|
Few things excite Washington like the sordid details of a sex scandal. This week, between the Epstein files and previews of Olivia Nuzzi’s new book, the halls of Congress and the bistros of Georgetown have felt more like middle school cafeterias than corridors of power.
For the blissfully unaware, Nuzzi is a journalist who, like Hunter S. Thompson, is known for making stories as much about herself as the subjects she covers. Last year, she was fired from New York magazine when it was discovered she had a sexting affair with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Her new memoir documents that affair and how it derailed her engagement to fellow reporter Ryan Lizza. Kennedy, for what it’s worth, denies even knowing Nuzzi.
Lizza, meanwhile, has eagerly assumed the role of scorned lover. He is publishing a multi-part rebuttal to Nuzzi’s book on his Substack. The first installment makes the explosive insinuation that Nuzzi also had a liaison with former South Carolina governor (and Appalachian Trail enthusiast) Mark Sanford. Lizza, it should be noted, was fired from The New Yorker in 2017 over allegations of sexual misconduct, which he refutes.
All of this is trashy gossip, but it’s also a glimpse into the incestuous world of the D.C. elite, where policymakers and journalists regularly rub elbows at the same cocktail parties and soirees. These meetings are hotbeds for “access journalism,” where reporters prioritize their proximity to power over objectivity. Sometimes politicians trade juicy scoops for gentler coverage. Both Lizza and Nuzzi have swum in these waters, and, like many D.C. traditions, it has hastened our slide into authoritarianism.
Access journalism is now a business model. Many of D.C.’s thriving outlets—Punchbowl News, Semafor, Politico Pro—almost exclusively produce content tailored to political professionals. Much of this content is hidden behind prohibitively expensive paywalls. It’s news for the elite, by the elite. Local newspapers, meanwhile, are dying, NPR and PBS have been defunded, and the working people who decide our elections are turning increasingly to Joe Rogan and the fever swamps of X for information.
The Trump administration has intensified the problem with threats to revoke press credentials and broadcast licenses from outlets they don’t like. We’ve seen the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times hold more space for far-right voices. ABC and CBS settled frivolous lawsuits rather than go to war with Trump. Softening coverage to preserve access is nothing new, but the stakes are palpably higher. What does it mean for the press to treat the White House with kid gloves when that same White House is kidnapping mothers off city streets and sending troops into Chicago?
Nuzzi lacks integrity, but I would be remiss not to point out that many of the harshest critiques against her, which tend to focus on her appearance and writing style, smack of sexism. The purpose of this newsletter is not to attack her, but to shed light on the culture she represents.
Criticizing the media is a great American pastime—especially in our hyperpartisan age where seeing anything less than our opinion in the news feels like an injustice. But the real problem with the press isn’t bias; it’s financial incentives and the ambitions of unscrupulous reporters who would rather sit with the cool kids than report facts. |
