How to navigate left-wing media
The Brand Brief 2.3.26: Ricky Gervais, Bon Iver, the Clintons, Ilhan Omar, Bad Bunny, Trevor Noah, Gavin Newsom, Zohran Mamdani, and Billie Eilish
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…
1,517 words | 6 minute read | Written to be skimmable (11+ hours of media covered in The Brand Brief)
What Matters: Left’s fracturing media landscape
New Media Voices: Bad Bunny and Jeffrey Epstein
Leading FOX: Ricky Gervais, Bill Maher, and Zohran Mamdani
Trending and Pouncing: Nicki Minaj and Billie Eilish
What the Right is Writing: Savannah Guthrie and Trevor Noah
✍️ WHAT MATTERS AND WHERE WE’RE GOING…
Nathan’s quick take on where we’re headed…
Axios is out with a new piece this week examining what a splintering left-wing media landscape means for Democrats in 2028. They sort Democrat-friendly media and influencers into six buckets:
Star Shows (Pod Save America and Ezra Klein)
Partisans (MeidasTouch and Brian Tyler Cohen)
Resistance (Jennifer Welch and Heather Cox Richardson)
Elites (MS NOW and NYT)
Center Left (The Bulwark)
Left Wing (Zeteo and Drop Site)
While The Brand Brief is your go-to source for monitoring conservative media, a small number of Democrat operatives are building similar products to monitor left-wing media (I recently subscribed to Chaotic Era and Nobody’s Listening).
Yes, these shows are unhinged, and the left is still playing catch-up, but their growth and tactics are worth watching. - NRB
I would love to hear your feedback - survey here. Thank you!
🎙️ NEW MEDIA VOICES
The Megyn Kelly Show - 2/2
Kelly and author Jesse Kelly make fun of Grammy artists like Billie Eilish, Bad Bunny, and Bon Iver for their anti-ICE rants, and Chappell Roan and Heidi Klum for their revealing outfits
As radicals infiltrate important fields like medicine and education with a bias against MAGA patients and students, they reference the Roman belief that certain entertainers were unfit for social influence
Guest attorney Jonathan Turley discusses commentator Don Lemon’s violation of the FACE Act, shame his attempts at blaming his arrest on racism and how he was able to leave with no bail
Turley promotes his new book Rage and the Republic, which compares the American Founding principles to the French Revolution
The Ben Shapiro Show - 2/2
Shapiro mocks the Grammys as an elitist gathering where celebrities like Bad Bunny and Trevor Noah preached radical politics
He analyzes the Epstein files, criticizing the DOJ for leaking victim names while noting the files confirm high-profile associations without yet proving a specific blackmail ring
The host examines dangerous efforts by Democrat-run cities like Seattle and Philadelphia to obstruct federal immigration enforcement
Author Lionel Shriver joins to discuss her new novel, A Better Life, using a home metaphor to explore the complexities of immigration
Shapiro reviews recent special election losses, such as in Texas, warning that Republican electoral momentum may be stalling
The Matt Walsh Show - 2/2
Walsh says the latest Epstein document dump vindicates conspiracy theorists by revealing the vast scale of the elite’s depravity
He examines specific emails involving Bill Gates and Ehud Barak, highlighting their casual communication regarding Epstein’s illicit activities and their shared mockery of traditional values
Walsh defends new SNAP work requirements, contending that able-bodied adults without dependents have no claim to taxpayer money without contributing labor
Walsh mocks Billie Eilish’s contradictory political statements at the Grammys and a Texas judge’s reliance on identity politics
Allie Beth Stuckey’s “Relatable” - 2/2
Stuckey rebukes claims by progressive influencers like Benjamin Cremer that supporting ICE constitutes “Christian Nationalism”
She critiques progressive Christian John Pavlovitz for demonizing white evangelicals, asserting that true biblical justice requires moral clarity rather than emotional manipulation
Stuckey highlights the hypocrisy of progressives who condemn border enforcement as “inhumane” while supporting abortion, urging Christians to apply scripture consistently to political issues
The Isabel Brown Show - 2/2
Brown critiques Hillary Clinton’s The Atlantic article, “MAGA’s War on Empathy” as a hit piece on her friend Allie Beth Stuckey
Brown defends Stuckey’s concept of “toxic empathy,” arguing the Left manipulates emotions to push policies that ignore objective truth
The host contrasts biblical compassion with secular empathy, asserting that true love cannot be separated from moral boundaries and reality
Brown critiques Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper’s emotional outburst regarding the political climate, countering that modern American women live in a time of unprecedented privilege
📺 LEADING FOX NEWS
The Five
Multiple Grammy winners used their platform to go on anti-ICE rants, Bill Maher slams the celebrities as out of touch with reality
A Vogue profile breaks the fourth wall to describe Gavin Newsom as “embarrassingly handsome”
DHS Sec. Kristi Noem says Minneapolis ICE officers will now wear body cams, hackers are doxxing officers’ identities online
2030 census projections show the GOP gaining multiple seats as residents escape expensive blue states
FOX & Friends
An investigation of Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson, AZ home found blood, as a physically disabled person she was likely abducted
British comedian Ricky Gervais mocks Grammy winners for giving anti-ICE speeches, wearing ICE Out pins
The man who sprayed Rep. Ilhan Omar at a town hall is due in court today
Speaker Johnson says “we don’t need to play games with funding” as the mini-shutdown continues over DHS spending
A female detransitioner won a $2 million lawsuit for medical malpractice
Trump invites Colombian President Gustavo Petro to the White House to discuss drug trafficking, says he wants to help “failed nation” Cuba, expects success with Iran negotiations
Charlie Kirk murder suspect Tyler Robinson returns to court today
VA Sec. Doug Collins is interviewed on how Trump’s mental health treatment executive order could assist veterans with PTSD
FOX Newsroom
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos believes Today Show Host Savannah Guthrie’s mother was abducted, describes her home as a crime scene
Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin returns to court today, Erika Kirk fights for media access to the trial for public transparency, prosecutors say their child’s presence at the Utah Valley University event is not a conflict of interest
India has agreed to stop purchasing Russian oil and switch to Venezuela’s supply, Trump makes progress with Iran talks
Trump announces plans to build a $12 billion critical minerals stockpile
House Oversight Chairman James Comer says he expects the Clintons to testify before his committee over the Epstein Files
A Vogue article includes embarrassing gushing over CA Gov. Gavin Newsom’s appearance, no mention of wildfires or true policy positions
The House will do a test vote on the Senate funding bill today, Congress has ten days to fund DHS
A new social media app Moltbook only has AI chatbot users
After acquiring xAI, Elon Musk says SpaceX is expected to go public this year
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey will testify before a grand jury today, DHS Dep. Sec. Tricia McLaughlin reacts to NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s refusal to cooperate with ICE
New Yorkers are fed up with Mamdani’s snow cleanup effort, or lack thereof
Grammy winner Billie Eilish is accused of hypocrisy for saying “no one is illegal on stolen land” while living in a Hollywood mansion
American skeleton racer Katie Uhlaender is fighting for a 2026 Olympic bid after Team Canada coach Joe Cecchini is accused of cheating
🍿 TRENDING AND POUNCING
Tomorrow’s news today…
Uh… Boston-area woman is thrilled after taking in a Haitian migrant and says it’s like having your own personal chef. [X, Mass Daily News]
The American people agree with you, @NICKIMINAJ! CNN: “The American people are with Nicki Minaj… they favor photo ID to vote.” [X, RNCResearch]
CNN writes a story about two teenagers (16 and 17) who instead of being in school, spend all day following ICE agents around Minneapolis [X, Price]
🗞️ WHAT THE RIGHT IS WRITING
FOX News Digital
Savannah Guthrie breaks silence as her mother remains missing [FOX News]
Government shutdown enters day 4 as lawmakers vote on Trump-backed deal [FOX News]
Breitbart
Biden Judge Blocks Trump’s Cancellation of Haitian Migrants’ ‘Temporary’ Amnesty [Breitbart]
Grammys: Trump Threatens to Sue ‘Total Loser’ Trevor Noah [Breitbart]
Boston Mayor Wu Claims ‘Every Single Human’ Has ‘Legal Right’ to Come to US [Breitbart]
Wall Street Journal Editorials
The ‘Deal’ in Iran Is Regime Change [WSJ Ed]
A U.S. Life Expectancy Milestone [WSJ Ed]
Crony Socialism and Rare Earths [WSJ Ed]
The Medicare Advantage Ambush [WSJ Ed]
New York Post
Gavin Newsom’s actress ex speaks out after memoir claims Getty heir urged breakup [NYP]
Meghan Markle’s unsold jam overflowing at Netflix HQ: ‘Literally giving it away’ [NYP]
Washington Free Beacon
‘Climate Change’ Was Supposed to Make DC Winters ‘More Southern’—And It’s Colder Than It’s Been in Three Decades [WFB]
Washington Reporter
Montana Senate race heats up with ad campaign, site launch focused on Bodnar’s Democratic ties [Reporter]
The Hill: The Movement
MAGA balks at pumping brakes on deportation operations [The Hill]
NEED HELP NAVIGATING CONSERVATIVE MEDIA?
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