“For the majority of Black households in the U.S, the tradition of eating a bowl of black-eyed peas on New Year's Eve to bring in good luck and prosperity is second nature.” www.essence.com/culture/why-...

Hello, a moment for earnestness this holiday season: It was miraculous when we scraped together enough money to launch a newsroom 16 months ago. I had a clear vision of what @thebarbedwire.com could be, but it required a lot of things to go right. Many did not! thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/23/2...

All I Want for Christmas is Glen Powell. I wrote about my celebrity crush for @thebarbedwire.com thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/23/g...

A thirst trap who oozes irresistible charm. Texas’ finest leading man. A boy every mom dreams of her daughter bringing home for the holidays. The inimitable wordsmith @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social on her burning desire for Cuffing Season’s #1 Draft Pick, Glen Powell thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/23/g...

You know what it is— If Taylor wrote it, YOU NEED TO READ IT!

I wish there was a Spotify Wrapped for journalists because I wrote my ass off this year.

I wrote about the never-ending reign of "All I Want for Christmas Is You", everyone's desire to make the next holiday classic, and how nostalgia prevents us for opening up to new Christmas songs for @time.com time.com/7341203/chri...

“But, what about those who were country before it was trendy? What about the generations of Black farmers and ranchers whose lands were seized from them by eminent domain?“ I reviewed #HighHorse : The Black Cowboy for @thebarbedwire.com

“The rise of the creator economy has blurred the line between the personal and the performative.” Really enjoyed a short piece in the recent Time magazine by @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social These opening lines on the frankly out-of-control “content creator”/“influencer” economy are excellent.

Emmanuel’s story enraged many Houston residents as community members grappled with the cruelty of keeping a disabled child locked away from his mother. This article was published in partnership with @thebarbedwire.com:

‪It's official! I'm now the Newsletter Writer and Contributor to Big & Bright from @thebarbedwire.com. I'll be creating a twice-monthly newsletter and regular stories about the highs & lows of LGBTQ+ Texas life, with an emphasis on queer joy. 🏳️‍🌈⭐👏 Subscribe for free: thebarbedwire.com/subscribe/

Black women are experiencing the highest rates of unemployment since the COVID pandemic. 91,000 Black women lost their jobs in the month of September. I reported on the Black women's unemployment crisis and possible solutions to resolve it for @url-media.bsky.social url-media.com/black-women-...

Black women’s unemployment rate is higher than the national average, twice as high as white women’s unemployment rate, and slightly higher than Latinas’ unemployment rate (by @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social) url-media.com/black-women-...

Hey Chicago! I will be teaching a pop culture criticism course in the spring through @storystudiochicago.bsky.social. If you love all things pop culture, then you’ll love learning how to write a critical essay about your favorite tv shows, film, etc. www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...

"Until social platforms compensate users for their data and labor, we remain unpaid workers in a trillion-dollar industry that thrives on our attention." @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social

"The problem isn’t creation itself. It’s that the platforms and policies surrounding it reward constant exposure while offering little protection in return. Data is monetized, privacy erodes, and the line between “sharing” and “working” disappears." time.com/7332708/crea...

“Data is monetized, privacy erodes, and the line between “sharing” and “working” disappears. Until social platforms compensate users for their data and labor, we remain unpaid workers in a trillion-dollar industry that thrives on our attention.” My latest for @time.com time.com/7332708/crea...

"Yet, one should be hopeful about the ascension of worker-owned, independently-operated media outlets on the rise, whose mere existence is an act of defiance against the forces of censorship that are present in the nation’s media and journalism industry." Thank you @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social!

I think a lot about the culture publications (such as Bitch!) that were an incubator for incredible writers who went on to do all kinds of work. With dwindling opportunities for cultural criticism, it's hard for established writers to get that work (hi) and even worse for new and emerging talent.

Appreciate the @theflytrapmedia.com shoutout in this great @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social read about the loss of Teen Vogue and what Teen Vogue meant for early-career writers, especially BIPOC and disabled writers, who face significant barriers to entering the field.

"Where are young people, specifically young journalists, supposed to get their start in journalism? Where are the platforms that will sharpen and strengthen their voices?" (thx for the @theflytrapmedia.com shout out, @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social !!)

“The removal of diverse voices at any time without just cause sets a precedent for the erasure of progressive ways of thought and ideologies that contradict those in power.” I wrote about the consolidation of Teen Vogue for Missing Perspectives. missingperspectives.com/posts/teen-v...

The trend has translated into an emphasis on family-friendly benefits like parental leave and health care coverage, as well as protections against sexual harassment.

the Teen Vogue politics section's last newsy story 🥲 Rainesford knocked it out of the park

thank you for the outpouring of support! those of us laid off from Teen Vogue yesterday are now sharing our GoFundMe to help us cover our emergency expenses now that we've lost our incomes, as we get back on our feet.

Not a single Black woman works at Teen Vogue.

a generation of young digital media professionals and writers got their start at teen vogue. the news and politics section was my journalism school. the roster of editors at the publication is the reason why I have a strong editorial voice today. the news of its closure is heartbreaking.

Teen Vogue was my first editorial home. In my senior year as an undergraduate student at Abilene Christian University, the head of News and Politics section offered me the opportunity to contribute to their vertical. Nine years later, I’m a full-time culture writer. This news hurts me to my core.

Teen Vogue took young people seriously. It's impossible to overstate how important, how rare, and how profoundly needed that is.

It’s truly scary how few mainstream publications are willing to publish working class voices and perspectives (let alone leftist ones), and every one we lose is yet another blow to the fragile hope for a better world

I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day. certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.

I wrote about Cassie Ventura and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs in a piece for @time.com last year. My words ring true today as he was sentenced to 50 months in prison. time.com/6992188/hip-...

“…we must abolish the very systems that encourage men like [Sean “Diddy”] Combs to perpetuate them in the first place. If hip-hop is meant to survive another 50 years, it cannot continue like this. This is the watershed moment we’ve been waiting for.” time.com/6992188/hip-...

A lot of people (him included) thought he’d get time served. This is better than that. So good

#academicsky #highered #blacksky

I wrote about the firing of @karenattiah.bsky.social from the @washingtonpost.com, the expulsion of two Black college students in Texas, and the dangerous precedent that is being set up around free speech and academic freedom in the U.S. for @thebarbedwire.com thebarbedwire.com/2025/09/26/f...

In the weeks since the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, historically Black colleges and universities have experienced terroristic threats. That’s the story @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social set out to write about for us. Except she struggled to get anyone to talk.

Can someone list off the names of the remaining Black women columnists at news publications in the United States? Because I’m trying to see something.

Some personal news: I've been fired from the Washington Post in the aftermath of the Charlie Kirk shooting. Thread incoming. substack.com/@karenattiah...

“Texas isn’t just big—it’s a place with a rich history of progressives fighting an often thankless uphill battle.” Billy Begala writes about the wonderful and nonsensical nature of our state, and why independent journalism is more important than ever.

When I see people online, even in jest, suggest that people living in Republican-controlled states should be abandoned because of their politicians, I feel a deep heartache. New York CREATED Donald Trump and none of y’all are ever talk about it the way you disparage Alabama or Mississippi.

“Although the practice of witchcraft is not new—people have long turned to the occult for cosmic intervention during difficult times—this trend is unique because the practice of hiring witches to do spellwork is no longer considered taboo.” Have you read my latest piece for @time.com?

When Summer Willis was drugged and raped, a loophole in Texas law kept her from getting justice. After years of activism, including crawling 13 miles on her knees to raise awareness, she told @thebarbedwire.com, “We did the impossible.” thebarbedwire.com/2025/09/04/t...

“More than a dozen big tech companies provide five-figure subsidies to any employee who needs or wants to outsource gestational labor.”

it’s been an interesting response to my latest @time.com article on BlueSky to say the least. what folks are overlooking is that people are paying spiritual practitioners to protect their loved ones from nationwide immigration raids. time.com/7307401/rise...

Morning read by @taylorcrumpton.bsky.social

"Although the practice of witchcraft is not new—people have long turned to the occult for cosmic intervention during difficult times—this trend is unique because the practice of hiring witches to do spellwork is no longer considered taboo." my latest for @time.com time.com/7307401/rise...

I wrote about America's favorite couple, NicOlandria, specifically Olandria for @thebarbedwire.com. I went in-depth about racial fetishization and colorism that Black women experience in the pursuit of love, and interracial dating in the South. #LoveIslandUSA thebarbedwire.com/2025/08/25/n...