"I refuse to be a footnote": the women who transformed war reporting Rebecca West, Martha Gellhorn and Mickey Hahn covered near every conflict of the 20th century. They invented the literary journalism we know today.

"When we're made to accept as our only sense of the past national histories that barely include us, we don't get to build on previous generations' work. Everything feels new, undone, a first. The lives of women don't iterate. We start from scratch every time."
www.broadhistory.com/i-refuse-to-...

Besides how do you get fertilisers from Middle East producer to Asian farmer or crops from Asian farmer to European consumers? Right now you dodge bombs. Haven’t seen cuke-specific coverage but stands to reason that would be a problem. Tldr: add cornichons to your allotment. 4/ and fin

In 2016, France saw this coming and relaunched local production of this essential food group. There’s also some in Eastern Europe. You know what the UK did in 2016? It made it unnecessarily complicated to import food from Europe. Also let’s be honest: we’re keeping our cornichons for ourselves. 3/

Cornichons are a very localised and thus very volatile crop, mostly coming from India bc the harvest can’t be mechanised and requires cheap labor. It’s a cuke, it needs water. India has more and more frequent droughts. In 2025 it actually had floods. Both destroy crops and your cornichons. 2/

You can’t give a French woman news of a cornichon shortage on a Sunday morning. This is serious. I did some sleuthing. Tl;dr: short-term issue, I suspect, is the strait of Hormuz. Long-term issue is climate change. Start growing them at home if you want a reliable supply. 1/

"I refuse to be a footnote" – the women who invented literary journalism Julia Cooke, author of Starry and Restless, joins me to bring back three...

🎙️ Just published a new episode of Broad History: "I refuse to be a footnote" – the women who invented literary journalism. Have a listen:

And finally, you can't judge American imperialism purely on what the country's done outside its borders. It started at home, it's the original sin, and that fact never entered the chat. 3/

It's the kind of exceptionalism that systematically fails American elites. Also not for the first time, I find both Klein's and Zakaria's characterisations of European public opinions misinformed. I beg you, consume other countries' media. AI will translate anything now, no excuse. 2/

Zakaria's blindness to US imperialism here is maddening. He sees America's crimes as mistakes on the way to good intentions, as if that was different from all other hegemons. He fails to see no one's the villain of their own story. European colonialists were convinced they were the good guys too. 1/

Hallelujah!

Also if I can stretch my arms and touch both walls, it’s not a “luxury home”

I can't count how many times I've said this but you don't get credit for putting out the fire you set

American friends, your president is threatening genocide in your name in a few hours. What are you doing about it?

At this point even recognizing who an actress is feels like a win

Not a bad day for getting older

Broad History The history you think you know – with women in it this time

It’s my birthday today. I’m not above milking it for new members to this project that means so much to me. Teach yourself some women’s history and support indie media. Discounted a ton just for today:

🎂 www.broadhistory.com/42 🎂

What happens to Britain's radical right if Orbán loses? Inside the money, power and patronage connecting Hungary and the British right

From Roger Scruton cafes to paying Matt Goodwin $10k a month, Viktor Orban has built a network of populist right think tanks, journalists and activists

Today Democracy for Sale delves into Orban’s allies on the British right

Well worth a read
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/orbans-brits

I once asked an American not to talk to me like I was fresh off the boat, which prompted another round of admiration that I knew the expression “fresh off the boat.”

Wait till it happens to Substack

The Oxford energy institute with a Kremlin problem The Oxford Institute for Energy Studies is cited across UK media as an independent expert on oil and gas. Now its Russian ties are under scrutiny.

🧵 Oxford Institute for Energy Studies often cited in UK media stories on oil and gas

But how independent is it?

Its staff includes director of major sanctioned Russian gas firm and researcher accused of pushing Kremlin talking points

New on Democracy for Sale:
open.substack.com/pub/democrac...

I’ll never understand that either

I've been joking about Pam Bondi being fired because she's a ridiculous figure, but the reasons for it happening are basically horrifying.

Even if your only moral is self interest, why be a sycophant to someone who’s proven time and again he does not return loyalty? I’ll never understand

Four World War II movies we should be making before making one about the weather No flak to Pressure, but if we can make a blockbuster war movie about a meteorologist, surely we can make some about women too

We've run out of ideas for the Rest is History dad crowd. they're making a D-Day movie about the freaking weather forecast. Meanwhile, try googling "WWII movies about women"...

www.broadhistory.com/four-world-w...

Therapy talk has won. I just asked my cat to regulate her nervous system

I’ve been having this recurring dream for a couple years now that i’m remote driving a car (don’t psychoanalyse me ok, i know) and it’s always an utter disaster

My new podcast got its first (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) review! This is a free way you can truly help – leave a kind word on Apple or Spotify 😁
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/b...
open.spotify.com/show/4fdcRPK...

Kdrathedragon, bless you! And promise, producing solo is slow, but I'm picking up the pace ❤️

Hey @franceinter.fr bug dans le journal de 8h. Dans l'affaire de la loge Athanor, ce sont des rivalités entre coachs *professionnels*, pas des coachs sportifs.

Someone got *paid* to write this local facebook group rant. I really need to get bolder with pitching.