John Hayward

National Security Deputy Editor

John Hayward

Follow John Hayward

I'm a conservative because there is so much about the American tradition that is worth conserving. I worry that people aren't as frightened of authoritarians and totalitarians as they should be. Freedom and capitalism are inseparable, because without capitalism, freedom just means shouting your opinion and hoping somebody important is listening.

National security, technology, global political and economic strategy

Associate in Arts, Edison Community College, 1986

Hayward has been a writer for Breitbart News Network since 2013. Prior to that, he worked for two decades in computers and business consulting before becoming an amateur blogger under the pseudonym "Doctor Zero" for Hot Air. As he developed a large following, he also received criticism for being an anonymous voice, so he decided to reveal his full name and go public. Shortly thereafter, he began doing radio interviews across the country for his writing and was contacted by Human Events in Washington, D.C. to become a full-time professional columnist.

Management at Breitbart News noticed his work and invited him to join Breitbart.com. Hayward jumped at the opportunity to "join a platform with so much reach, to be a part of something so huge."

Hayward's work has been cited by radio and television outlets from Rush Limbaugh and Mark Levin to Fox News. His essays have been incorporated into several high school and college textbooks, and he gives occasional lectures on media analysis and writing online. He frequently guest-hosts Breitbart News Tonight on SiriusXM channel 125, the Patriot Channel.

Articles by John Hayward

UAE Demands Curbs on Missiles as Gulf States Suffer Brunt of Iran Attacks

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are growing increasingly vocal in denouncing Iran for its wanton attacks on their cities and oil infrastructure, although they have yet to commit to aggressive military action against Tehran.

Spokesman for the United Arab Emirates' Ministry of Defence, Maj. Gen. Abdul Nasser Al-Hum

Indonesia and India Join Movement to Ban Social Media for Children

Indonesian Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said in a video statement on Friday that her government will “delay access” to social media for children under 16, following in the footsteps of Australia’s unprecedented ban on accounts for young people. On the same day, India’s southern tech-heavy state of Karnataka announced a similar ban. 

children phone

U.N.: 100,000 Displaced by Afghanistan-Pakistan Conflict

The U.N. said on Friday that over 100,000 people have been displaced by fighting between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which has been running at a tempo close to open warfare for the past week with no end in sight.

Afghan families along with children escape from the area amid the ongoing clashes between

China Adjusts GDP Projections Down After Iran War

China’s big “Two Sessions” annual meeting of its rubber-stamp legislature produced a report on Friday that revised GDP growth projections down to a “range” of 4.5 to 5 percent, a significant downgrade from the 4.9 to 5 percent projection for 2025.

BEIJING, CHINA - MARCH 5: Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) and Premier Li Qiang speak afte

U.S. Hits Iran with Improved Copies of Its Own Suicide Drones

The U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran this weekend featured the operational debut of LUCAS, the Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System, a “suicide drone” modeled on Iran’s notorious Shahed series of drone bombs. LUCAS is a remarkable example of American ingenuity: a vastly improved copy of Iran’s only serious technological innovation since the Islamic Revolution, taken from product rollout to battlefield deployment in just eight months.

Iranian-made Shahed-136 'Kamikaze' drone flies over the sky of Kermanshah, Iran

Reports Claim U.S. Arming Kurds to Fight Iran

Several media outlets in the U.S. and Israel have reported that the U.S. has asked the Iranian Kurds to join the fight against the regime in Tehran, potentially neutralizing security forces in western Iran and paving the way for another popular uprising.

Members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) participate in a military drill i

China Pleads with Iran to Keep Strait of Hormuz Open for Oil Shipments

China is pleading with Iran to keep the Strait of Hormuz open for oil shipments, but the terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) insisted on Monday that any ship attempting to pass through the strategically vital strait will be “set ablaze.”

YANTAI, CHINA - OCTOBER 15, 2023 - A large oil tanker leaves the 300,000-ton crude oil ter

Reports Dispute Senior Iran Official Ali Larijani’s Claim of Rejecting Talks with U.S.

Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani – seemingly the de facto leader of Iran following the liquidation of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Operation Epic Fury – insisted on social media that he will never negotiate with the United States, but there were reports on Sunday that Larijani has quietly reached out through intermediaries in Oman to resume nuclear talks.

Title: Lebanon Iran Image ID: 25225408002313 Article: Iranian Secretary of Supreme Nationa

Dozens of Senior Iranian Leaders Killed in Operation Epic Fury

The list of Iranian leaders eliminated by U.S. and Israeli strikes in Operation Epic Fury is growing, and includes much of the top command structure of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the designated foreign terrorist organization that handles both overseas terrorism and internal repression for the Islamist regime.

Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is attending to speak to his supporters durin

Saudi Arabia Condemns Iranian Attacks on Gulf Nations

Saudi Arabia on Saturday morning strongly condemned Iranian missile attacks against U.S. bases hosted by their Gulf allies, and threatened to take actions if Iran continues violating their sovereignty.

In Warsaw, Poland, on January 26, 2026, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Fore

China Purges Nine More Military Officers and Ten Legislators Ahead of Annual Congress

China’s rubber-stamp legislature, the National People’s Congress, abruptly dismissed 19 of its deputies Thursday afternoon without explanation, including nine military officers. The move came after dictator Xi Jinping purged a series of high-ranking People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leaders, and only a week before the annual meeting of the Chinese legislature in Beijing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks at the beginning of a bilateral meeting with President

The Growing Signs that Xi Jinping’s Ruthless Purges Are Weakening China’s Military

The London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) said on Tuesday that China’s recent purges of military leadership have severely weakened the command structure of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and compromised the readiness of Beijing’s military forces – and the purges probably aren’t finished yet.

Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) review an ho