The Culture Wars Inside the New York Times

Plus: Kamala Harris makes her case; the fallout of Emmanuel Macron’s election maneuver; and Charles Burns’s stylish, repulsive stories. View in browser | Update your preferences Wednesday, July 10, 2024 In today’s newsletter, defining journalism, and then: • Kamala Harris makes her case • The fallout of Emmanuel Macron’s election maneuver • Charles Burns’s stylish, repulsive stories The Culture Wars Inside the New York Times Joe Kahn wants to incentivize his staff to take on difficult stories, even when they might engender scrutiny, or backlash. Illustration by Barry Blitt; Source photograph from Getty According to one estimate, nearly seven per cent of American newspaper employees now work at the New York Times—an example of how the paper’s influence, and the scrutiny it attracts, has perhaps never been greater. In a probing interview, Clare Malone speaks with the Times’ top editor, Joe Kahn, about publicized disputes in the newsroom over the paper’s coverage of transgender issues and the war in Gaza, the Times’ role in a potential second Trump Administration (“Fasten your seatbelts,” he says), and how his extended family’s charitable giving fits in with the paper’s ethics guidelines. Read the interview Support The New Yorker’s award-winning journalism. Subscribe today » More from the Interviews Issue Revisit the conversations we’ve published so far this week, and find out who said: “I’m not somebody who’s a naturally good storyteller.” “I like people who don’t have irony.” “The key to life is not being the guy that lost the pandas.” From the News Desk Dispatch Liberal Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas On Tuesday, with Joe Biden’s reëlection campaign in free fall, Vice-President Kamala Harris travelled to Nevada for what some hoped would be her launch as the Democratic Presidential candidate. By Antonia Hitchens Q. & A. The Uncertain Outcomes of Emmanuel Macron’s Election Maneuver The snap elections yielded a surprising defeat for France’s far right—and a new set of problems for Macron to contend with. By Isaac Chotiner What to Read This Summer Our writers share the books that transformed them, perfect to pick up this season. Nick Paumgarten recommends Cormac McCarthy’s fourth novel, “Suttree,” about a taciturn man, just out of jail, who turns his back on his wealthy family, preferring to net fish from a houseboat on the Tennessee River. Paumgarten admits youthful susceptibility to the book’s “share of elaborate sentences and possibly highfalutin metaphysics,” but what especially drew him in was “the lowdown humor—the bar talk, the greasy characters, and misbegotten capers.” Buy on Amazon or Bookshop If you know someone who would enjoy this newsletter, please share it. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Sign up. Culture Dept. Page-Turner The Agonies of Intimacy Two new graphic books by Charles Burns capture the pleasures and discomforts of human connection and self-expression. By Charles Burns Fun & Games Dept. Crossword A Beginner-Friendly Puzzle Liquefies, like a popsicle in the summer sun: five letters. By Caitlin Reid Shouts & Murmurs My Strict Morning Routine Before getting up, I like to lie under the covers for thirty minutes meditating, which is really just a fancy word for “falling back asleep.” By Graeme Carey Daily Cartoon Wednesday, July 10th By Adam Douglas Thompson Name Drop: Can you guess the identity of a notable person—contemporary or historical—in six clues? Play a quiz from our archive » P.S. “In July of 1995, Chicago effectively turned into Dubai.” Malcolm Gladwell explores what a deadly heat wave tells us about the politics and economics of managing disasters, in a piece from 2002 that is increasingly relevant today. 🥵 Today’s newsletter was written by Ian Crouch. What did you think of today’s newsletter? Let us know. If you like the daily newsletter, browse more New Yorker newsletters. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for the daily newsletter from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2024. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.