Premise
Feed is set several decades after the zombie apocalypse, referred to as the Rising. Two man-made viruses (a cure for cancer and a cure for the common cold) combined to form Kellis-Amberlee, a virus that quickly infects all mammalian life. Kellis-Amberlee is normally benign, but the virus can "go live" or "amplify", converting any host mammal over 40 pounds (18 kg) into a zombie. Amplification may take place in several ways: the death of the host, contact with infected bodily fluids, and spontaneous conversion.
Most humans now reside in tightly controlled safe zones, with rigorous blood testing and decontamination protocols used to prevent the spread of the live K-A virus. After the inaction of traditional media during the Rising, blogs and other new media have taken over as the primary source of information and entertainment; bloggers are recognized as professional journalists, with subgroups including "Newsies" (objective, fact-based reporters), "Irwins" (field workers), and "Fictionals" (fictional content and poetry creators).
Plot summary
In the year 2040, the blog After the End Times is selected to cover a presidential campaign. The team consists of Georgia "George" Mason, a Newsie; her adoptive brother Shaun, an Irwin; and their friend Georgette "Buffy" Meissonier, a Fictional and technology guru. Their coverage focuses on the presidential campaign of Senator Peter Ryman, a moderate Republican. When the campaign reaches Eakly, Oklahoma, zombies attack the campaign convoy. The team later discovers that this was an orchestrated attack. At the Republican National Convention, Ryman faces off against religious, right-wing Governor David Tate. During the convention, journalist Rick Cousins defects from the campaign of a minor candidate to join After the End Times. Ryman is selected as the Republican presidential candidate. During the convention, a zombie outbreak at Ryman's horse ranch kills his eldest daughter. Georgia and company investigate the ranch, learning that the outbreak started after a horse was injected with the live virus. Ryman selects Tate as his vice-presidential candidate.
The bloggers drive their vehicles and equipment overland. During the trip, the journalists' convoy is attacked by a sniper. Georgia, Shaun, and Rick survive; Buffy is bitten. As she dies, Buffy confesses to leaking information to a group undermining Ryman's campaign; the attack occurred because she had refused to continue. After killing Buffy, Georgia calls for rescue. The CDC arrives and takes the surviving group members for testing. After their release, the team digs into the underlying conspiracy, souring the bloggers' relationship with Ryman and Tate. The team finds evidence linking Tate to the attacks, along with hints of a broader conspiracy involving the CDC and other parties. When Georgia confronts Ryman during an event in Sacramento, California, he is skeptical. He instructs the bloggers to find concrete proof or risk being fired from the campaign. As the bloggers leave, they are attacked. Georgia is shot with a tranquiliser dart containing the live virus. Rick escapes with a copy of the group's evidence just before a zombie outbreak begins. Shaun helps Georgia expose the conspiracy through one last blog post. She then begins amplifying, forcing Shaun to shoot her.
Shaun and the surviving security detail contain the outbreak. He breaks into the convention center to confront Ryman and Tate. Tate takes Ryman's wife hostage with a syringe of the K-A virus. He claims that his actions were intended to use fear of zombies to reshape America into a more faith-based society. Then the governor injects himself with the syringe. Shaun shoots him to prevent zombification.
