"Hegseth, a former Army major and weekend co-host of “Fox & Friends,” has also questioned the need for any civilian professors at service academies like West Point."

Hegseth bars military academies from hiring civilians as tenured professors

The move marks the latest effort by the Trump administration to exert more control over faculty at service academies.

washingtonpost.com

Mike Lee's vote is particularly crazy given that Ballet West --Salt Lake City's very good ballet company -- was performing at the Kennedy Center nearly every year!

H.D. Gregg@hdgregg.bsky.social · 2d ago

A bipartisan effort to ban the demolition of presidential memorials — including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — was blocked Monday night in the Senate by an objection from Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

The Heated Rivalry guys are such class acts. www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/film...

Heated Rivalry production company launches real-life Irina Foundation to support inclusivity in sports and arts

Created by Accent Aigu Entertainment co-founders Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady, new fund is based on Shane and Ilya’s fictional charity

theglobeandmail.com

I need 800 words from Robin Givhan on what's going here. The judge may have declared a mistrial, but looks like we have some fashion crimes?

The Washington Sun Metro@washsunmetro.bsky.social · 2d ago

In today’s newsletter: ⚖️ A mistrial for Trayon White 🛴 Lime-assisted crime ⚾ And what to make of the Nationals’ season

🤡 Schmitt beclowns himself 🤡 Schmitt concocted an elaborate conspiracy theory that Smith traveled to Atl for a Hawks game and to collude with Fani Willis, & flashed his "evidence" before accusing Smith of perjury. There's just one problem -- his facts were totally wrong. Here's the whole sequence:

With AI photo booths and "Loudoun County Iced Tea" cocktails, the pro–data center crowd let loose at the Data After Dark party. Protesters also showed up. washingtonian.com/2026/09/29/w...

Trump’s Republican allies in the Senate BLOCKED my bill with Senator Murkowski to stop the Kennedy Center—or any presidential national memorial—from being demolished without an act of Congress. Just shameful.

I propose an amendment that will require athletic departments to compensate adjunct professors with student athletes in their classes.

Senate passes college sports bill that would rein in athlete payments and transfers

The Senate has passed a sweeping bipartisan bill that would regulate college sports. It's an attempt to end “chaos” in an industry that has been upended by skyrocketing athlete payments and near-unres...

apnews.com

Man in a Blue Mantle, by John Singer Sargent, 1891, 📸 via @cjzero.bsky.social

No Former Modern Dancers for President 2028

Robert Reich@rbreich.bsky.social · 3d ago

I know Rahm Emanuel. I worked with him for years in the Clinton administration, and then when he was Obama’s chief of staff. Rahm Emanuel represents everything that’s been wrong about the Democratic Party for the last 30+ years. Be warned. https://robertreich.substack.com/p/the-rahm-bomb

I will say -- as a low-income worker with a 20-year-old student loan -- that universities should be required to provide more education about loans, payment plans and forgiveness programs.

The New Republic@newrepublic.com · 4d ago

Trump is banning students majoring in degrees that don’t make enough money from taking out college loans. Degrees for social work, art, religious studies, teaching aides, and music will be hit the hardest. trib.al/kQdKbY1

Or even a commercial where Canadians respond to Trump headlines by shaking their heads and saying,"I'm so sorry." Run the ads in Alaska, Maine and Michigan.

David Simon@audacityofdespair.bsky.social · 3d ago

If Democrats had the wit to make fun of Republican election hype, they'd hire a bunch of well-dressed white people, then film them driving in a column of late-model sedans to the Canadian border, gripping Amex platinum cards and offering all of their vacation money as a means of abject apology.

One thing I've noticed is that upstart worker-owned places are trying our best to pay as much as possible, but because none of us have millions is still far from how much we want to pay. But the rates at the big media companies haven't budged or gotten worse objectivejournalism.org/2026/09/free...

Freelance journalism rates have barely changed since 2000

New data from the National Writers Union offers a glimpse into a bleak picture of decades-long wage stagnation in freelance journalism.

objectivejournalism.org

I feel like Madonna just came *this* close to thanking the American Dance Festival there. #vmas

*screaming into void*

Matt Seybold@mattseybold.bsky.social · 4d ago

I’m publishing something tomorrow about Alpha School. One of the things I focus on is how it is an incubator for EdTech platforms with the ambition to hyperscale. Alpha may only have a few hundred students nationwide, but its founders are developing MANY extractive EdTech brands. This is one:

DC! What venue hosted this AI shabang? Union Stage?

Phil Lewis@phillewis.bsky.social · 4d ago

There’s a “pro-data center party” taking place in D.C. right now, with a generative AI photo booth, AI themed cocktails

Some great recs in my @washingtonsun.bsky.social column if anyone in DC wants to venture out in the rain: 👞 Music From the Sole @georgemasonu.bsky.social 🇵🇹 Portugal's 2022 Eurovision star MARO is at the Black Cat 🔥 Dance Theatre of Harlem performs "The Firebird" at National Theatre

What to Do in the D.C. Area This Weekend (Sept. 25)

Theatre Week begins, “The Firebird” takes flight and a Eurovision star lands at Black Cat.

washingtonsun.com

HEROES

WH Press Pool Reports@whpresspool.bsky.social · 5d ago

IMPORTANT: Please note that there is no TV pool for today’s trip, meaning there won't be widely available independent video of events. Print reporters will do our best to relay all relevant quotes from sprays that aren't carried on official video feeds. Consider this your wheels up. (4/5)

Alberta gonna Alberta.

From the bunheadsnark community on Reddit: What is going on with Alberta Ballet??

Posted by hairlessdonkey - 10 votes and 8 comments

reddit.com

Arts. Policy. Matters.

Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani@mayor.nyc.gov · 7d ago

Never been to the opera before? Now’s your chance. We’re giving away 70,000 free tickets to the @metopera at the iconic Lincoln Center. Go to on.nyc.gov/opera to enter the lottery. There’s not a bad seat in the house.

these people are always taking my dream jobs

Now, how did Trump land on ATSR for his Kennedy Center scheme?

Trump Taps Minneapolis Architecture Firm for Stupid Kennedy Center Renovation Scheme - Racket

Plus John Oliver on UnitedHealth Group, starry stonewort invades, and a good video from SLP in today's Flyover news roundup.

racketmn.com

Under deals signed with Pfizer and Eli Lily, "A portion of the revenue is to be shared with the Department of Health and Human Services."

The Globe and Mail@theglobeandmail.com · last wk.

For context, Belarusian gymnasts and figure skaters are forbidden from competing against ours unless they swear neutrality.

Matthew Gertz@mattgertz.bsky.social · last wk.

Just joining the Russian economic sphere I guess.

This will be a catastrophe for both filmed entertainment and news, and it's a great shame that the California AG caved. Trump and his people will celebrate this news today. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/21/b...

Paramount to Resolve Antitrust Lawsuit, Clearing the Way for Warner Bros. Acquisition (Gift Article)

The deal would remove the last significant hurdle the media mogul David Ellison faced to create a news and entertainment empire, home to movie studios, HBO, CBS and CNN.

nytimes.com

MSNow asked for my analysis of Kennedy Center developments. News changed by the hour, but here are some thoughts on The Koch Theatre, Trump Plaza Hotels and Trump's gross misunderstanding of corporate branding.

Opinion | Trump’s Kennedy Center problem may be more than he bargained for

The ongoing Kennedy Center saga shows Trump does not appear to understand how corporate branding differs from nonprofit norms.

share.google

Gundam Arch

I did NOT know journalists could request 990 nonprofit tax records that have yet been released. Glad the Atlantic has the resources to do this story. 🏆

Anne Applebaum@anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 2w ago

The Kennedy Center was financially stable until Trump took over: "In the fiscal year ending in 2024, when the center was led by President Deborah Rutter and a bipartisan board of trustees, it brought in about $40 million more than it spent" www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...

Me: Do you have the high-end maple whiskey from Quebec? The one with a French name? LCBO manager: Sortilege? It's not whiskey, it's liqueur. And it's not high-end, it's $30. LCBO cashier: [Rolls eyes] It's OK. $30 is high-end for some people.

Something very meta about running into street closures for *film shoots* during TIFF.