What’s on Trump’s media menu?
The Brand Brief 2.13.26: Nancy Guthrie, John Harbaugh, RFK Jr., Gene Wu, Tom Homan, Roy Cooper, Munich, and Zohran Mamdani
Actionable media intel: 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
Note: No Brand Brief on Presidents’ Day. See you all on Tuesday!
📣 Driving the Conversation…
1,395 words | 6 minute read | Written to be skimmable (13+ hours of media covered in The Brand Brief)
What Matters: What is Trump reading? All of it.
New Media Voices: Guthrie, MAHA, and ICE
Leading FOX: Guthrie and Homan
Trending and Pouncing: ICE, IDs, and inflation
What the Right is Writing: Guthrie and Cooper
✍️ WHAT MATTERS AND WHERE WE’RE GOING…
Nathan’s quick take on where we’re headed…
Most people browse the news; Trump inhabits it.
RealClearPolitics broke down President Trump’s media diet, and long story short: he is a voracious consumer of news. He is well known for watching FOX & Friends, but what he reads, marks up, and signs with his signature Sharpie are just as insightful. His analog reading habits, courtesy of “the human printer,” are as notable as his digital ones.
While The Brand Brief focuses on the media diet of millions of American conservatives, we’ll spend more time in the months ahead looking at what influences and informs those who actually drive the news cycles. - NRB
I would love to hear your feedback - survey here. Thank you!
🎙️ NEW MEDIA VOICES
The Megyn Kelly Show - 2/12
Phil Holloway, “MK True Crime” host, joins Kelly to discuss the late-night search of roadways near Nancy Guthrie’s home, and a pair of black gloves as potential evidence
A tent has been placed outside Guthrie’s front door, and the Nest camera bracket has been removed for examination
Jim Fitzgerald and Maureen O’Connell, former FBI agents, discuss a new video showing a man with two backpacks in an alley five miles from Nancy’s home attempting to hop a fence
Will Geddes and James Hamilton, security experts, say pings from cell towers could establish the suspect’s travel route, note his gear and odd gun placement makes him appear to be an amateur
The Ben Shapiro Show - 2/12
Shapiro argues “suicidal empathy” in progressive policies is causing harm, citing freezing deaths among New York’s homeless and a school shooting by a trans-identifying individual in Canada
He interviews Harvard economist Jason Furman on AI, interest rates, and Trump’s economic proposals
Shapiro critiques AG Pam Bondi’s recent congressional testimony on the Epstein files as performative rather than professional
Sen. John Cornyn joins the show to discuss the 2026 electoral map, potential primary challengers in Texas, and the SAVE Act
The Isabel Brown Show - 2/12
Brown reports from HHS headquarters on the “Eat Real Food” campaign, part of Sec. RFK, Jr.’s MAHA initiative
Officials announced new dietary guidelines prioritizing whole foods for government programs like school lunches to combat chronic disease
The event featured diverse speakers, including AMA President-elect Dr. Bobby Mukkamala endorsing preventative nutrition and Chef Andrew Gruel advocating for home cooking.
Boxing legend Mike Tyson appeared as a special guest, sharing personal stories about obesity
Brown criticizes the historical “revolving door” between regulators and the food industry
The CJ Pearson Show - 2/12
Pearson criticizes a judge for reducing a violent offender’s sentence based on race, arguing this “soft bigotry” undermines accountability
In a Baltimore case, a woman utilized squatter’s rights to occupy a $2.3 million mansion, using legal loopholes in a liberal jurisdiction
Pearson attacks Rep. Gene Wu’s comments on minority coalitions, interpreting them as attempts to incite a “race war” for political gain
The Kylee Cast with Kylee Griswold - 2/12
Griswold interviews Federalist journalist Breccan Thies about his recent ICE ride-along in Minneapolis
Thies details a sophisticated network of anti-ICE agitators who use surveillance checkpoints and intimidation to disrupt federal operations
The pair discuss the dangerous environment for agents due to minimal local police cooperation and lawlessness permitted by city officials
They argue that the federal government’s failure to crack down on these groups undermines national sovereignty
📺 LEADING FOX NEWS
The Five
The FBI is looking into new camera footage of a man in the Guthrie case
Border Czar Tom Homan announces the end of the Minnesota ICE operation, says they found 3,364 missing children, Katie Couric downplays the importance of ICE arrests
Rep. Jerry Nadler fell asleep during the AG Pam Bondi hearing, yelling ensues over the Epstein Files
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is shielded from the press by his wife
The Canadian Mounted Police refuse to “misgender” the transgender school shooter
Retired boxer Mike Tyson says his diet was the “fight of my life”
FOX & Friends
Video footage reveals Nancy Guthrie’s attacker wore a black Ozark Trail backpack, another glove was found inside her home, Annie Guthrie’s neighbor describes the neighborhood as very spaced out
Guest Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt discusses Guthrie case, White House attempts to prevent another shutdown, and thanks Border Czar Tom Homan for his efforts in Minnesota, more than 3,000 children discovered during ICE crackdown
John Harbaugh is interviewed after being named the new coach of the New York Giants, expresses the importance of faith and patriotism
FOX Newsroom
Nancy Guthrie’s abductor is 5’9” or 5’10” with an average build, wore a black Ozark Trail backpack, gloves being sent for DNA testing, some saying the Pima County sheriff is blocking the FBI’s access to evidence
A FOX poll shows 60% of people say they could fall in love with someone of differing politics
The New York Times editorial board walks back their views on marijuana legalization
Real wages have increased by 1.25% in the past year under President Trump, CPI inflation rates drop to 0.2% in January
Mayors Jacob Frey of Minneapolis and Zohran Mamdani of New York City meet to discuss sanctuary city policies
Apple News has been accused of shutting out conservative outlets by FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson
Crew-12 blasts off from Cape Canaveral, Florida to the International Space Station today to ensure full staffing of the station
A U.S. figure skater duo is questioning the accuracy of scores by a French judge after winning silver against France in the Olympics
AOC plans to speak at the Munich Security Conference, also attended by Sec. of State Marco Rubio and Hillary Clinton
🍿 TRENDING AND POUNCING
Tomorrow’s news today…
A woman tried to burn down a warehouse in Kansas because there were rumors the owner was selling it to ICE to use as a detention center. [X, Libs of TikTok]
DHS is shutting down tonight — except for ICE — because of Chuck Schumer Democrats are purposefully shuttering TSA, Coast Guard and FEMA for political games. [X, Daugherty]
Sen. Jon Ossoff requires everyone to show a photo ID at his rallies. But he’s actively fighting against ID requirements to vote in elections. You can’t make this stuff up. [X, Grage]
Brand new data shows inflation down to 2.4% in January — beating expectations (again). [X, Rapid Response 47]
🗞️ WHAT THE RIGHT IS WRITING
FOX News Digital
Democrats push ‘unconstitutional power grab’ that could flip 4 GOP seats [FOX News]
Arizona sheriff reportedly blocking FBI access to key evidence in Nancy Guthrie case [FOX News]
DHS shutdown explained: Who works without pay, what happens next [FOX News]
Breitbart
Tim Walz: Americans Should Compensate Minnesota Companies for Employees Lost via Deportation [Breitbart]
Cardi B Tells Concert Crowd She’s Ready to Beat and Mace ICE [Breitbart]
U.S. Olympic Medalist Amber Glenn Rips Critics: ‘They Hate to See Two Woke B*tch*s Winning’ [Breitbart]
Wall Street Journal Editorials
Trump’s Climate Liberation Act [WSJ Ed]
A Little Tariff Rebellion in Congress [WSJ Ed]
NewsGuard Punches Back at the FTC [WSJ Ed]
Does Syria Need U.S. Troops? [WSJ Ed]
New York Post
The one strategy authorities could use on Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapper: hostage negotiator [NYP]
Top Goldman Sachs lawyer shocks execs with abrupt resignation after ‘xoxo’ emails with Epstein surface [NYP]
Jimmy Fallon, Tommy Mottola deal crumbles after Epstein files drop [NYP]
Washington Free Beacon
Meet the Convicted Murderers and Child Rapists Walking Free After Making Roy Cooper’s ‘Early Release’ List [WFB]
Washington Reporter
Lawmakers target foreign influence hiding in left-wing nonprofit networks [Reporter]
NEED HELP NAVIGATING CONSERVATIVE MEDIA?
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