Paul Blest
Reporter
I'm a reporter based in the South covering labor, politics, and breaking news. I was previously a news editor at Splinter and a reporter at INDY Week, and I cofounded the newsletter Discourse Blog. I've also written for The Nation, The New Republic, In These Times, and more.
A Black Family Was Reportedly Stopped for Tinted Windows. Then CPS Took Their Kids.
The five children were placed in state custody, including a a four-month-old who is still breastfeeding.
Another House Republican Has Been Accused of Stealing GoFundMe Money
Looks like another Republican is pulling a George Santos.
‘Mississippi Lynching’: What Happened to Rasheem Carter?
A Black man disappeared last year after telling his mother that men were chasing him and yelling slurs. A month later, Rasheem Carter was found reportedly decapitated. His family wants answers.
George Santos Ran Credit Card Skimming Operation, Former Roommate Says
Would it surprise you to learn that George Santos has been accused of yet another crime?
LGBTQ Suicide Hotline Workers Are Burned Out After Being Attacked by the Far Right
Staff at the Trevor Project, which operates a crisis support hotline for queer youth, say the organization isn’t adequately supporting them—and they’re unionizing in response.
Legal Weed Just Took a Rare Loss in This Red State
Oklahoma just voted against legalizing weed, a rare loss for a movement that’s made enormous strides over the past decade.
Republicans Are Pushing to Make Child Labor Easier
Republicans in Arkansas passed a bill that would allow children as young as 14 to work without first obtaining permission.
The Right Wants to Boycott Hershey’s Because a Trans Woman Was in Its Ad
The right is furious that Fae Johnstone, a 27-year-old transgender woman, appeared in a Hershey's chocolate ad campaign.
Florida Republicans Are Terrified of Gender Studies Majors
A new DeSantis-backed bill would ban gender studies, “intersectionality,” and “critical race theory” from the state’s public colleges and universities.
Here Are All of George Santos’s Many Legal Problems (That We Know About)
Sit down when you read this, it’s going to take a while.
Tesla Workers Say Twitter Shadowbanned Their Union Account: NLRB Charge
Workers alleged in an NLRB filing that Twitter intentionally made the Tesla union account to be “less accessible and functionally hidden.”