentiality after Trump was reelected: www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...

In November of 2024, two weeks after voters returned President Donald Trump to office, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. summoned employees of the U.S. Supreme Court for an unusual announcement. Facing them in a grand conference room beneath ornate chandeliers, he requested they each sign a nondisclosure agreement promising to keep the court’s inner workings secret.

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Eric Lipton NYT @ericlipton.nytimes.com · 02/02/2026

Why The Times Is Expanding Its Supreme Court Coverage How four reporters are examining the most secretive branch of government — and the nine justices who shape the law. Jodi Kantor Adam Liptak Ann E. Marimow and Abbie VanSickle www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...

Why The Times Is Expanding Its Supreme Court Coverage

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

I gotta say, I prefer Goose to Geese, even after taking in this piece and the videos. How about you? www.nytimes.com/2026/01/25/a...

Geese Gives ‘Saturday Night Live’ Viewers Something to Talk About

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

BREAKING: Corporate law firms are now recruiting eighth graders for 2L summer associate jobs. yaledailynews.com/articles/law...

yaledailynews.com

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

My wife @jodikantor.bsky.social, minister to the clueless, has written a career pep talk for 22 year-olds. Perhaps yours has tuned you out? The (very short) book is out 4/21/26. Preorder link in the next frame (1/2) but here's People on the deal... people.com/how-to-start...

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist Jodi Kantor Announces New Book 'How to Start' — See the Cover! (Exclusive)

Jodi Kantor's new book 'How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work' is a guide to finding a meaningful career. 'How to Start' is out April 21, 2026.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

The Trump administration seems to have forced Coke to become Mexican Coke. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/u...

Trump Says Coca-Cola Agreed to Use Cane Sugar in Coke Made in U.S.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

BREAKING: Nutella cereal coming soon from Kellogg's. www.wsj.com/business/dea...

Exclusive | Ferrero Nears Roughly $3 Billion Deal for Maker of Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes

A deal for cereal maker WK Kellogg could be finalized as soon as this week.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

We hunted down everything from the tax bill that just passed that might hit you in the wallet. It's... a lot. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

See How Trump’s Big Bill Could Affect Your Taxes, Health Care and Other Finances (Gift Article)

The wide-ranging domestic policy legislation could impact taxes, clean energy choices, health care access and more.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

Great op-ed. This is why I've quit pro sports fandom. There are great ideas in here for laws; here's another that might be bad: I should be able to shove a $10 or $20 bill into my TV/phone/laptop and watch any, single game I want -- or subscribe to any NBA finals/World Cup for a reasonable price.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

Anyone who uses State Farm for anything should really read this story. And if you switch insurers, tell them California sent you to do it. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/12/r...

California Opens Investigation Into State Farm

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

I'm playin' my guitar and building castles in the sun... and singing Fun Fun Fun.

Barenaked Ladies - "Brian Wilson" (5/6) 2007 HD

YouTube video by Shout! Studios

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

The WSJ has the receipts showing that Meta doesn't care much about consumer fraud. One ironic twist - as a Meta advertiser myself for my merit aid course, there are all sorts of scammers trying to convince me that *my ads* are bad and I'm about to have my account shut. www.wsj.com/tech/meta-fr...

Meta Battles an ‘Epidemic of Scams’ as Criminals Flood Instagram and Facebook

Fake puppies and phony offers of mouthwatering bargains are often seeded by overseas crime networks; employees say company is reluctant to impede its advertising juggernaut

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Am I the only one wondering if a group will run Bay to Breakers this year dressed as Elon and 14 babies? www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/a...

The best costumes of San Francisco's Bay to Breakers race

Runners went all out at San Francisco's 2024 Bay to Breakers race on Sunday, sporting an array of colorful costumes

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

Amazing. Miraculous, really. And this is the most interesting phrase in the story: "which built on decades of federally funded research..." www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/h...

Baby Is Healed With World’s First Personalized Gene-Editing Treatment

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

This is about the most Chicago obit I can imagine. What a delight. chicago.suntimes.com/obituaries/2...

chicago.suntimes.com

Pat Scala, whose legacy looms large in the city's Italian beef community, dies at 77

Pat Scala's family ran Scala Packing Co., a meat wholesale business supplying restaurants. He promoted Italian beef sandwiches, now universally recognized as a Chicago icon, beyond the city and suburb...

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

Google calendar works fine in our family, but I guarantee you that if you're partnered with offspring you'll recognize something in this delightful story, which is really more about relationships than it is about calendars. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/12/s...

Can a $700 Calendar Save Your Marriage?

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

Back on the @marketplace.org radio waves talking about who pays what and why for college. This morning, I got word that someone used my advice to get another $40,000 out of Syracuse AFTER the teenager had committed on May 1. That family gets an A-plus. www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...

marketplace.org

How colleges come up with the price of admission

Reporting in The New York Times finds that schools are turning to little-known consultants to optimize how much they charge.

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Nicole Bedera @nbedera.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

I cannot emphasize enough how many decisions on college campuses are made by a handful of external consultants.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

Brave, and useful, by @katieroiphe.bsky.social. It's never too late to start talking to kids about money. www.wsj.com/personal-fin...

I Was Terrible at Money. My Daughter Should Learn From My Mistakes.

Having grown up believing it was crass to talk about finances, I got my own education the hard way.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

NEW: The little-known consulting firms that tell colleges what kind of aid and discounts to offer to each individual student. Whenever I explain this to people out loud, their jaws hit the floor. I finally wrote it down. Happy May 1 decision day to all who celebrate! www.nytimes.com/2025/05/01/b...

Who Decides How Much You Pay for College? Here’s How Tuition Costs Are Set. (Gift Article)

Schools turn to little-known consultants, owned by private equity firms, to find applicants and calculate scholarships. Here’s how that affects the price you pay.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

"This letter marks the first time since October 7 that Jews at Columbia with varying perspectives have come together to publicly affirm that Jewish safety is never dependent on the targeting of other minorities and the stifling of dialogue." www.columbiaspectator.com/opinion/2025...

columbiaspectator.com

Sh’ma Koleinu: A joint message from Jews of Columbia across the ideological spectrum

We, a diverse coalition of Jews at Columbia and Barnard, wholeheartedly reject the invocation of <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/additional-measures-to-combat-anti-sem...

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Genuine good news for your Thursday. What a delight. And management is leaving the dancers alone. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/a...

Penn Station’s Not-So-Secret Other Life: The People’s Dance Studio (Gift Article)

Smooth floors. Public restrooms. A built-in audience: The lower level of Moynihan Hall doubles as a rehearsal space for a variety of dance groups, including K-pop, salsa and Brazilian Zouk.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Some people fear the Trump administration so much that they are trying to take their bylines off old campus newspaper stories and have their quotes scrubbed from articles. www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...

Fearing Trump’s Visa Crackdown, College Students Race to Scrub Op-Eds

Campus newspapers are confronting ethics debates as foreign students ask that their names and views be removed from past articles.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

Didn't take them long. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/b...

Jury Rules Against Palin in Libel Case Against The New York Times (Gift Article)

After two hours of deliberation, a jury rejected Sarah Palin’s claim that she had been defamed in the newspaper’s 2017 editorial.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

Read til the end. The comments are heartbreaking... and then someone shows up to utter such a sick burn that it will make you smile and forward the story to a family that has a member who is autistic. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/18/w...

RFK Jr. Claimed Autism ‘Destroys’ Lives. Autistic People Disagree.

People in the community called the remarks dehumanizing and warned they could perpetuate harmful stigma.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

Get your macrosfad diet alerts right here on page one of the WSJ. www.wsj.com/lifestyle/pr...

Americans Are Obsessed With Protein and It’s Driving Nutrition Experts Nuts

Ozempic and a social-media-fueled focus on fitness have supercharged America’s love affair with protein. Food companies are packing the nutrient into candy, ice cream and soda.

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Staci D. Kramer @sdkstl.bsky.social · 17/04/2025

>>one young person told me: “I want people to know about what they did to Americorps. For many of us, this was our way to pay for college, to get away from home, to figure out what to do with our lives, it was a big step. And they just ripped it out from under us without even a 2-week’s notice.”<<

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

"It’s been a rough year for yachts." www.wsj.com/style/yachts...

How to Ruin an $800,000 Vacation? Hire the Wrong Person on Your Superyacht

Seeking freedom from office life and the adventure of “Below Deck,” rookies are signing up to join yacht crews. But the jobs are harder than they look on TV.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Damn Who knows if any of this will stick. But if it does, how many millions of people are going to get waaaay more aggressive with what they deduct and fail to report? It will be a totally wild -- and dangerous -- experiment in real time. Maybe AI can do all the work. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/15/u...

More Than 20,000 IRS Employees Accept Trump Administration’s Resignation Offer

The I.R.S. had about 100,000 employees before President Trump took office. Between resignations and layoffs, the I.R.S. is on track to lose about a third of its staff this year.

Reposted by Ron Lieber

Brian Stelter @brianstelter.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

A reporter from The AP was allowed into this afternoon's East Room ceremony — the first time the news outlet has been allowed into one of these events since the Trump White House put its ban into place in February.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Some institutions of higher learning are incredibly cunning marketers.

Ron Lieber @ronlieber.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Big, long stock market losses, when they happen (and they eventually do, or always have at least), teach very valuable (albeit expensive) lessons.