Oct 17, 2026 · 18 min
A school shooting, Musk’s reach and Minnesota’s Senate fight
School Shooting in Bend, Elon Musk's Power, MN Senate Race
The episode connects a deadly Oregon shooting, concentrated power in technology and government, and a Senate race testing Minnesota’s political loyalties.
- 1Teachers, a bystander and others intervened during the deadly shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend.
- 2Elon Musk’s companies sit at the intersection of space infrastructure, military communications, government policy and the information economy.
- 3Peggy Flanagan and Michelle Tafoya face a close Minnesota contest shaped by affordability, immigration, fraud allegations and Trump’s policies.
Don't miss
The Bend report describes how a bystander, teachers and others intervened during the shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School.
The brief
The episode opens with the deadly shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, examining the victims, teenage suspect and intervention by teachers and a bystander.
The Bend report centers on the actions of people inside and near the school, including a teacher who was killed, as authorities continue investigating.
Ronan Farrow examines Elon Musk’s expanding influence through SpaceX, Starlink and other companies tied to space infrastructure, military communications, government policy and information.
The Musk discussion also weighs his relationship with Donald Trump, political spending and potential conflicts of interest as private power reaches deeper into public life.
Peter Cox turns to Minnesota, where Peggy Flanagan and Michelle Tafoya are locked in a Senate race shaped by affordability, immigration, fraud allegations and Trump’s policies.
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