Briahna Joy Gray (born August 15, 1985) is an American political commentator, lawyer, and political consultant. After writing for The Intercept in 2018 she started her political career as the National Press Secretary for the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign. She was the co-host of The Hill's web programRising from September 2022 to June 7, 2024, when she was fired.[2] She is the host of the Bad Faith podcast.
Early life and education
Briahna Joy Gray was born on August 15, 1985, in Washington, D.C., to Reuben Gray and Leslie Fair-Gray, both of whom were teachers.[3] Although initially raised in North Carolina, Gray spent time in Saudi Arabia and Kenya while her parents taught at international schools in those countries.[4] In February 2001, while driving in Nairobi, Gray's father sustained fatal injuries in a car accident involving an American diplomat.[5]
In 2020, Gray was included in Fortune magazine's "40 Under 40" listing under the "Government and Politics" category.[10] On April 13, 2020, after Bernie Sanders dropped out of the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primary, Gray stated on Twitter that she did not endorse the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.[11] In response, Bernie Sanders distanced himself from her saying: "She is my former press secretary – not on the payroll." Since Sanders' 2020 Democratic primary campaign ended, Gray returned to her role as contributing editor at Current Affairs in addition to hosting the Bad Faith podcast, co-founded with Virgil Texas from Chapo Trap House.[6][12]
From September 2022 to June 7, 2024, she co-hosted The Hill's YouTube program Rising opposite Robby Soave. Mike Roe of The Wrap noted: "Gray has been a controversial figure, particularly due to her comments about the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the war in Gaza."[13] In May 2024, she took part in the Dissident Dialogues Festival in Brooklyn, New York, debating whether Israel's war in Gaza is just. During the event, she said: "When Hamas is talking about eliminating Israel, it's talking about not killing all of the Jews. It's about eliminating the idea of a Jewish state — ending a Jewish state, ending an ethno-nationalist state and having a state more like what we have in the United States of America."[14][15] Gray's comments were condemned by Democratic Representative Ritchie Torres, from New York's 15th congressional district.[16]The New Republic reported that after the debate she told the moderator, podcaster Konstantin Kisin: "This is the most Islamophobic, racist audience I've ever seen. It's disgusting. I hope someone drops a bomb on this entire building."[17][18]
On June 4, 2024, Yarden Gonen, the sister of Israeli hostage Romi Gonen, was interviewed on Gray's Rising show. At the end of the discussion, Yarden Gonen said: "I really hope that you [Gray] specifically will believe women when they say that they got hurt." Gray rolled her eyes and interrupted Gonen, ending the segment. Gray's actions were met with backlash, as she was viewed as being dismissive towards the families of the hostages.[19] Gray was fired from Rising the following day. In response, Gray said: "The Hill has a clear pattern of suppressing speech — particularly when it's critical of the state of Israel. This is why they fired @kthalps, & it was only a matter of time before they fired me."[19][20][21]
