This oral history of Steven Spielberg's movies by @bilgeebiri.bsky.social is the kind of treat we almost never get in deadline journalism--wide, deep, and illuminating. Let yourself enjoy one section at a time--or just devour the whole thing. www.vulture.com/article/oral...

The first @19thnews.org story from @bmigdon.bsky.social as our contract LGBTQ+ reporter!

Through her academies, Dominique Dawes hopes to build a happier, more inclusive vision of gymnastics, one rooted in fun and community as much as competition. https://bit.ly/4xmgLt5

Dominique Dawes became an Olympic champion in a gymnastics culture that often demanded pain and isolation. Thirty years later, she's trying to build something different: a culture rooted in joy, community, and belonging. My latest. capitalbnews.org/dominique-da...

BREAKING: In an unsigned, per curiam opinion on the shadow docket, the SCOTUS conservatives allow Alabama to use a congressional map held repeatedly by a lower court to have been enacted with discriminatory intent.

Can't believe I'm finally saying this: You can preorder my book! For the 33 1/3 series published by Bloomsbury, I wrote about Whitney Houston's underestimated third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight. www.bloomsbury.com/us/whitney-h...

I loved this final season of Hacks so much, but especially how it came to think about what makes an artist truly "great" www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...

As if I didn't already love Hacks enough, it not only sticks the landing, but does so with the single most homosexual music cue in the history of television. I miss it already.

My dispatch from my home state: an exploration of how some Black South Carolinians are grappling with what Black political leadership beyond Jim Clyburn could look like at a moment of heightened hostility toward Black congressional districts. capitalbnews.org/jim-clyburn-...

YOU’RE LISTENING TO SISYPHUS FM, THE HOME OF NON-STOP ROCK

SPIN's 100 Greatest Singles, from the April '89 issue. Picking a single from the year before for #1 was a nose-tweak at Rolling Stone & Boomer canons, sure. But it was the right single to pick: a classic from the first listen. RIP Rob Base

ONE YEAR AGO, the most destructive tornado in 15 years tore through St. Louis’ Black neighborhoods Today, most blocks still look the same. This is what disaster recovery looks like under Trump when it hits poor Black communities: capitalbnews.org/st-louis-tor...

BREAKING: SCOTUS acts immediately on Alabama redistricting, vacating earlier decisions blocking the 2023 map and sending cases back to the district court — over the objection of Sotomayor, joined by Kagan and Jackson. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...

“There is a clear and troubling pattern here — across the independent agencies, Black commissioners and board members have been removed unlawfully at a disproportionately high rate,” Alvin Brown told me. My latest.

Some Gamble & Huff Philly soul for your mom m.youtube.com/watch?v=24rC...

As states across the South begin to dismantle Black and Latino districts, it's worth highlighting that in recent years nearly all of the region's growth, as in the rest of the nation, has come from people of color.

This was a major week for the Voting Rights Act of 1965, with SCOTUS striking down Louisiana's redistricting map. I just want to highlight some of Capital B's recent reporting — work that goes beyond punditry to show what this moment means for vulnerable communities. 🧵

That’s quite a chart www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

I looked a bit more closely at yesterday's major voting rights decision, examining what the justices said, what the case could mean for Black communities, and what advocates are doing in light of the situation: capitalbnews.org/supreme-cour...

On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to strike down the district, dealing a major blow not only to Black Louisianans but also potentially to residents in majority-Black districts in other Republican-controlled states. capitalbnews.org/louisiana-v-...

@adamlmahoney.bsky.social and I reported on the stakes of this major case last year: capitalbnews.org/black-louisi...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Virginia voters approve new US House districts that could aid Democrats in midterm elections.

The YES has won in Virginia; voters approved the constitutional amendment to adopt Dems' congressional gerrymander. This is likely to deliver a 10-1 (Dem) congressional delegation in November, compared to 6-5 (Dem) now. The remaining obstacle: State supreme court will be weighing in still.

NEW: Porsha Ngumezi and Nevaeh Crain died during miscarriages in Texas after doctors delayed treatment. The state’s medical board has ruled that substandard care led to the deaths, but the doctors were given minimal punishment. By Kavitha Surana and Lizzie Presser

Calvin Duncan had been sentenced to life in prison before he was exonerated and won a position that would allow him to tackle criminal justice reform. https://capitalbnews.org/calvin-duncan-new-orleans-criminal-district-clerk/

With birthright citizenship — which was enshrined in the 14th Amendment to clarify the legal status of Black Americans following the Civil War — on the chopping block, civil rights groups are on high alert for threats to all rights, even those long seen as safe. https://bit.ly/41571om

The team will take its final bow at this year’s national competition after a three-year run. https://capitalbnews.org/first-hbcu-gymnastics-fisk-final-meet/

Trump voted in this election — casting a ballot BY MAIL while he and his administration are trying to eliminate mail ballots. His candidate lost the race to represent Mar-a-lago.

JUST IN: Democrats tonight have flipped a GOP-held state House seat in Florida. And not just any seat: This is the district that contains Mar-a-Lago. (It voted for Trump by 11% in 2024). That's right: Trump will now be represented by a Democrat, Emily Gregory, in Tallahassee.

Decades after segregation left gaps in citizenship documents, a controversial voting bill could create barriers at the ballot box. https://capitalbnews.org/black-elders-save-america-act-voting/

I wrote about the SAVE America Act — and the voters, including Black elders, it could leave behind. capitalbnews.org/black-elders...

'Sinners' won a total of 4 Oscars tonight, including awards for Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Score. Clarksdale, Mississippi, the setting of the film, has been forever changed since the movie's release: https://capitalbnews.org/clarksdale-sinners/

THAT'S RIGHT

Congratulations to the real winners tonight: people who have opinions about things. It's our time

Michael B. Jordan winning Best Actor is a very good outcome. Whatever happens in the next 15 minutes, Sinners has had a fine night.

THREAD: I got laid off from NYMag/Vulture after 14 years. The family lost 75% of income + medical. Now mzs.press bookstore, once a side project. is do-or-die for Judith & I. I feel weird telling you this because others are doing much worse. But if you could like or share this, we'd be so grateful!

The Birdcage opened thirty years ago today, so in its honor, I want to share one of my favorite stories about Mike Nichols that didn't make it into my biography. This is from an interview I did with Nathan Lane.

I get why/that people say this, but dont' underestimate this: all other social networks are invested in making sure that posts that link to journalism remain buried, or at least never go viral. BlueSky doesn't do that. That makes it very valuable to a ton of newsrooms righ tnow.

they will see us wuther from such great heights

I'm so excited for this — come, tune in!

It's R&B WEEK in the Popular Music Books online series w/ Amani Roberts on classic R&B groups & @brandontensley.bsky.social on his 33 1/3 book on Whitney Houston, in conversation w/ Emily Lordi, whose own Whitney bio is due this fall. Join us Wed, 5:30pm ET! iaspm-us.wildapricot.org/Popular-Musi...

Billy Steinberg was a pop wizard. The hits he cowrote!! I Drove All Night! True Colors! Like A Virgin! Devastating. variety.com/2026/music/o...

essential reporting from @brandontensley.bsky.social

Whether Caribbean-rooted or New Jersey-bred, fans say that “The Score” made space for a fuller range of Black sounds, stories, and selves. capitalbnews.org/fugees-the-s...

This week marks 30 years of The Score! I had so much fun talking with fans about how the Fugees' landmark 1996 album made space for a fuller range of Black sounds, stories, and selves. capitalbnews.org/fugees-the-s...

The Washington Post layoffs were a bigger bloodbath than you thought. New figures reveal 44 to 47.5 percent of the paper's newsroom was eliminated during last week's cuts.

The Wright Museums Instagram page is HILARIOUS. Think The Office but it's the staff at a Museum for Black History. Better believe this is on my list of places to visit. Gentle Spades "I'm a veteran"

6/ The Post has lost over 375,000 subscribers in just over a year. If 10% of those readers subscribed to The 51st instead, we could hire 10 reporters and five editors, dramatically scaling our coverage of the city at this critical time. 51st.news/signup

It is worth noting the Post slashed the bulk of its arts coverage, including most of the critics, ending a great tradition in journalism.

If you are able, The Post's union has started a layoff fund for those fired by the world's fourth-richest man today. gofund.me/a310d0286