Chaos in Minneapolis
The Brand Brief 1.8.26: Tim Walz, Kristi Noem, ICE, Spencer Pratt, Lily Phillips, Jimmy Kimmel, Tony Dokoupil, Jasmine Crockett, John Thune, and JD Vance
Actionable media intel to keep you ahead: The Brand Brief delivers a daily snapshot of the conservative media ecosystem - FOX News, podcasts, and more. | Brought to you by On Brand Strategies | Written by Carly Moran and Nathan Brand
📣 Driving the Conversation…
1,269 words | 5 minute read | Written to be skimmable (13+ hours of media covered in The Brand Brief)
New Media Voices: The future of CBS News and Minnesota
Leading FOX: Minneapolis ICE protests
Trending and Pouncing: Jimmy Kimmel is back
What the Right is Writing: Minneapolis remains the center of the world
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🎙️ NEW MEDIA VOICES
The Megyn Kelly Show - 1/7
Cea Weaver, Zohran Mamdani’s new tenant head known for calling home ownership white supremacy, cried and ran from reporters when they exposed her mom for owning a $1.4 million Nashville home
Kelly criticizes new CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil’s tearful Miami video as the feminization of mainstream media
Guest Mark Halperin discusses Minnesota is making headlines with fraud investigations, Gov. Tim Walz’s decision to not run for reelection, and now a woman shot by ICE after allegedly attempting to ram the officer with her car
Guests David Grusch and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna promote The Age of Disclosure documentary, featuring 34 high-ranking officials claiming the U.S. government has recovered crashed UFOs
The Ben Shapiro Show - 1/7
Following the death of Rep. Doug LaMalfa, the GOP majority in the House is razor-thin
Trump warns that losing the GOP majority could result in halting his agenda and impeachment attempts
Shapiro highlights polls showing strong Republican support for Trump’s seizure of Nicolas Maduro and two Venezuelan oil tankers, guest Sen. Tim Sheehy responds
As Republicans use Somali fraud and socialist extremism in New York as campaign tactics, Democrats use affordability, Epstein, and foreign intervention
Guest Alex Clark discusses the Supreme Court’s plan to decide whether to hear Bayer/Monsanto’s bid for broad immunity from lawsuits over Roundup
The Michael Knowles Show - 1/7
A trans person attempted to break into VP Vance’s Ohio home using a hammer, comes from an affluent Democrat-donating family
Porn star Lily Phillips posted a video of her baptism, but says she still supports abortion and is “deprioritizing,” not quitting, porn acting
President Trump called on legislators to be “flexible” on the Hyde Amendment, which restricts federal funding for abortions
While Trump was able to seize up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil, Knowles says the main priority was to capture Maduro and weaken partnered regimes like China, Cuba, and Iran
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani lied about being briefed by the U.S. government on the U.S. strike on Venezuela
After Party with Emily Jashinsky - 1/7
A Minneapolis woman was shot and killed in her driver’s seat after appearing to attempt to ram an ICE officer with her vehicle
Guest Glenn Greenwald, host of “System Update,” joins to discuss the U.S. seizure of two Venezuelan oil tankers
Following Rep. Jasmine Crockett and Marjorie Taylor Greene’s The View appearances, Greenwald says Crockett represents the worst of the Democrat party, while Greene appeals to everyday Americans
Jashinsky shares awkward clips of CBS News’ anchor Tony Dokoupil, and fallout by liberals over their coverage of January 6th
Actor Spencer Pratt announces he is running for mayor of Los Angeles one year after the devastating Palisades fires
📺 LEADING FOX NEWS
The Five
Minneapolis mayor tells ICE to “GTFO” after an officer shot a local woman allegedly attempting to hit him with her car
Liberals protest Trump’s capture of Nicolas Maduro, two Venezuelan oil tankers
Democrat governors post embarrassing TikToks online
LA Mayor Karen Bass gives herself credit for the recovery effort one year after the Palisades fires, despite less than 12 homes rebuilt
FOX & Friends
DHS Sec. Kristi Noem says the ICE officer who shot the Minneapolis woman acted in self defense
VP JD Vance calls on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to resign, multiple GOP state lawmakers testified on Capitol Hill over fraud yesterday
The Dept. of HHS has released a new food pyramid, flipping previous dietary standards literally upside down
The military seized a second Venezuelan oil tanker yesterday, Trump says he will sell back the barrels to Venezuela in exchange for them purchasing American products
VP JD Vance says Zohran Mamdani won because he ran on bread-and-butter issues like affordability
Nick Reiner has been assigned a public defender after his attorney quit
California homeless services are under fraud investigation, according to guest First Assistant U.S. Attorney to CA Bill Essayli
Two people killed in a Utah LDS church shooting, no suspects yet
FOX Newsroom
Video angles confirm the officer was struck by the SUV before firing his pistol, guest Sen. Majority Leader John Thune says this is the consequence of crossing the line with law enforcement
Anchors and guest Former DHS Chief Chad Wolf show live footage of protests across Minneapolis, guest ICE Director Todd Lyons confirms ICE will remain in the city
Protests break out across Tehran, Iran as economic crisis worsens and Israel launch airstrikes against Hezbollah
Trump tells The New York Times the U.S. could politically control Venezuela for years if necessary
🍿 TRENDING AND POUNCING
Tomorrow’s news today…
Seattle mayor gives stonefaced “no” when asked if anyone’s looking into daycare fraud. [X, Nawfal]
Kimmel endorses Minneapolis mayor’s anti-ICE messaging w/ new t-shirt: “Get the f*ck out of Minneapolis” [X, Elliott]
Tom Homan takes CBS News’ Tony Dokoupil to task for asking “Where’s the heart?” in Trump Admin’s mass deportations: “The heart is a secure border saves lives! The heart is less s*x trafficking is occurring! The heart is we’re finding missing children!” [X, Daugherty]
“It’s time for everyone to start getting guns and shooting these ICE agents.” [X, Libs of TikTok]
Hilton sign being removed from the hotel which canceled ICE agents’ reservations then lied about it. Incredible case of FAFO. [X, LibsofTikTok]
US Trade Gap Shrinks to Smallest Since 2009 [X, Rapid Response 47]
🗞️ WHAT THE RIGHT IS WRITING
FOX News Digital
Left-wing groups mobilize protests after fatal ICE shooting [FOX News]
Woman fatally shot in Minneapolis ICE operation identified [FOX News]
Venezuelan oil’s return could impact gas prices nationwide [FOX News]
Breitbart
Democrats Declare ‘Chaos’ in Minneapolis: Walz, Frey, Schumer Repeat Identical Talking Points [Breitbart]
ICE Agent Fatally Shoots Woman Who Allegedly ‘Weaponized Her Vehicle’ [Breitbart]
Trump: Venezuela to Turn over 30-50 Million Barrels of Oil to U.S. [Breitbart]
Danish PM Says if Trump Annexes Greenland it Will Be End of NATO [Breitbart]
Wall Street Journal Editorials
Trump’s Venezuela Oil Play [WSJ Ed]
Cea Weaver and the Socialist Crybullies [WSJ Ed]
The Iranian Protests Escalate [WSJ Ed]
The Pentagon’s Patriot-Missile Realism [WSJ Ed]
Cea Weaver and the Socialist Crybullies [WSJ Ed]
New York Post
Kennedy family insiders disgusted by ‘insensitive’ timing of Ryan Murphy’s new JFK Jr. show [NYP]
Gayle King’s future with CBS revealed after low-key lunch meeting with network news honcho Bari Weiss [NYP]
Trump pulls US out of ‘racist’ UN forum that pushed ‘global reparations agenda’ [NYP]
Tony Dokoupil gives CBS News a ratings boost despite gaffe-filled debut [NYP]
Washington Free Beacon
Democrat Graham Platner Rallies With ‘Good Friend’ Somali Lawmaker Who’s a ‘Person of Interest’ in Congressional Fraud Investigation [WFB]
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On Brand Strategies would love to help you navigate the conservative media ecosystem. Learn more at OnBrandStrategies.com, or connect with Nathan (Nathan@OnBrandStrategies.com) and Carly (Carly@OnBrandStrategies.com).








