RFK Jr. promised to take on plastic. Now he's part of an administration embracing it. “The administration’s explicit goal to unleash the fossil fuel industry will also unleash plastic pollution.”

I'm grateful to work at an independent non-profit newsroom, especially now. Mother Jones runs largely on donations, so thank you for keeping us afloat for nearly 50 years!

“Spoiler alert: we found that public institutions in large, Republican-leaning states are disproportionately affected by the policy.”

For years, medical professionals and transgender advocates have been saying the "Society for Evidence-based Gender Medicine" was not following the principles of evidenced-based medicine. Now the "godfather" of evidence-based medicine is leveraging the same claim against them. (1/)

People who want to organize their climate news: New newsletter alert! My colleagues have been working hard on this. Check it out:

Thinking about Brandi Hand, who lived through Katrina 20 yrs ago today—and Helene. What people don't realize about these storms, she said, is the "small stuff": "The very ground underneath your feet is not solid in the same way again, for the rest of your life." www.motherjones.com/environment/...

Got something a journalist should look into? Here's our new "How to Leak to Us" page at the Center for Investigative Reporting—home to Mother Jones and Reveal. I'm personally interested in tips about science, health, and the environment—but all topics welcome: www.motherjones.com/contribute/h...

Thank you for hosting me, @sejorg.bsky.social!

#SEJSpotlight: Meet SEJ member @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social, who covers climate, the environment and the politics of science @motherjones.com. Check out her investigative features, reporting on new scientific studies, health and science Q&As and more here: www.sej.org/sejspotlight...

Scoop: NOAA's climate portal, climate.gov, will soon no longer publish new content after its staff were recently dismissed. Former staff fear that the website may become a mouthpiece for the administration's anti-science views. My latest for @theguardian.com: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Sungida Rashid died after giving birth at a Massachusetts hospital run by the for-profit chain Steward Health Care. She wasn't alone: @h-lev.bsky.social and @melissa.news uncovered 12 more instances of moms and newborns who died at these hospitals over the last 14 years: bit.ly/455xC7O

NIH is ending funding for research on vaccine hesitancy, the Covid pandemic, gender-affirming care, climate change, DEI, and more. Here’s the language the agency will require staff to use to describe the cuts, according to a leaked draft guidance memo: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Appreciated @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social's ode to the majestic hellbender — bellwether of aquatic ecosystems, victim of extreme weather and political bullshit. www.motherjones.com/environment/...

The Trump administration is “releasing” hundreds of authors who’ve been working on the National Climate Assessment, including an author I interviewed last week. The author's words of warning seem even more urgent now: www.motherjones.com/environment/...

America's largest amphibian is at risk of extinction. Which is also bad for us humans! Thank you, @hencarnell.bsky.social, for getting me on camera and whipping up this snazzy video for @motherjones.com:

As one of my coworkers put it after reading, “The fate of the hellbender salamander is the fate of us all”—which pretty much sums it up

Immensely grateful to all the people speaking with journalists about the Trump administration’s actions. Without them, we’d have little idea what’s going on. I spoke with an author on the National Climate Assessment, who explains what it'd mean to lose it: www.motherjones.com/environment/...

Thank you for sharing, Longreads! ❤️

On Earth Day, don't miss @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social 's story about a rare salamander at threat of extinction from climate chaos, sprawl, and Trump—and the passionate biologists determined not to let us turn our backs on it www.motherjones.com/environment/...

Meanwhile in early experiments "mRNA-based cancer vaccines demonstrate exceptional advantages" translational-medicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....

Sometimes the biggest stories are the easiest to tell through the lens of one creature. This is the story of the Eastern hellbender—a giant salamander at risk of disappearing forever—but also about ecological grief, Donald Trump, and how extinctions happen: www.motherjones.com/environment/...

Really enjoyed speaking with @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social at @motherjones.com for this piece on Helene's impacts on #Appalachia. The story discusses our long-term river restoration work & how ongoing attacks on science by the Trump admin might impact regional conservation efforts.

Was able to confirm that the medical journal CHEST received a letter from Trump's DOJ. The letter claimed that journals have become "partisans in various scientific debates" and requested information about how the journal handles “competing viewpoints.” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

I’m proud to say Mother Jones is reinforcing its fact-checking operations! As part of that, my colleagues are looking for smart and curious early-career journalists to join the newsroom for a yearlong crash course in fact-checking investigative journalism: www.motherjones.com/careers/fell...

The Trump admin is gutting cutting-edge climate + health research. I spoke with a scientist who lost funding for a 3-year, $4.2 million center to study climate change and the progression of Alzheimer's. It's just one of ~20 centers like it now at risk: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Kinda flying under the radar: Donald Trump signed a new EO on April 8 directing his government to “expeditiously” take action to “stop the enforcement of State laws” designed to reduce “greenhouse gas” emissions. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Not all “Hands Off” events were in-person. I attended two virtual events centering chronically ill and disabled people for @motherjones.com, who are terrified about attacks to Medicaid, Section 504, research funding, education and more. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

As protesters gathered in hundreds of cities and towns across America on Saturday, “Hands Off” rallies also kicked off in capitals around the world—including London, Paris, Brussels, and beyond—in a display of anger and solidarity.

At the #HandsOff protest at Bryant Park in NYC. There are too many people to count… and also bagpipes.

“We must come together once again to reauthorize PEPFAR & work to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. Now is the time to remind the world what American leadership can accomplish when we put our minds & hearts to it.” —Sen. Lindsey Graham & others, 2023 www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

After decades of research, science delivered the most effective, preventative HIV drugs the world has ever seen—and the US is throwing up its hands and abandoning efforts to share them with those most in need. Read @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social + @samveep.bsky.social's report.

Rain gardens not only prevent flooding, they can be really pretty

Christine, 33, explains that young scientists will be hit hardest by these cuts. "If you don't get grants and bring in money, you're not seen as a viable scientist, and so that's the career to becoming a professional and being able to stay in the field."

At the #StandUpforScience protest in NYC—several hundred people turned out to Washington Square Park today to protest Trump’s cuts to public research

Had a fascinating chat with @charlespiller.bsky.social about his new book “Doctored” on misconduct in science and the investigation that rocked the Alzheimer’s world: www.motherjones.com/environment/...

How doctored science infected Alzheimer’s research - thanks to @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social for a masterful entry point to my new book in a way that provides key context for this political moment www.motherjones.com/environment/...

You know things are serious when scientists are on the picket line. “It’s sad that we have to do this,” one organizer told me after a protest. "But it was amazing to see the support. It felt powerful." Here's how academic unions are rallying to defend science: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

"People were angry. People were crying." "It’s like there was a shadow institution inside or surrounding the agency." "What rules are we following? Whose rules are we following?" A purged NSF worker speaks out: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Research funding is being cut, scientists are being fired & studies suppressed, @holdenthorp.bsky.social is saying at the #AAAS conference. This harassment “has gotten worse in the last 6-7 years, it’s gotten crazy since November & it’s been absolutely insane in the past 3 weeks”

If you are a scientist at NIH/CDC/EPA etc. and you've been impacted by layoffs and are open to chatting about your experience (on or off the record), please reach out to me at [email protected] or on Signal @jackiefmogensen.01

So, so proud of this collaboration with @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social and so grateful to so many scientists—especially early career researchers—who spoke with us. “It is just common sense that in order to have the best science, we need the broadest, most inclusive environment for scientists.”

What will science lose without DEI? That’s the question @hencarnell.bsky.social and I sought to answer with this piece. A hell of a lot, it turns out: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Been thinking a lot today about the words of this NIH researcher, speaking about morale at the agency: “Every day there’s something new, some new curveball… I think a lot of people are worrying, what is my backup plan?” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

looking to chat with anyone at or adjacent to USAID about what's going on with DOGE there. you can message me on signal at timothypmurphy.41.

We just published an especially relevant warning from Craig McLean, the acting chief scientist and head of NOAA Research during "Sharpiegate." He defended scientific integrity—and was removed as chief scientist. Scientists can't be silent now either, he says. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

“There was no central, clear message. It felt a little bit like that was part of the plan.” “I think a lot of people are worrying, what is my backup plan?” An NIH researcher describes the chaos of the Trump administration’s first 10 days: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

NSF’s most recent statement on federal funding pause: #PsychSciSky #socialpsyc #devpsyc #AcademicSky #cogsci #neuroskyence #womeninSTEM #neurosky #philsky #phdsky #cogpsyc #EvPsych #stats #pedsky #sociology #medsky 🧪🏺 🌎 🌐 #polisci #metasci #philsci

What the Hell Is Going on at NIH? Scientists sound the alarm about Trump’s unprecedented “Big Brother” research crackdown. @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social writes @motherjones.com www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

I am so impressed by @jackiefmogensen.bsky.social’s amazing reporting here on a very scary moment for science and our country. 🧪