This is an excellent watch! The Lever with David Sirota & guest Alec Karakatsanis, author of “Copaganda.” (‼️ Alert Book Alert!‼️ @thelever.bsky.social @davidsirota.com @equalityalec.bsky.social

Today, I spoke w/ @equalityalec.bsky.social about his book, Copaganda. We spoke about the police fueled propaganda that shapes how we think about public safety, why it is so prevalent, and ultimately, how public defenders can combat it. open.spotify.com/episode/2hEH...

Judging crime by media coverage is like judging a basketball player only by their missed shots. @equalityalec.bsky.social joins Lever Time to explain the real game. Watch the full episode here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3Ps...

THREAD. PBS news recently aired a dangerous news segment, full of misinformation. The incident is not only embarrassing for PBS and Democrats, but it portends dark days for the future of our society that editors published it. People at the network should be doing some deep soul searching.

💙 @davidsirota.com speaks with @equalityalec.bsky.social *award-winning #civilrights lawyer & author of the book Copaganda: How #Police & the #Media Manipulate Our #News, about how government officials are manufacturing #fear to justify #authoritarian rule @levernews.com 🇺🇸

If you’re in the Portland area this is happening today. Come join us. It will be amazing, and I’m so grateful for the students for inviting me to this important public lecture.

And, on Saturday September 20, I'll be in Montreal for what is already being called the greatest event in the history of Montreal by a person who doesn't speak French well.

The most important thing to remember when a politician says they are “tough on crime” or want “law and order” is that they ignore and immunize the crimes of the powerful and wealthy. They only enforce *some* laws against * some* people. Remind yourself of this every day.

Join us in room 225NW of the Wisconsin State Capitol on Tuesday, October 7th at 1pm for a discussion with Alec Karakatsanis, author of Copaganda, about policing, media and legislation. You don’t need to have read the book, and there will be time for discussion and questions. 1/3

Come join us this Sunday in Montreal. I'm so excited for the launch of the French-language edition of my work on the propaganda of police body cameras.

I’m excited to kick off another leg of the Copaganda tour tomorrow with an amazing event in Detroit. Come learn about how the news media, Democrats, universities, and nonprofits contribute to the mythologies underlying our authoritarian moment. www.eventbrite.com/e/copaganda-...

This is like a politician announcing that they are a "flat-earther." It's contrary to every shred of available evidence. (And common sense, as I explain in the Copaganda book when surveying how minimal various reforms are relative to society-wide trends in violence.)

Bonus episode! Lenore sat down with @equalityalec.bsky.social to talk about his book, “Copaganda,” the deeply violent nature of the American police state, and the way our media plays an active role in carrying out police terror.

THREAD. The New York Times's propaganda permitting first Biden and now Trump to pretend to be surprised, outraged, and impotent to restrain Israel has important similarities to a tactic used in domestic police brutality cases. It's vital to draw these connections.

One of the defining features of authoritarian society is the ruthless but selective use of the machinery of repression—and associated propaganda about criminality and “order”—to immunize predatory behavior of the powerful while crushing everyone else into profitable obedience.

I’ve only gotten through the Intro to Copaganda and it is a must read, especially us working in local gov’t and politics. Extra: follow the author in real time ⬇️ to unpack the media’s propping up of our ‘punishment bureaucracy’. It’s important to see how we can actually create safety for all.

I'm not even 1/10th of the way through this and I've mumbled expletives at least a dozen times. It's excellent, but I'm mad as fuck right now.

A few random headlines from the last 24 hours are a reminder that the system of “law enforcement” only attempts to enforce *some* laws against *some* people. Being “tough on crime” always means ignoring crimes of the powerful while ruthlessly crushing vulnerable people and political targets.

I spent all weekend glued to this book by @equalityalec.bsky.social — it is an ESSENTIAL read for anyone in drug policy or harm reduction spaces. I have learned so much that my brain actually might explode and I have so much work to do now

A must-watch.

Excellent thread. Quit assuming that sending the military to occupy our streets does anything to reduce crime.

Mayors don’t need extra support. Look at the budget in your average city. Look at the percentage that goes to cops already. Look at the fucking crime stats. Look at the cities that have done particularly well with their stats- it’s never about more police.

THREAD. I don't know what there is left to say about the New York Times and Democrats, but documenting their support for authoritarianism still feels important. If there's any chance to walk back from the fascist cliff, we must see why things like today's article are so dangerous.

PBS's show The Open Mind just released it's video interview with me on Copaganda. www.pbs.org/video/copaga...

What a turnout last night in Denver for the Copaganda event! It was so inspiring to meet so many cool people. And I have more good news. I am announcing events in Detroit and Philadelphia over the next two weeks! Please tell folks. Links and more new cities in next posts:

Do you know anyone in Denver? It's pretty exciting that I'll be doing a public event there on Wednesday for my new book Copaganda. If you're not in Denver, get the book so you're ready when I come to your city. All royalties to charity. Registration link in the next tweet.

I’m not sure how else to say this to the New York Times, but what we are seeing is not a “crime strategy”! You don’t have to parrot every lie a fascist tells about their motivations as if it were true.

THREAD. There is a category of well-meaning people--including, bizarrely, some journalists--who have become something of a new breed of flat-earther pushing an entirely bogus and dangerous claim that hiring more judges (and prosecutors) will have some big effect on "crime."

Here's what the third day of elementary school looked like in Mount Pleasant, Washington DC.

Today’s press conference by the DC mayor amidst the military/ICE fascist kidnappings and takeover of D.C. is one of the most disgraceful things I’ve seen. A clown cheering as she walks us off the cliff.

Has anyone noticed if this very alarming and escalatory executive order is getting mainstream news pick up?

Toronto! Join the Community Justice Collective on Sept 18th for a conversation about Copaganda with @equalityalec.bsky.social, lawyer, author, and founder of @civrightscorps.bsky.social Tickets and more info here: www.eventbrite.ca/e/copaganda-...

Trump issued two outrageous Executive Orders yesterday targeting "cashless bail." As the multi-billion dollar bail insurance industry spreads lies about the bail system, this classic video tells you a lot about what you need to know about how that system works. www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKGV...

When the history of this fascist period is written, special attention will be paid to some of our epoch’s most grotesque figures: leaders of liberal nonprofits and think tanks. It’s incredible to see someone, at this moment, put their name on this quote:

The new online vigilante portal to sign up to be a Brownshirt to deploy like a stormtrooper to brutalize poor people, immigrants, people of color, and anyone else who might dare to go to a protest is a development that should be one of the major news stories of the year. It's barely being mentioned.

Today’s Executive Order creating a *nationwide* military “quick reaction force” and setting up an online portal to permit random fascist vigilantes to join soldiers is one of the scariest things I’ve seen in U.S. politics in my adult life. Why is it not getting more attention?

Highly recommend that everyone listen to this. Crystal clear explanations for how media, cops, and politicians twist our perception of public safety to keep pumping money into the criminal legal system at the expense of addressing the actual causes of crime.

THREAD. Today's article by New York Times reporter Devlin Barrett is a good example of how bad journalism can normalize authoritarianism. Let's look at a particularly egregious example.

I just did this interesting conversation about propaganda, public safety, authoritarianism, and my new book Copaganda with amazing Professor Abigail Henson for her exciting Critical Conversations podcast. Check it out: open.spotify.com/episode/69zb...

It’s important to understand that a lot of Trump’s absurd, authoritarian claims and demands that liberal institutions are agreeing to are things some of the most nefarious donors, psychopaths, politicians, and administrators **want to do anyway.** Utterly depraved.

I love me some good law/sociology books. I'm currently reading Copaganda by @equalityalec.bsky.social, and it is excellent so far. I've talked about copaganda in TV shows, movies, and video games, but this book specifically talks about how news media contributes to our perception of policing.

Excited to announce new tour events for Copaganda. (My grandmother has called it the most important book of the year that was written by one of her grandchildren.) More details to come on times and locations, and we are finalizing more locations, but mark your calendars in the following cities:

check out this Press Play segment I produced on Trump, DC and copaganda with the author of the new book "Copaganda," @equalityalec.bsky.social www.kcrw.com/news/shows/p...

A hallmark of authoritarian regimes is the assertion of “emergency” to evade legal constraints. Any court system that does not hold a very high bar for what constitutes such an “emergency” is, at the end of the day, not a functional legal institution and just pure facade.

UC Regent Jay Sures sued a UCLA student for protest. Of course it's pro-Palestinian protest. And of course he said it was antisemitic. Ben Gharagozli and I represent the student. We beat the case. Now we're suing to make him pay our fees. Let’s break down what he said and why it matters. 🧵

Ezra Klein’s latest is diabolical. Incredibly skillful propaganda. Egregious omissions of relevant history and recent facts, sleights of hand, faux intellectual care way way too late. This is basically the “final boss” of liberal counterinsurgency.

No. It's obvious self-serving bullshit. He's been poisoning liberal minds defending a genocide, and now that it's more common to accept it, he wants a paper trail to show how thoughtful he was while Palestinians were slaughtered. Don't ever forget how these monsters were complicit. 5/5

With Trump talking a lot about cash bail, it's time to remind people: what is the for-profit cash bail system? Why does it exist only in the U.S. and the Philippines? Why is it so bad for public safety but so persistent? I explained in this short video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO5J...

THREAD. A subtle but pervasive propaganda technique is when the news adopts as the *actual* motive the *stated* motive of people in power.