David Corn
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DC bureau chief of Mother Jones and author of the forthcoming HOW RUSSIA WON. Pre-order the book and sign up for my OUR LAND newsletter at davidcorn.com.
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Articles by David Corn
A Test for Trump’s Disinformation Operation
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Putin Is meddling in the midterms to help Trump by spreading false sex abuse claims
National/ News/ Top Stories On Tuesday, an X account attributed to a Texas man named Zyron Lewis posted a video of Lewis claiming that in 2012, when he was a middle school student, he was sexually assaulted by James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate in Texas. This allegation—which zapped across the internet—was quickly debunked. Talarico was indeed a middle school teacher at that time, and a Zyron Lewis had been a student of his.
Mother Jones Midterms Special: David Corn & Ari Berman Join It's the Democracy, Stupid
Between the Voting Rights Act being gutted and Russian interference, propaganda, and disinformation, American elections have faced increased challenges over the last decade. Just before the midterms, Edwin Eisendrath is joined by two veteran Mother Jones journalists, National Voting Rights Correspondent Ari Berman and Washington Bureau Chief David Corn. First, Ari Berman discusses the continued right-wing attacks on voting since the Supreme Court neutered the Voting Rights Act.
What’s MIA in the Trump–Putin Story
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. As an adult, I have had two recurring dreams for decades. The first is that I must return to college to complete my studies and earn a diploma.
Putin Is meddling in the midterms to help Trump by spreading false sex abuse claims
This article first appeared on Mother Jones. It has been republished with the publication’s permission. On Tuesday, an X account attributed to a Texas man named Zyron Lewis posted a video of Lewis claiming that in 2012, when he was a middle school student, he was sexually assaulted by James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate in Texas. This allegation—which zapped across the internet—was quickly debunked.
Putin Is Meddling in the Midterms to Help Trump by Spreading False Sex Abuse Claims
On Tuesday, an X account attributed to a Texas man named Zyron Lewis posted a video of Lewis claiming that in 2012, when he was a middle school student, he was sexually assaulted by James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate in Texas. This allegation—which zapped across the internet—was quickly debunked. Talarico was indeed a middle school teacher at that time, and a Zyron Lewis had been a student of his. But the Zyron Lewis in the video was not the real Zyron Lewis.
Will Elon Musk Be the October Surprise?
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. As I’ve noted in previous issues, I’m now co-hosting a pop-up video podcast on the midterms called Stress Test with award-winning video producer Garrison Hayes.
Trump and Putin: Together at Last
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Donald Trump has finally gotten what he has desired for years: a deal with Vladimir Putin.
Whitewashing Tucker Carlson
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
How Putin Weakened the U.S. with Trump's Help | Mother Jones’ David Corn Joins The Frank Figliuzzi Show
Donald Trump has announced a deal with Russia to accept “tons” of diesel in an attempt to bring down costs in the weeks before the midterm election. As he still tries to cozy up to Vladimir Putin, Democrats and even some Republicans have slammed Trump for this potentially illegal deal. David Corn, Mother Jones’ Washington Bureau Chief, has been following Trump’s infatuation with Russia and Putin for over a decade.
My Weird Book Interview on Michael Cohen’s Podcast
When I began the publicity push for How Russia Won: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and the Fight for America, a friend who until recently worked for a major national news outlet offered me advice: Try to get on Fox News or Joe Rogan’s podcast. You’re not likely to change the mind of anyone in their audiences, she said, but you might gin up controversy that would draw attention to the book. And don’t you think, she added, they would welcome the chance to take the Trump–Russia story head-on?
How Trump Won the Russia Messaging War—and How the Democrats Lost It Original
“Hoax.” “Witch hunt.” “Russia, Russia, Russia.” For a decade, Donald Trump has incessantly claimed that there was no Moscow assault on the 2016 election and that the subsequent investigations of Vladimir Putin’s covert interference in that contest, and the contacts between Trump’s campaign and Russia, were all a phony Deep State plot orchestrated to destroy him.
How Russia’s Playing in the Midterms | David Corn & Stuart Stevens on The Strategy Session
As if the war in Iran, the tariff battle with Canada, Trump’s ballroom, the arch, ICE kidnappings, and third-country deportations weren’t enough, there appears to be another Russian disinformation op targeting Dems in the midterms. Share Maybe it’s not a surprise, but it’s something we have to be wide awake for. Stuart Stevens welcomes Mother Jones reporter David Corn to Strategy Session to discuss his new book, How Russia Won, and so much more. Give to Lincoln Square
How I Got Dragged Into a Putin Disinformation Op
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. I just published a book that exposes Russian disinformation operations. Now I—that is, a fake version of me—have become part of a Russian disinformation operation.
How Russia Is Attacking the Midterms with a Mother Jones Deepfake
A few days ago, an X user called роман—which is Russian for the name “Roman”—posted a purported Mother Jones video that reported that the Democratic National Committee paid a whopping $259 million to Mark Thompson, the head of CNN, so the cable news network would promote “gender transition among children.” The video—falsely branded with a Mother Jones logo—noted that CNN had aired “8,970 reports, programs, and shows that in one way or another promote gender transition among minors” and that...
Time to Revisit Trump-Russia Collusion
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Your Questions About Trump, Putin, and Russia’s Election Interference Answered
On Friday morning, I hosted a Reddit AMA, in which participants could ask me anything. But the questions were practically all related to my new book: How Russia Won: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and the Fight for America. The queries were smart, and none were vituperative—which was surprising given that this topic has become so toxic because of Trump’s BS insistence that “Russia, Russia, Russia” is a Deep State “hoax” and “witch hunt” orchestrated to destroy him.
Putin Revives His War on American Elections
Within the whirlpool of uncertainly around the midterm election lies the concern that Vladimir Putin will try to interfere to help Donald Trump and the Republicans.
How Russia Won and Weakened America with David Corn
He has accomplished his lifelong goal of weakening the United States of America. He didn’t need tanks, guns, or bombs. All he needed was a corrupt, weak, fickle vessel in the form of Donald Trump. Journalist David Corn has spent ten years writing about Putin’s ongoing war with America, which includes a sophisticated disinformation campaign and infiltrating the Trump family and empire through money and business deals. Putin didn’t need to blackmail Trump or threaten him. No, no.
Why MAGA Went Gaga for Putin
My new book, How Russia Won: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and the Fight for America (HarperCollins), was published this week. It covers how Russia has mounted multiple influence and disinformation operations against US elections (often to help Trump) since 2016 and how Trump, the GOP, MAGA, and right-wing media have aided and abetted this attack by denying it’s occurring.
How Russia Won
Russia is facing battlefield setbacks in Ukraine—but Moscow may not need victory there to beat the democratic West. Mother Jones Washington Bureau Chief David Corn argues in his new book, How Russia Won, that Vladimir Putin is already accomplishing his broader goals by subverting the United States from within. He makes that case to Older/Wiser’s Linda Chavez on today’s podcast.
“We’ve Been Told There’s Another Plane in the Air and It’s Heading Here”
It’s been 25 years since the horrific attacks of 9/11. In the immediate aftermath, there was a hope that this nightmare would compel the nation to adopt a more serious approach to politics and foreign policy. That didn’t happen. President George W. Bush also urged the country to not allow 9/11 to give rise to greater Islamophobia. These days, anti-Muslim bigotry appears to be more prevalent, at least when it comes to Republican politicians and right-wing figures spreading and weaponizing this hatred.
Will Putin’s Decade-Long War on US Elections Hit the Midterms?
In July 2025, Tulsi Gabbard, then–director of national intelligence, strode into the White House briefing room to press the case that Barack Obama had mounted a “treasonous conspiracy.” Days earlier, she had brazenly misrepresented declassified documents to challenge a damning 2017 intelligence assessment: Russia covertly assaulted the 2016 election—by hacking Democratic emails and pushing online disinformation—to sow discord, hinder Hillary Clinton, and assist Donald Trump.
Gloria Steinem, a Dangerous Woman
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. What made Gloria Steinem so dangerous was that she was sassy, charismatic, fierce, funny, and attractive.
Why Is Trump’s DOJ Still Helping the Russian-Linked Liar Who Smeared Biden?
On September 17, prosecutors from the Justice Department are scheduled to appear in a federal courtroom in Pasadena, California, for a rather odd event. They will argue that a mysterious former FBI informant with connections to Russian intelligence—who was convicted of lying to the bureau to spread the false accusation that Joe Biden and his son Hunter each received a $5 million bribe from Ukraine—should be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea and get a new trial.
How Trump Can Use Chaos to Cheat in the Midterms
In his crusade to undermine American democracy, Donald Trump doesn’t have to win to win. He only needs to create a mess. Look at this week’s news. There were several court actions regarding Trump’s outrageous attempt to restrict mail-in voting for the midterms. The back-and-forth was confusing, as the Supreme Court undid a lower court’s decision that had blocked key components of Trump’s plan.
The Tucker Carlson–Kremlin Bond Just Got Stronger
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Among the politerati, there’s been much cogitating about what happens to Trumpism and MAGA once Donald Trump is gone.
A Natalie Harp Conspiracy Theory (Not Really)
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. It’s very easy to be a conspiracy-monger. Let’s give it a shot.
Roger Stone Is Lobbying for a Vape Firm Accused of Illegally Marketing to Kids
Ecto World, a Buffalo, New York–based company that distributes vape products and faces legal troubles, believed it needed an influential friend in Washington, DC. Over the past three years, officials in New York state and New York City have accused the firm of illegal business practices. In March, police in New York state seized more than 28,000 pounds of illicit vape products linked to the firm, which operates under the name Demand Vape, and Gov.
I Asked AI to Write a Novel. It’s Not So Bad.
Our Land, 5 hours ago By David Corn, Washington, DC, Bureau Chief Bio | Follow Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago/Getty Images A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Like many offbeat ideas, this one originated in a bar.
I Asked AI to Write a Novel. It’s Not So Bad.
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Like many offbeat ideas, this one originated in a bar. I was drinking with a fellow author, and we were bemoaning the future of writing in a world of artificial intelligence.
The Lost Hiroshima Memoir
At 8:15 on the morning of August 6, 1945, Kiyoshi Tanimoto, a minister who presided over a Methodist church in Hiroshima, was two miles outside the city, when a tremendous flash occurred in the sky. Uninjured by the blast, he rushed toward his home and his family, passing hordes of the dead and the gravely wounded—people severely burnt, some holding their eyeballs in their hands—and scenes of horrific devastation, as an immense conflagration consumed his city. He didn’t know what had happened.
Trump’s New Ridiculous and Dangerous Red-baiting
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. History repeats “the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.” So wrote Karl Marx, the OG of communism, in 1852.
ICE and DHS’s Growing Record of Deception
Earlier this month, ICE agents in Houston shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican man who had lived in the United States for 35 years. ICE claimed Salgado Araujo, who had been driving a van, attempted to run over an ICE agent and an officer shot him “in self-defense.” Passengers who were in the van denied Salgado Araujo attempted to ram officers and disputed that the ICE officers were ever in peril.
Trump’s Election Security Speech: A Good Night for Putin
On Thursday night, after days of buildup, Donald Trump delivered a speech on election security in which he suggested US elections were threatened by China. He repeatedly pointed to China and its purported efforts to hack voter and election data and to mount influence operations to foment anti-Trump sentiment. But he provided no proof of Chinese interference with US elections or of any voter fraud. And, perhaps more significantly, he left out a big piece of the picture: Russia.
The most extreme GOP candidate in the nation
This article first appeared on Mother Jones. It has been republished with the publication’s permission. A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
The Most Extreme GOP Candidate in the Nation
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Before I get to the most extreme Republican candidate… By now you’re probably sick of hearing about Graham Platner and the debacle in Maine.
How Lindsey Graham, Eager to Serve Trump, Became a Useful Idiot for Putin
Within moments of the early Sunday morning announcement that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) had died, there was much obvious commentary about his journey from Trump foe to Trump suck-up. During the 2016 GOP presidential primary, when Graham was competing with the onetime reality TV celebrity, he blasted Donald Trump as a “demagogue” and a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot.” He urged voters to tell Trump to “go to hell.” He predicted his party would be “destroyed,” if it nominated Trump.
Elon Musk: The world’s worst trillionaire
This article first appeared on Mother Jones. It has been republished with the publication’s permission. A version of the article below first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Hooray, Elon Musk is a trillionaire. You catch that last week?
Trump and Iran: Stupid Is As Stupid Does
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Donald Trump’s war in Iran is one of the stupidest foreign policy ventures in US history. I know that’s not a new or hot take.
Elon Musk: The World’s Worst Trillionaire
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Hooray, Elon Musk is a trillionaire. You catch that last week? It was all over the news, with splashy headlines proclaiming that X-boy is the first human to enter the four-comma club.
Trump’s “Weaponization” Claim Is Total BS
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Trump’s Gift to Drug Cartels, Money Launderers, and Terrorists
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Before You Invest in Crypto, Watch This Film
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Not too sure what to make of cryptocurrency? Don’t really understand it but kind of think it’s a scam?
Trump Admin. Has Up to 120,000 Pages of Documents on Ghislaine Maxwell’s Prison Transfer
One easy-to-resolve mystery of the Jeffrey Epstein case remains unanswered: Why was Ghislaine Maxwell transferred last year to a minimum-security prison camp in Bryan, Texas, that houses mainly nonviolent offenders and white-collar crooks?
Is Trump a Racist? Let's Look at the Stats. By David Corn
Is Trump a Racist? Let's Look at the Stats. By David Corn Last month, when MAGA luminaries Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens, and Joe Kent turned on Trump over his impulsive war against Iran and his threat to destroy its whole civilization, Trump decried this gang as low IQ. That was an unusual move for himin that three of the four are white. As has been observed by others, Trump often hurls the low IQ insult at Black people. For some, thats a sign hes a racist.
Is Trump a Racist? Let’s Look at the Stats.
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Joe diGenova: The Right Pick for Trump’s Bogus “Grand Conspiracy” Case
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial.
Tulsi Gabbard’s Dangerous War
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. On Saturday, Donald Trump convened a meeting on the Iran war in the White House situation room.
Tucker Carlson’s Biggest Conspiracy Theory Yet
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. Tucker Carlson sometimes speaks plainly. Sometimes he speaks in code. When he broke with Donald Trump over the Iran war last week, he did both.
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