The War on News is a weekly attempt to make sense of a world that increasingly feels unmoored from reality. It tracks the collision of politics, media, culture, conspiracy and power — not as isolated stories, but as a single, rolling narrative shaping how we understand 2026 and ourselves within it.
This week’s War on News moves from pop-culture grief to imperial overreach, conspiracy politics and climate reality — a reminder that distraction and disaster now arrive in the same news cycle.
This week on The War on News we try to make sense of 2026 so far — a wild mash‑up of pop culture, imperialist insanity, conspiracy snarls, climate disaster, and a cry‑in‑the‑club sandwich of current affairs chaos.
Stranger Things, Storytelling and Collective Grief
Sure, Stranger Things season 5 finally dropped — and has everyone crying into their Eggo waffles — but now Netflix has followed up with One Last Adventure: The Making of Stranger Things 5 documentary, giving fans a backstage pass to the emotion and craft behind the series finale. It premiered in mid‑January, reminding everyone why good storytelling still matters.
Trump, Venezuela and the Collapse of International Norms
Coup, Oil, and International Law Chaos: In early January 2026, the United States launched a major military intervention in Venezuela, capturing President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. President Donald Trump said the U.S. would “run” Venezuela and tap its oil reserves — actions that critics call a blatant breach of international law and an act of imperial aggression.
Conspiracy Politics and the WHO Panic at Home
Meanwhile here at home, conspiracy‑fuelled calls from some quarters to pull New Zealand out of the World Health Organisation briefly bubbled up — the result of paranoia about shadowy global governance. All it really succeeded in doing was reminding everyone with basic comprehension that conspiracy swamp logic doesn’t pass a reading age test of five. (No citation needed — you know who we’re talking about.)
Expansionist Rhetoric and the Return of Imperial Thinking
The same Donald Trump whose forces just snatched Venezuela also talked publicly about seizing Greenland and hinted at aggressive posturing toward Iran — moves that have left many observers shaking their heads at the reckless disregard for sovereign borders and global stability. (General reporting and context around this political rhetoric have been in circulation globally throughout 2025 and 2026.)
Climate Disaster in New Zealand and Political Denial
Back on local soil, extreme weather events driven by climate change — including devastating damage and fatalities in Mount Maunganui and other regions — have laid bare the consequences of delaying meaningful climate action while leaders opt for PR over policy.
Escapism, Distraction and the Emotional Cost of Constant Crisis
Mercifully, even in this emotional hellscape, some merciful joy arrived in the form of a Terraria update — giving at least some of us a reason to turn off the news and smile again. A real, honest relief.
Why The War on News Exists
And then… there’s Melania To top it all off, the Melania documentary dropped this year — because nothing says levity like immersing yourself in celebrity fodder while the planet burns, economies wobble, and autocrats go hunting for sovereign terrain.
The War on News exists because chaos without analysis is just noise. In a media landscape built to overwhelm and distract, the task is not to look away — but to slow the story down, interrogate power, and connect the dots others would rather keep separate.
