Lauren

Lucy's mom. Married to @davidjfalcone she/her

[Jamie Bonkiewicz @JamieBonkiewicz]

When I paid $200 for 3 bags of groceries today, I thought to myself, “I’m sure glad they’re having a UFC fight on the White House lawn”

[Melanie D'Arrigo @DarrigoMelanie]

To be clear, those banks took over $3 billion from people who had no money.

[Nicholas Kristof @NickKristof]

Heartbreaking piece from @propublica about how Trump's dismantling of USAID is leading to the slow starvation of refugees: https://t.co/hjiodYpFwG It's hard to fathom the cruelty of officials who would abruptly pull food from families in refugee camps, leaving them nothing.

[anyone_want_chips @anyonewantchips]

With the latest mass shooting at Brown University, this might be a good time to mention that Bill Clinton’s assault weapons ban reduced mass shooting deaths by 43% - but after George W Bush & Republicans let it expire, mass shooting deaths spiked by 239%.

It's the fucking guns.

[Hillary Clinton @HillaryClinton]

It wasn't long ago that women were forced to have a male co-signer to get a credit card or a home loan.

Now, the Trump administration wants to end protections against such discrimination.

Take 45 seconds today to say "No way." https://t.co/dXGa0WKXUJ

[Brad @BraddrofliT]

The average net worth of a health insurance CEO is $156 million. NO ONE should be getting that rich because we need to see a doctor.

[Alex Cole @acnewsitics]

Every time there is a tragedy, we get to experience what a horrible person Donald Trump is.

[Sen. Bernie Sanders @SenSanders]

Mark Zuckerberg is building a data center in Louisiana that will use 3x more electricity than all of New Orleans.

Oligarchs want YOU to pay for these data centers with higher water & electric bills.

Americans must fight back against billionaires who put profits over people.

[Sue O'Connell: COMMENTATOR, not a reporter @SueOC_NBCBoston]

So You Want to Be a Journalist?
Great!
No test required.
No official certification.
Anyone can call themselves a journalist, and be recognized as a member of the 'press'.
Seriously, anyone. Just look around.

But here's the catch: just because you can doesn't mean people should automatically believe you.
That's on the reader to figure out.

So what should a reader look for?

Transparency Matters:
Follow the funding. Who owns the outlet? What are their financial connections? How do they make money: merch, views, sponsorship, ad dollars? Knowing who owns a media outlet or YouTube channel is essential to understanding potential biases.

Relationships and Disclosure:
Journalists must disclose personal or professional connections that could influence reporting. Personal friendships with sources or subjects are a conflict of interest. Financial relationships are an absolute no-no. When in doubt, the audience should know about any connection that could reasonably be seen as compromising objectivity.

Ethical Reporting:
Do they correct errors promptly? Clearly separate and label news from opinion? Do they follow the law?

Anonymous Sources 101:
Good newsrooms have serious ground rules for unnamed sources.
The reporter should tell you something about who's talking. Who are they? Why are they speaking secretly? What do they actually know?

Red Flags to Consider:
Is the content consistently one-sided narratives with vague or non-existent sourcing? Is the content written to enrage rather than inform?

There is no universal rulebook or test to determine who is or isn't a "real" journalist.
But there are standards of credible reporting.
And you – the reader – are the judge.

[The Tennessee Holler @TheTNHoller]

HOPE WALZ: “What world are we f*cking living in? I draw the line at Gus. You people are f*cking disgraceful.”

She says MAGA loyalists are now driving by their home and yelling “R*tard!” at her family and her special needs brother after Trump called @GovTimWalz the R word.

[Sue O'Connell: COMMENTATOR, not a reporter @SueOC_NBCBoston]

Keeping track of taxpayer spending matters, and @MattPrichardTV started reporting on the cost of Boston @MayorWu's Nova Scotia trip before she even left Logan.

The updated lower cost: $11,282.88

Context matters here. Every mayor has a travel budget that's part of the city budget approved by city council.
I was in Nova Scotia covering the trip. Sure, it was a photo op for the Mayor, but more importantly it was an international trade and relations trip.

If you'd told me four years ago that we'd need to shore up relations with Canada, I would've laughed. But Canada is an essential trading partner with New England, and while they were warm and friendly hosts, the diplomatic tensions were real and unavoidable. (Just try ordering a Jack Daniels at a NS pub.)

The tree gifting ceremony is a huge deal to Canadians—a tradition I think we take for granted here. I'm shocked no other Boston mayor traveled to NS before.

All things considered, $12,000 is a modest investment of my tax dollars for maintaining critical international relations with our closest neighbor.

Need perspective? President Trump, who literally threatened to make Canada the 51st state, has spent $71 million in taxpayer money on personal golf outings.

So if you're mad about the NS trip, you should be 492% madder about the golf trips.

Today Boston will welcome representatives from Nova Scotia and Canada for the tree lighting ceremony. This relationship matters. Let's put on our best and most gracious manners.

[Ayanna Pressley @AyannaPressley]

This vile hate speech is dangerous.

The repeated targeting of @IlhanMN not only puts her and her family at risk, but also every Somali, every woman in hijab, every Muslim, and every woman of color.

Shameful.
https://t.co/mYj2wGf8QJ

[Melanie D'Arrigo @DarrigoMelanie]

This is what it looks like when billionaires own the media.

[Sue O'Connell: COMMENTATOR, not a reporter @SueOC_NBCBoston]

Care about justice?

Here are things happening in the U.S. right now that don't drive traffic, don't seem exciting, and aren't money makers for influencers and YouTubers — but matter:

- U.S. military strikes killed 60+ people on boats in the Caribbean. Recent reporting: The U.S. killed survivors after the initial attacks. Families say many were fishermen, not traffickers.

- 72% of ICE detainees have no criminal convictions. In Chicago, 97% of those arrested had no criminal record.

- Federal courts ran out of funding in October. Unpaid staff, delayed cases, people losing homes and jobs while stuck in the “justice” system. So much for “innocent until proven guilty”.

- 400+ threats against federal judges this year. A third of the judiciary targeted. Impeachment calls for judges who ruled against the administration.

- U.S. fell to 57th in global press freedom rankings. 50+ incidents of police attacking journalists at protests. 3,500+ reporters lost jobs at government-funded outlets.

And this is the short list.
I know — boring procedural stuff that won't go viral…

[Robert Reich @RBReich]

Tyson is closing a Nebraska plant that employs 3,200 workers in order to “right-size” its business.

The meatpacking giant paid its CEO $22.7M last year, 525x its median employee's pay.

It also spent $196M in stock buybacks to reward shareholders.

Textbook corporate greed.

[Maryam @hell_line0]

“Girls mature faster”

No — girls get punished earlier, blamed earlier, sexualized earlier, and expected to cope earlier.

[Jeet Heer @HeerJeet]

This is the RFK Jr. story that you actually need to read.

[julie k. brown @jkbjournalist]

True.

[America’s Ghost @planterspunch7]

@anylaurie16

[Laurie Kilmartin @anylaurie16]

All these people who said they had no idea Epstein was a pedo yet Melinda Gates met him once and divorced her husband.