Matthew Champion

They Helped Plan the January 6 Rally. Now Their Events Company Is Raking in Millions in Government Contracts The Trump administration has awarded Event Strategies several contracts—including one that could be worth up to $100 million—with little competition, according to federal filings.

SCOOP:

In 2021, they helped organize Trump's January 6 rally.

In the last year, Event Strategies has raked in federal contracts worth $26M, many of them with no other bidders

w/ @zoeschiffer.bsky.social @leahfeiger.bsky.social @hudsongiles.bsky.social

www.wired.com/story/they-h...

after more than 15 years of draconian measures, culminating in an ongoing internet shutdown, the Iranian regime seems to be staggering toward its digital surveillance endgame

via @lhn.bsky.social

FAA post on X at 8:54am ET: "The temporary closure of airspace over El Paso has been lifted. There is no threat to commercial aviation. All flights will resume as normal."

- FAA grounds all flights in and out of El Paso for 10 days
- airspace also closed over nearby area of New Mexico
- no reason given why beyond unspecified "special security reasons"
- seems to have caught everybody by surprise

where is ICE is going next in the US? everywhere

if you’re interested in supporting our newsroom so WIRED can keep breaking stories like this, share this video, follow our account, and subscribe www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...

FYI subscribe as @wired.com under @katie-drummond.bsky.social is killing it

ICE Is Expanding Across the US at Breakneck Speed. Here’s Where It’s Going Next ICE plans to lease offices throughout the US as part of a secret, months-long expansion campaign. WIRED is publishing dozens of these locations.

NEW: ICE is leasing offices throughout the US as part of a secret, months-long expansion campaign. WIRED is publishing dozens of these locations.

ICE Is Expanding Across the US at Breakneck Speed. Here’s Where It’s Going Next ICE plans to lease offices throughout the US as part of a secret, months-long expansion campaign. WIRED is publishing dozens of these locations.

@leahfeiger.bsky.social reveals a secret, months-long expansion campaign across the US by ICE

www.wired.com/story/ice-ex...

Inside Bad Bunny’s Historic Super Bowl Halftime Show Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics, nearly 400 costumed extras, and a lot of ingenuity. And yes, that was a real couple featured in the wedding.

read the full piece: www.wired.com/story/bad-bu...

the logistics truly are wild: this props map shows the placement of various objects during Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show. all of these props need to be brought on and off the playing field in minutes. (courtesy of Tribe Inc.)

9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics, nearly 400 costumed extras, 25 carts, and one very excellent BTS explainer

‘She Has a Presence’: The ‘Melania’ Superfans Who Turned Up for Opening Weekend WIRED attended two documentary screening parties—one on each coast—for the First Lady’s film. What a time.

Q: Describe her in three words.

A: Stylish, humble, and down-to-earth.

I Escaped Chinese Mafia Crypto Slavery | Hacklab | WIRED YouTube video by WIRED

He was trapped in a crypto scam compound in the
Golden Triangle.

From the inside, he secretly reached out to WIRED's @agreenberg.bsky.social, smuggling out internal documents and videos.

4,200 pages of screenshots show a brutal glimpse into how these slave compounds operate.

Watch the story here

Tracker Newsletter: ICE in Focus As federal agents carry out Trump’s program of mass deportation, this limited-series newsletter will track what’s happening and what’s coming next.

As Trump’s mass deportation program unfolds, immigration policy and enforcement is shifting fast.

That’s why we’re launching Tracker, a limited-series newsletter navigating what’s happening and what’s next. Sign up for free: www.wired.com/newsletter/I...

I live in the UK, at my local cinema there are three showings of the new Melania film today, and there isn't a single seat booked in any of them

Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio) YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen

I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Stay free

Elon Musk Lackeys Have Taken Over the Office of Personnel Management Sources tell WIRED that the OPM’s top layers of management now include individuals linked to xAI, Neuralink, the Boring Company, and Palantir. One expert found the takeover reminiscent of Stalin.

one year ago today

www.wired.com/story/elon-m...

He Leaked the Secrets of a Southeast Asian Scam Compound. Then He Had to Get Out Alive A source trapped inside an industrial-scale scamming operation contacted me, determined to expose his captors’ crimes—and then escape. This is his story.

Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.

Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.

🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...

map of a redeveloped Gaza under the "Board of Peace" plan, showing residential and industrial areas, and coastal areas earmarked for tourism development

a plan for "New Rafah" including what looks like an AI-generated image

a plan for "New Gaza" including what looks like AI-generated images

these images, some of which look AI-generated, were presented by Jared Kushner as part of the "master plan" for Gaza at the unveiling of Trump's "Board of Peace" in Davos

"and then we said, know what, 'let's just plan for catastrophic success,'" Kushner said

Kim Jong Un opened a hot spa in North Korea and the pictures are something out of a fever dream

‘I’m Witnessing a Lot of Emptiness’: How ICE Uprooted Normal Life in Minneapolis WIRED talks to a postal worker, a teacher, two US citizens detained by federal agents, and six more Minnesota residents about life in an occupied American city.

"They put foot shackles on me and brought me to the USC area, which I found out meant US citizens. My friend and I were in adjacent cells, and there were two-way mirrors, and I just yelled, 'I love you. It's OK.'"

a dispatch from an occupied American city

www.wired.com/story/how-ic...

23 Ways You’re Already Living in the Chinese Century The robotics explosion. The energy revolution. The cultural takeover. It’s everything you wanted for the United States—but done better in China.

"While the president of this country is promising to make America great again as he strips it for parts, Chinese business and political leaders have quietly seized the moment."

@wired.com's 23 ways you're already living in the Chinese century

www.wired.com/china-issue/

Dozens of ICE Vehicles in Minnesota Lack ‘Necessary’ Lights and Sirens A contract justification published in a federal register on Tuesday says that 31 ICE vehicles operating in the Twin Cities area “lack the necessary emergency lights and sirens” to be “compliant.”

SCOOP: Dozens of ICE vehicles operating in the Twin Cities area “currently lack the necessary emergency lights and sirens” to be “compliant with law enforcement requirements"
www.wired.com/story/dozens...

Grok Is Pushing AI ‘Undressing’ Mainstream Paid tools that “strip” clothes from photos have been available on the darker corners of the internet for years. Elon Musk's X is now removing barriers to entry—and making the results public.

New with @regret.bsky.social: Grok’s creation of harmful “undress” images is relentless.

Even today, after days of scrutiny, Grok was churning out ‘bikini’ and underwear images of women every few seconds.

Researchers estimate that Grok has become the biggest creator of sexualized deepfake images

Front Page Awards — THE NEWSWOMEN'S CLUB OF NEW YORK

congratulations to all the award winners as presented by the Newswomen's Club of New York, but especially the unstoppable @leahfeiger.bsky.social www.newswomensclubnewyork.com/fps-index#/f...

The Trump Administration Wants Immigrants to Self-Deport. It’s a Shit Show The Trump administration has been virtually begging immigrants in the US to self-deport, even offering money. But some immigrants say it’s been nearly impossible.

New from me for @wired.com's newsletter this week: The Trump administration has been pushing immigrants to leave. But even those who are trying--either via the CBP Home app or through what's known as "voluntary departure"--are finding it difficult to do so.

www.wired.com/story/trump-...

ICE Offers Up to $280 Million to Immigrant-Tracking ‘Bounty Hunter’ Firms Immigration and Customs Enforcement lifted a $180 million cap on a proposed immigrant-tracking program while guaranteeing multimillion-dollar payouts for private surveillance firms.

NEW: ICE has torn up its $180M cap on a proposed immigrant-tracking program and is now guaranteeing private surveillance firms at least $7.5M each, with potential payouts reaching $281M per vendor. The change signals a shift from “pilot” to full-scale outsourcing of street-level investigative work.

COP30 evacuated after fire breaks out Thousands of people are attending the UN climate talks in Brazil.

in 2025 everything is on fire, including even the talks about climate change www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Porsche Reveals Everything About Its Cayenne Electric—Except for One Vital Thing The automaker has taken the covers off its Cayenne Electric and Cayenne Turbo Electric, the most powerful production Porsches ever. But it won’t confirm a key AI feature of its first fully electric SU...

NEW EV PORSCHE MYSTERY: "I've asked three times for an answer. Porsche still won't say. Could it be the company hasn't yet signed up to a specific model? Who knows. But it’s very odd ... Porsche will have to come clean at some point." Read the full piece on @wired.com www.wired.com/story/porsch...

Watch The Carman Family Deaths | Netflix Official Site A young man's dramatic rescue at sea spirals into accusations he murdered two members of his wealthy New England family in this true-crime documentary.

One of my favorite parts of being WIRED’s Special Projects editor is working with the team that turns our journalism into films, docs, and TV series. Today, the world gets to see one of those projects with the release of ‘The Carman Family Deaths’ on Netflix. 🧵
www.netflix.com/watch/81664825