In the immediate aftermath of Donald Trump’s election as president, Amy Siskind, a former Wall Street executive and the founder of The New Agenda, began compiling a list of actions taken by the Trump regime that pose a threat to our democratic norms. Under the headline: “Experts in authoritarianism advise to keep a list of things subtly changing around you, so you’ll remember,” Siskind’s list began as a project she shared with friends, but it soon went viral and now has more than half a million viewers every week.
Compiled in one volume for the first time, The List is a first draft history and a comprehensive accounting of Trump’s first year, chronicling not only the scandals that made headlines, but the myriad smaller but consequential acts that otherwise fall through cracks. Amy Siskind appears in conversation with Jay Rosen, the author of PressThink, an award-winning blog, and the book What Is Journalism For?