Media
“The Worst That It’s Ever Been”: Inside Sports Illustrated’s Winter of Discontent
Staffers are eyeing the exits after a year that began with layoffs and is closing with an AI scandal and the firing of top executives. Can the iconic magazine regain its footing?
Politics
The Pitch for a Unity Ticket in 2024 Keeps Getting Weaker
As it seemingly embraces a 15-week abortion ban, No Labels, the group pitching a third-party alternative, increasingly looks like a Joe Biden spoiler.
Why Trump’s Legal Cases Are Irresistible for Everyone but the Biden Campaign
The former president is in plenty of legal jeopardy. But all the court action could end up being a political distraction.
Trump Campaign
Colorado Supreme Court Boots Trump From Ballot. What Will It Mean for 2024?
The state’s high court said Trump is disqualified for participating in an insurrection. But with the case likely headed for the Supreme Court, the ultimate impact of the ruling remains to be seen. “We travel in uncharted territory,” the Colorado court acknowledged in its landmark 4-3 decision.
Media
The Year in Media: 7 Cliff-Hangers as We Close out 2023
What will the New Year bring for CNN, Fox, The Washington Post, Paramount, The Telegraph, and more?
GOP
Republicans Don’t Want to Answer for Trump’s Racist Anti-Immigrant Rant
Trump’s defenders suggest he was merely talking about policy when he said immigrants were “poisoning the blood of the country.” But there was nothing ambiguous about his remarks.
On The Scene
Walter Isaacson: Elon Musk Is a Genius When It Comes to Engineering, Not Human Emotion
The storied biographer sat down with Richard Stengel at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in New York to discuss his time with one of the most divisive people for his latest book, Elon Musk.
From the Magazine
Inside The New York Times’ Big Bet on Games
Wordle. Connections. Spelling Bee. Ye olde crossword. The Times is home to beloved brainteasers that are helping boost the paper’s bottom line. As one staffer jokes, the “Times is now a gaming company that also happens to offer news.”
2024 Election
Overturning Roe Has Been a Horror Show
Medical nightmares are happening before our eyes, and even as Americans in red and blue states express support for abortion rights, the GOP seems determined to crack down further.
SCOTUS
The Clarence Thomas Scandal Is Somehow Looking Even Worse
ProPublica reports that Thomas was in debt, frustrated with his salary, and implying he’d resign from the Supreme Court if his financial situation didn’t change—just before Harlan Crow and other conservatives started lavishing him with expensive gifts and luxury vacations.
Middle East
“It is Terrorism”: Pope Francis Denounces Killing of Two Christian Women in Gaza
The news came just a day after the Israel Defense Forces accidentally killed three hostages in Gaza.
2024 CAMPAIGN
“Poisoning the Blood”: Donald Trump Doubles Down On Anti-Migrant Language During New Hampshire Rally
The Biden campaign said Trump “parroted Hitler … and threaten[ed] American democracy.”
SANDY HOOK PAYOUT
Alex Jones Makes Low-Ball Offer to Sandy Hook Families: $55 Million Over A Decade
A lawyer representing the shooting victims’ relatives, who won defamation judgments worth $1.4 billion, said Jones's proposal “falls woefully short.”
Middle East
White House: IDF Mistaken Killing of Three Israeli Hostages “A Terrible Tragedy”
The hostages were not wearing shirts and waving a white flag on a stick, according to preliminary military reports.
Scandals
Bridget and Christian Ziegler: Everything We Know About the MAGA-Couple Scandal Involving Threesomes, an Alleged Payout, a Rape Accusation, and the Height of Republican Hypocrisy
The chairman of the Republican Party of Florida has been accused of raping a woman he and his wife previously had a threesome with. That’s just one part of the story.
Couldn’t Have Happened To A Nicer Guy
Rudy Giuliani Is Absolutely F--ked, Must Pay $148 Million to the Election Workers He Defamed
Oh, and he could be going to prison next.
Trump Trials
Jack Smith May Have a Secret Weapon Against Donald Trump at the Supreme Court
The former president has already lost many times before the justices. Whether he’s absolutely immune from prosecution is his latest Hail Mary. But there’s a twist.
THE LONG GAME
Bryan Johnson’s Antiaging Quest Has Made Headlines. But There’s More to His Story
The biohacker tech bro has spoken at length about his twin pursuits of eternal life and a younger penis. Now, he’s denying his ex-girlfriend’s allegations, amid news of a settlement.
Levin Report
Kevin McCarthy Says He Loved “Every Single Day” in Congress, Where His Colleagues Despised Him and Threw Him Out on His Ass
In one final humiliation, almost no one attended McCarthy’s goodbye speech.
Inside the Hive
The Democratic Strategist Who’s Bullish About Biden
Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg explains why he’s so optimistic about President Biden’s chances in 2024 despite all the bed-wetting among pundits and the media.
Crime
Rudy Giuliani Is a Hop, Skip, and a Jump Away From Telling His Cellmate “They Used to Call Me America’s Mayor”
He also might be officially broke before 2024 is out.